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Did you know that Stilbaai, located approx. 4 hours out of Cape Town along the Garden Route, is also known as the Bay of Sleeping Beauty? This little dot on the map became a municapility in 1965, and is now part of the Hessequa Local Municipality.

It is a classic holiday resort town with its small number of permanent inhabitants and warm coast for surfing and swimming. During the height of summer, care should be taken as many bluebottles could be blown to shore when the easterly wind is blowing. Stilbaai has a moderate climate and rainfall is almost the same for the different seasons; the temperature averages between 12° and 20° Celsius in winter and 20° and 28° Celsius in summer. 

There are several unusual natural wonders in the area such as caves and strange rock formations and a large number of eels populate the streams. Quite a few nature reserves are found in the area, such as the Pauline Bohnen Nature Reserve with various hiking routes, and the Skulpiesbaai Nature Reserve situated near the harbour. The Geelkrants Nature Reserve is situated close to the ‘Pulpit’ rock formation.

Stilbaai is also host to a number of interesting archaeological sites, including ancient fish traps thought to have been built by early ancestors of the Khoi people of the Southern Cape, and a shell landfill that has been carbon dated to around 1000 BC.

Interesting features of the area include a group of caves at Blombos cave, about 12 kilometers from Stilbaai, where artefacts of ancient early inhabitants have been found. Further evidence of later human presence can also be found at Stilbaai in the fish traps, known as vywers (ponds), some of which are still in use today.

– Gerhard Brits

 

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Hoedspruit is a town situated on the T-junction between the R527 (the road from Blyde River Nature Reserve and Swadini) and Klaserie Road at the foot of the Klein Drakensberg in South Africa's lowveld region. The town has a pleasant climate most of the year, although summers can get a bit hot with daily averages of around 30°C, and consequently has numerous game lodges, reserves, and other nature-related tourist attractions. It is in close proximity to the Kruger National park (the Orpen and Phalaborwa gates) and is located in an area known as the 'Valley of the Olifants'.  

The town used to be fairly agricultural, but these days you will find the ‘Kamogelo’ tourism centre just after you drive in. With the wealth of things to do hidden in the surrounding bushveld, this makes for a good first stop to orient yourself.

Hoedspruit is also known for its wildlife breeding and care centres such as The Hoedspruit Research and Breeding Centre for endangered African wildlife species which is engaged in research and breeding of endangered species, especially the cheetah, African wild dog and black-footed cat.

The Hoedspruit Air Force Base was opened outside of town on 1 July 1978. 

 – Gerhard Brits

Photo by jespahjoy

 

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Clanwilliam

Watching the late afternoon sun stroking the grass in the Clanwilliam valley, I can see why this spot was chosen for settlement. Clanwilliam is actually one of the 10 oldest towns in South Africa, and still holds many historical buildings. Venture out of town, and the rugged scenery will surely win you over. There are also a myriad of trails to explore in the area.

  – Erik on Instagram (@nightjartravel)

 

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Hold on to your hats; the Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour 2013  is an absolute corker. The iconic tour is always a highlight of the outdoor adventure calendar in South Africa – and I was lucky enough to get sneak preview of what’s in store when the film festival kicks off in a couple of weeks time.

The 11 short films cover an eclectic range of adventure sports from the breathless footage of death-defying wingsuit flying to the beautifully shot, quirky film of mountain bike ace Danny MacAskill showing off his skills on the industrial architecture of an abandonned ironworks. Some made me green with envy; I just wanted to be with the guys in Being There, standing on remote Norwegian peaks waiting their turn to carve down impossibly steep, and even more impossibly beautiful, virgin slopes and to join speed-riders Maxence Cavalade and François Bon as they glided above the clouds in the French Alps. Others, like the Wide Boyz - in which Tom Randall and Pete Whittaker, two plucky youngsters from the ‘norf’ of England, are shown training in their customised Sheffield basement before confounding the international climbing community by grunting and grinding their way up some of America’s ‘unclimbable’ off-width crack lines - had me shuddering at the awfulness of their chosen endeavour.  

