Day 42 - Thursday 15 February 2024

Today I had an adventure that I booked in November, and as it approached I became less and less sure I wanted to do it .... still, it was booked so I did it ..... and I'm so pleased that I did.

Awake early, and down to breakfast at 07:00; I was due to be picked up at the hotel at 10:10 for a Cape Coast Winery Ride; a bicycle ride of about 10 miles with plenty of wineries en route to try out!

I was picked up at 10:00, and it took about an hour to get to our starting point at the Black Barn vineyard. We were given a map of the route and wineries, but before departing decided to sample the wares at this establishment; it would have been rude not to. 

I'd been chatting with a couple from Vancouver (Bill and Eve) on the transfer, and we decided to group together, so after a very nice glass of wine we set out on our adventure; they had e-cycles, and I just had Bryan Power to get me around (to the tune of 1BP). Things didn't start well; we turned left out of the winery when we should have turned right. After a few minutes of not encountering the river we had been promised, I checked Google Maps and discovered our folly, so we turned around and were on track.

So focused were we on finding the river, that we totally missed the second possible vineyard on the expedition .... perhaps not a bad thing! One more sign missed that lead us a bit astray, we finally found the cycle path and soon knocked off the next kilometres to Askerne Vineyards, where we stopped and each had a sample selection of 5 wines, which was all very nice and civilised.

Back onto the bikes, and the longest single stint, along and then over the river before turning and cycling along the coastline. This was a tough stint; the wind was blowing in my face, the temperature was 27 degrees and the track was slightly uphill (and no, it wasn't cyclists paranoia). 

We finally arrived at Elephant Hill winery where I was hoping for some food, but not at the prices they were charging for a small plate.

Instead I had a glass of Sauvignon Blanc to give me energy for the final push; we left here and had 50 minutes to our pickup at 16:00. I'd been put in charge of spotting signage by now, and as we cycled along a path next to a road I spotted the sign to our final destination. Bill and Eve were quite a way ahead until a holler bought them back. 1.7km up a gravel track bought us to our destination with about 25 minutes until the deadline ..... so a glass of wine to celebrate completion of the mission for the day before a transfer back to the hotel.

Well, it would have been; they forgot that they had picked me up at my hotel this morning, so when we arrived at their base and I asked how to get to my hotel (assuming it was a short walk) I was met with confusion and then realisation, so I then got my own transfer back to my hotel.

Today has been another fantastic but tiring day. It's the first time I've been on a bike in decades, and I'm feeling all of the pain in all of the places you would expect (despite having a gel seat). 

Once back at the hotel, Laundry became the priority, so a load of laundry went in at 18:30. All done at 20:00, time for dinner, completing the update of the vlog for yesterday and bed.