Kleinmond Camping Site is worth a visit

We travelled to Kleinmond Camping site this year for our annual family camping treat. The Kleinmond campsite did not disappoint. In fact, the campsite is a family camper's dream venue. the campsite is situated in a Biosphere accredited by UNESCO, right there in the belt known as the Cape of Fynbos and hugged by the rugged Kogel berg mountain range. It is like camping in a nature reserve!

 

The facilities of the municipal campsite itself are as expected, basic, but there are areas of neglect like unkempt grass and overgrown camping nooks. However, the management of the resort has to be commended for keeping the public ablution facilities clean throughout the day and for also removing refuse regularly during the day with a final pickup early evening. Then of course, your camping neighbours can be quite colourful, but what the heck! Those who want absolute silence and complete privacy, should avoid these places where hardworking folk just want to relax, have fun and bond with their families.

But let me share the gems at Kleinmond campsite. A stone's throw away from your camp, is a lovely, rocky estuary where our kids caught tadpoles, hand- fished and enjoyed seeing the occasional frog in the shallow waters near the reeds. At another section of this estuary where the water is quite deep, the older cousins tried their hand at line fishing. Besides having much fun, the fish surely gave them the slip.

There is also the lagoon which provided hours of fun. We swam and the youngsters played water games like tag and baseball. On New Year's Day and the next, the lagoon was transformed into a colourful display. There were many canoeists and swimmers gliding on the lagoon. Somehow the dark, glassy water of the lagoon was amplified on these glorious summer days, underscoring the beauty of this masterpiece in nature.

The beach is only about 700m from the campsite. Caution is advised when swimming in these waters because of the strong back as well as rip currents. We had a marvelous time joining the Kleinmond New Year's Eve revellers on their blue-flagged beach, and helped to light up the night sky with fireworks.

What adds to the charm is that your journey from your camp to these natural delights is like being on a hiking trail. You walk along fynbos-lined footpaths and cross wooden foot bridges to get to the lagoon. We used this opportunity to show our children how to eat the wild sour figs and we gave a quick overview of the different plants we could identify ourselves.

To go the the beach, you follow the same route, except there is the added fun of passing through a short tunnel under the Main road as well. Then you cross the area covered with low-lying sand dunes and voila... there are the rolling waves beckoning.

We spent a day at the Kleinmond harbour as well. We explored the rocky pools and the surrounding mountain slopes. It was also interesting to see the local incoming boats being towed from the slipway. We sat on the rocks and ate freshly fried hake fish, calamari and chips. Harbour street is lined with quaint shops selling crafts, antiques and even honey. There are a few eateries as well, but the prices are relatively high therefore we opted for our takeaway meals and found enough seating on the large boulders.

The rest of the time we just did whatever the heart fancied. Before we knew it, the seven days were history and it was time to trek back to Cape Town. Even the trip to and from Kleinmond along the coast is a kaleidoscope of amazing vistas. This winding coastal road is known as the Whale Coast route because of the numerous viewing spots available to see our visitors, the Southern Right whales and their calves.

 

Kleinmond camping site will definitely see us again. In fact, we are going to encourage more of our young married nephews and cousins to set up camp as well.

 

 

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