We saved the best for last. After a delicious new year’s breakfast of homemade bread, avocado and granola in Napier, we continued west into the beautiful countryside of the Western Cape towards the little town of Tesselaarsdal. I don’t know the origin of the name Tesselaarsdal, but as we rode I imagined it being Afrikaans for “small village at the end of a very long, hot and bumpy dirt road.”

In truth, the area is a gorgeous valley surrounded by mountains and at the end of the road (up a steep and even bumpier driveway) we were welcomed with open arms and cold drinks by Anni, a dear and longtime friend of Allegra’s, and her partner Kelli. I’ll simply say that these two are among the most interesting and enjoyable people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting, with vast and worldly life experience, kind hearts, and an astonishingly productive little farm from which they prepare ridiculously delicious food. We cleaned up in an outdoor shower, snacked on home grown and cured olives and peppers, drank chilled local white wine, went for a walk with their dog Rabbit and had a fabulous South African braai (barbecue) with homemade hot sauce made with peppers from the garden. We chatted and laughed into the warm evening and as the sun set against the Langeberg Mountains in the distance, the moon and stars of the Southern Hemisphere slowly emerged, eventually blanketing the sky. We spent the night in a sweet guest cottage and slept with the double doors wide open, looking up at the night sky and listening to bullfrogs.

After a delicious breakfast, our hosts very generously gave us a “bucky” (truck) assist down the long dirt road. We said our farewells, feeling happy and inspired, and started to pedal towards Cape Town.

The final 30 kilometers of our ride was along the eastern coast of False Bay, on a road that hugs the coast, with dramatic cliffs and turquoise water, and is nothing short of spectacular.

As we pack up our bikes and get ready to head home, there’s a longing to just keep going, to explore the rest of South Africa and more of this amazing continent. Someday. For now, we are grateful for a wonderful adventure.