TRAVEL FEATURE - SOUTH AFRICA
CHRIS VENTER
BLIND TASTING
It ’ s on many a man ’ s bucket list . Travel the famous US Route 66 . The dream way of doing the journey ? Maybe on a big Harley Davidson with a bunch of mates on their own hogs . Stop-offs at old school diners and long stretches of road to open-up on . Nothing but a runway of perfect asphalt ahead , fading as it reaches all the way into the distant horizon ; tumbleweed gently rolling over faun fields and gigantic rocky mountains framing the scenery . Small towns with those picture-perfect sidewalk shops and decorative streetlamps outside dodgy saloons would provide a welcome distraction after a long day in the saddle .
It ’ s a dream I have had many times . Perhaps largely based on what I have seen on the silver screen , including too many Terrence Hill and Bud Spencer ‘ spaghetti western ’ movies . When I first travelled Route 66 , at the tender age of 19 , it was not on the back of a chromed-up steel steed , but in a little 1980 ’ s model Nissan Sentra . There were few signs of the past I had anticipated , but lots of oddball attractions at places like ‘ The World ’ s Largest Ball of Twine ‘. I loved every minute of it none-theless .
I first read about South Africa ’ s ‘ little brother ’ to the famous R66 in a local travel magazine . I was curious about its claim to fame and whether it could stand tall next to its big brother on the opposite side of the globe . At 850 Kilometres , South Africa ’ s Route 62 is the longest wine route in the world . I like wine . I like going out and exploring . I like two wheeled travel . I just had to figure a way of doing the entire length of Route 62 myself . Only one small issue to overcome . I am blind .
Being sightless , there are some massive hurdles and questions that need pondering before undertaking such a trip . Could I get a mate to
TRAVERSE 65