centre you will find quaint French style bakeries , pretty little coffee roasters and delicious meat pies fresh out the oven . This is a holiday town where everyone wears brightly coloured baggy board shorts and flip flops . There are almost always massive pods of dolphins ploughing the coast and beaches ladled with bikini clad women bronzing their beautiful bodies . The best part of Plett for me , is that the locals are always smiling . It ’ s a lovely place to spend a day , week , or month .
Our next stop was a little further along the Garden route in Knysna . Something impressive has happened here . From the mountains , thick forests have grown all the way down to the water ’ s edge . The water in question , is a calm lagoon . The large estuary is surrounded by mountains in a way that it almost seems to be cradled in a mother ’ s hands . The only gap is a narrow cutting between the cliffs that leads out to an invisible ocean beyond . At the cliffs , perched right next to the lagoon with views through the heads , is an eatery called the East Head Cafe . I have enjoyed a dozen or so excellent meals there , many of which were fueled by their impressive selection of cocktails . There is something special about sipping a mojito out of an old jam jar , while nestled in a surrounding of mountains , water , and dense forest . In the distance , you can hear the waves crashing through the gap in the cliffs .
A top bakery in Thesen Island , one of the two marina developments , make a very authentic French croissant . At the other marina , there is a waterfront development with a yacht club , walk on moorings for your boat and a splattering of great restaurants , trendy shops , and even an oyster bar right over the lagoon , where the Knysna oysters are harvested .
Knysna has become the home to many top international artists , authors , and some interesting hippie types . There are eclectic markets and lots of galleries , antique stores plus an excellent choice of alternative type restaurants . If you ’ re a vegan , you won ’ t go hungry here . If on the other hand , you are a meat lover , like me , you will be spoiled with a smorgasbord of grills cooking up seafood , steak , and ribs . The lagoon side waterfront development is well worth a walk around to stretch the legs and nibble on something if your tummy is rumbling . If you want to break your ride in three instead of two days as we did , I would confidently recommend Knysna as an overnight stop .
I would have loved to spend more time exploring Knysna , but time is money , and we were already poor . We mounted the Sym and sped off . So far , the wind was still in our favour and the rain suits still packed under the seat .
Sedgefield , came next . A small holiday village , where people came to visit and stayed , is more of a local ’ s hang out . If you want to avoid the visitors in Knysna , Plettenberg Bay and the larger places , Sedgefield may suit you well . My top recommendation here is to pull off about midway along the main road and walk around the rather special car dealer on the right . You won ’ t miss it . The place is large and imposing . It ’ s not unusual to see a selection of old cars as diverse as a pink Cadillac , an old dusty green Willeys Jeep , and even a pearly blue stretch hearse with chromed wings . I love the place and can marvel at the weirdness of the vehicle selection for hours . I am sure that , if you are reading this , there is at least a 75 percent chance of you too , being a petrol head like me . If you have any smidgeon of interest in old cars , please , stop , stop , STOP ! It ’ s shocking to see the crazy collection of vehicles this dealer has amassed . Where they all come from , baffles my mind .
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