Category: travel

Ice Road news

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Great news for anyone wanting to travel between the Estonian islands of Hiiumaa and Saaremaa, but who hasn’t been able to get a ferry because of all the sea ice in the… er… sea.

The authorities have opened a 17km ice road between the islands – specifically between Tärkma on Hiiumaa and Triigi on Saaremaa – over the frozen sea.

This is pretty cool (no pun intended), as it’s an official ice road, sanctioned by the government and maintained by a private contractor. You can even check on the current status of the ice road on this website.

The really good news about this official ice road is that it’s safe, simply because it’s sanctioned and maintained. But Estonians are a wild bunch, and so authorities have had to warn against individuals using several unofficial ice roads (no sanction, no maintenance; no Pirlo, no party).
That does come with some risks:

“The concern is really about this uncontrolled situation. The risk is high. Right now, one might think the danger is not great since the weather is so cold. Because right now the road is unclear and not everyone knows exactly where to go. You definitely have to monitor the road. There is just one spot where there’s a crack with water, but otherwise it’s totally passable.”

Oh, just the one spot where the freezing, dark, salty water of doom is creeping through?
That’s perfectly ok then.

The list of rules for the official ice road is long, involving weight limits, visibility constraints, distance between vehicles and banning overtaking. Also:

Seat belts must be unfastened, and vehicle doors should remain easily openable.

But why? Oh, wait.

Oh.

Right.

But it’s not like they haven’t thought this stuff through. How about this for a directive:

The recommended speed is up to 25 km/h or between 40–70 km/h (speeds between 25–40 km/h may generate a resonance wave that could damage the ice).

I wonder how they found that out?

I think that it’s unlikely that ice roads will ever be a thing here in SA. Mainly because of the weather, but then where would we go to anyway? Robben Island? That’s really about it for local offshore land around here. But it’s probably just as well, given our dodgy driving reputation.

Honestly though, this Estonian version sounds like something that you should experience at least once in your life. Or just do an unofficial one and make it the last thing you do in your life.

I could live here

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It’s Denmark, which is the most boring of the Scandinavian countries I have been to (n=3), but still – look at this:

This bar will give you a free beer between 12 and 1pm.

There’s no catch, no obligation to buy another beer or any food or any other product. You just turn up and ask for your free beer, please. And then you can leave, although I’d advise you to drink the thing once you’ve ordered it, obviously.

The only T&C here is that you are only allowed one per customer per day, and that seems a bit tight perfectly reasonable.

As a loss leader for the bar, one presumes that it must work, otherwise they wouldn’t be running it. And – according to the guy who shared this – it’s not a limited promotion either. This has been going on since New Year already, and shows no sign of stopping.

I’ve seen beer offers before, but they’ve always come with the inevitable hidden catch. There isn’t one here. And for reference, a bar-bought 500ml Tuborg costs about 60DKK in Denmark, which is a terrifying R127, so this is a pretty sweet deal.

Sadly, the price of flights alone make this one a bit of a non-starter for us here in Cape Town, but if any of the local pubs are reading this and thinking that something along these lines might be worth a bit of a trial run… well… let me know and I’ll see you at noon tomorrow.

View from the weekend

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We went away and then we did very, very little.

Save, of course, from enjoying the views, the hot tub, the pool and the pizza oven.

On Saturday morning, I went out on a bit of run that then turned into a bit of a hike, and ended up climbing up onto the koppie 250m above our accommodation, leaving me with this view down the Breede Valley:

Not bad at all. New phone camera doing the business.
And I only nearly died a couple of times.

Right now, it’s back to reality: picking up kids from school and making dodgy salads for dinner.

But… it was a fun weekend.

I think I’m going to like it here

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We arrived yesterday afternoon after a leisurely drive down and a stop at the infamous Moerse Padstal in Napier. I am now able to totally recommend their roosterkoeke and their friendly welcome. It’s been a few years since we stopped there, but what a friendly place.

And now there’s just sunshine and blue skies and (almost) nothing to do. The wind is blowing, but it keeps the temperature manageable and the flies at bay.

As expected, the extra strain of all the visitors on the cell tower here means crawlingly slow internet, but there are other things to do: books to read, braais to enjoy, naps to plan.

We’ll be ok.

Oh, and if there was a good omen for this week or so away, surely it was the sight of a Black Harrier (Circus maurus) on the dirt road on the way in.

Nice start.

I think I’m going to like it here.

The weekend that was

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I’ve finally recovered enough to share a few images and a few words about a great weekend away near Montagu. Yeah yeah, the place says Robertson, and it’s probably closer to Robertson as the crow flies, but cars and people can’t fly (yet), and so Montagu is the town of choice for a Google Maps location.

And we were right up in the mountains, miles from anywhere. The track up to the place was challenging in parts, but acted as a great barrier betweeen us and the outside world for 3 days.

Last time I was here, there was snow everywhere, and the time before that, it felt like there should be snow everywhere. But aside from a couple of summer showers, this weekend was blissfully hot and lazy.
Hours on end dozing by the pool.

It’s worth noting that when I’m away, I let the other people take photos of the other people. My thing is getting the landscapes and the wildlife, and I much prefer that to making anyone uncomfortable by shooting them – posed or otherwise.

And the place itself is just beautiful. Views for days. Fynbos as far as the eye can see.

And who needs humans in the shot when you’ve got a tortoise?

Sadly not much in the way of unusual birds: Familiar Chat, Fork-Tailed Drongo, the occasional Jackal Buzzard passing by (some good Booted Eagle and Pale Chanting Goshawk action on the way home though), but some stunning Dragon- and Damsel-flies.

And a reed-bed pond for purifying the farm dam style swimming pool had some very pretty waterlilies:

All in all, a perfect few days away with friends. Fun, laughter, games, sleep, braais, drinks, a couple of hikes, a run, some ‘togging, and some delicious relaxation.

10/10 would recommend.