When Dad was a teenager, he lived in Claremont, about 25km from Fish Hoek. On one particularly hot day, he and a friend decided to ride their bikes to the beach. Not Muizenberg, the closest beach, but Fish Hoek, a considerable way further along the road. Those of you who are unlucky enough not to be familiar with the Cape Peninsula may not appreciate the effort involved in a trip of that magnitude, and we who have grown up with the ease of use of trains, cars and other powered vehicles would never even contemplate riding a bike so far! But in those days, it was the only way youngsters could get around at no cost.
The ride from Wynberg down to Muizenberg was a very slight downhill slope and it got a bit hilly along the coast from Muizenberg to Fish Hoek, where sand flats were the order of the day. A fierce southeaster was blowing and it required pedal power to make progress against the wind. There were no fancy gears to help the rider, just strong legs.
After an invigorating and refreshing swim and relaxing on the beach, it was time to set off for home. The southeaster hadn't abated, and was so strong that it blew them all the way back home with almost less effort than on the way down. The problem was, by the time they got home, they needed another swim!
No comments:
Post a Comment