Fish and chips at Struibaai Harbour – Featured Blog

I always think that the guys along the coast in the Western Cape are very fortunate because of the amount of fresh fish available to them from all the fishing harbours.  Whenever we get to travel in the province we like to go and have fish and chips from a local takeaway, usually overlooking the harbour and surrounds.  During December we were camping in the Overberg and did a daytrip from Gansbaai to Agulhas.  Somewhere in between the Damselfly mentioned that she hoped we would be able to have fish and chips along the way and by the time we entered Struisbaai it was past lunch time already and the stomachs were grumbling louder than the KidZ on the back seat.  We went straight to the scenic Struisbaai Harbour which, along with the adjacent beach, was packs with holiday makers.

We headed towards the biggest gathering of people around what looked like the restaurant area on the harbour but disappointingly turned around at the door when we noticed a regular restaurant menu and prices.  We wanted proper takeaways.  As we strolled around the corner we saw what we were looking for.  A caravan doing takeaways plus a sign saying everything is done fresh and from scratch so the food may take a little time.  Now that is a language we understand. Snoek, hake and calamari enjoyed with proper slap chips from takeaway containers.  All that was missing was the food being wrapped in newspaper, but what the heck, we found what we were looking for.

I have a special connection with the Tsitsikamma forest.  It is where I go to plug in my soul for a bit of a recharge.  It doesn’t even have to be an extended recharge.  Just a couple of minutes sitting in the forest next to a stream taking in the forest with all my senses is enough.  There are various ways to explore the forest with trails being the most effective way to leave everything behind.  One of these “trails”, the biggest one actually, is the old Storms River Pass starting from Storms River Village.

The Tsitsikamma (then known as Zitzikama) area was first surveyed by the famous pass builder Thomas Bain in 1879.  He found impenetrable forests east of Plettenberg Bay with access made even tougher by deep gorges.  During the planning process of building a pass through the Storms River gorge, Bain followed the ancient elephant migratory routes down to the river and as elephants find the easiest way down, decided to build his pass along those routes.  Labour for this difficult task was provided by convicts and some of their graves can still be seen on the outskirts of the Village.  The pass itself was completed in 1884 and until the N2 and Storms River Bridge were built in 1955 was the only way to get through the gorge.  Today the road is closed for traffic and can only be access on foot, bicycle or on Storms River Adventures’ Woodcutters Journey tour.  

 

At the bottom of the pass the forest opens up and while the guide unpacked a picnic lunch, we took a walk to the low water bridge over the Storms River.  I’m sure I was told at some stage that the bridge were built by soldiers after the first World War, but please don’t quote me on that.  I can’t seem to find any info on it on the internet.

The trip down the Storms River Pass really is an alternative way to explore the forest and learn a bit more in the process.  I need to be alone to recharge though and the batteries are starting to run low.  I think a return visit is just about in order.