There are inspiring stories like The Gimp Monkeys in which three disabled climbers (with only four legs between them) take on the iconic big wall of El Capitan and a hilarious documentary on the first Afgan ski championships – you guessed it, featuring a band of intrepid locals who’d only been introduced to the sport two weeks before the event. And this year, for the first time, a locally made documentary will be screened in the South African leg of the tour. Path to the Future,  an evocative account of two paragliders soaring with threatened Cape vultures, was the winner of Cape Union Mart’s Adventure Film Challenge 2013, a local competition aimed at encouraging budding filmmakers to capture South Africa’s local outdoor adventure lifestyles. 

But the star of the show for me was the ebullient Lily the Jack Russell who takes all the obstacles in her stride as she stays on the tail of a mountain biker carving out new lines in Utah. I laughed for the full four minutes. And it reminded me why I love Banff so much. It’s not just about the terrifying risks that modern adventurers take as they push their limits or about the grandiose scenery of remote Arctic environments. The Banff Mountain Film Festival is just as much about having a giggle and celebrating everyday life in the great outdoors. It’s a wonderfully fun night out for all the family.

 – Fiona McIntosh

Hosted by Cape Union Mart for the eighth consecutive year, the Banff Mountain Film Festival will be screened at five Ster-Kinekor cinemas across the country from 25 October to 1 November 2013. Ticket prices are the same as a standard Ster-Kinekor ticket and can be booked online via www.sterkinekor.co.za.

Cape Town: Cavendish Square, 25 Oct – 1 Nov & Tygervalley Centre, 25-31 Oct
Johannesburg: Sandton City, 25 Oct – 1 Nov
Pretoria: Brooklyn Mall, 25-31 Oct
Durban: Gateway Centre (one screening only on 1 November)

For more information, visit www.banff.co.za 

Entries for the 2014 Cape Union Mart Adventure Film Challenge are now open, visit www.banff.co.za/adventure-film-challenge-2014.php

 

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Turtle Tours

If you’re anywhere near iSimangeliso or Kosi in KZN include a turtle tour into your itinerary. Between November and March Loggerhead and Leatherback turtles waddle onto the beach at night to lay their eggs, returning each year to the exact same spot. The accredited guides are eco-sensitive and allow you to take photos at the right time, this was a snap of a Loggerhead turtle that I was lucky enough to capture during my turtle tour. This is for all those non-divers out there - this is your chance to see these magnificent creatures up close!

 – Megan Pilditch

 

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4000 Islands, Laos

By the time we reached Don Khong our journey had taken us on an overnight train from Bangkok to a town near the border, on a short ride to the border squeezed into the back seat of a local bakkie, on a shuttle to Pakse and finally on a ‘sawngthaew’ (basically a small pick-up truck with a row of seats down each side and a roof which is piled high with bags, boxes, chicken, bags of rice and everything else you can imagine) to the shore opposite our destination. But wow, was it worth the journey!

Don Khong is the largest island in the beguiling archipelago of islets and palm studded sand bars that scatter the widest part of “the mother of all rivers’, the Mekong. Pretty much a one-street affair with a quiet so still you can hear your own heart beating… a place where the skies seem wider, the air fresher and life better. 

Not to be missed is trying to spot the rare Irrawaddy dolphin. This fresh water dolphin is critically endangered with as little as of 7000 left in the world. Due to the help of the Laos and Cambodian Government as well as the local fishermen the pod living below Don Khon has increased from 20 to almost 100!

- Shan Routledge

 

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A day at the stadium

I may be a little biased, but the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban has to be one of the best around. It’s so much more than just a soccer pitch. Start your day off with a burst of energy and leap off the stadium arch from the only stadium swing in the world. Alternatively, for the fainthearted, enjoy a good breakfast at one of the restaurants that surround the stadium and then either take a walk up the stadium arch or get a ride in the Sky Car. You can also spend your money at the monthly iHeart Market or save it for the annual Top Gear festival that is held there. It’s the stadium to be at.

– Daniella Toscano