On Day 4 of this Cape Flower Season Route, you head for Darling with a stop at the Tienie Versfeld. Wildflower Reserve. Catch a show at Evita se Perron, or lunch at Groote Post. Sunset and dinner at Blouberg.
From Die Winkel op Paternoster, return through Vredenburg to R27 (24 km) and turn right to Cape Town. At 72 km, turn left onto R315 Darling. Tienie Versfeld Wildflower Reserve is on the right at 75 km. Enter Darling at 86km. Turn left into Hoof Street, second left into Kerk Street, then second right into Arcadia Street. Evita se Perron is on the left at about 87 km.
Heading for home you can either retrace your route through Vredenburg and onto the R27, or take a longer route via St Helena Bay (take the gravel road signposted Stompneusbaai as you leave Paternoster - ask a local about the road's condition before you set off).
St Helena Bay is slightly more industrial than scenic - it has one of the biggest fish canning factories in the southern hemisphere - but it's also the place where Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama first touched southern African soil on 7 November 1497. A cross marks the spot. The village's other claim to fame is that it's the only place on the West Coast where you can watch the sunrise over the sea, due to its position on the bay. You'll stumble over the Tienie Versfeld Wildflower Reserve about three kilometres after you turn off the R27.
Entrance is free and the gates are always open - actually there is no gate, just a wooden stile to climb over the fence. This is pristine Renosterveld and there are at least two flowers, the yellow wine cup and the red-flowered sundew, that are found only in the reserve. Renosterveld is very scarce - less than four percent of its original extent still exists.
Darling is home to South Africa's most famous satirist, Pieter-Dirk Uys (aka Evita Bezuidenhout), whose state of the nation revues at Evita se Perron - the old Darling railway station - keep a humorously sharp eye on our fledgeling democracy with a wit that cuts to the bone.
Enjoy an afternoon or evening show over a plate of traditional boerekos, washed down with lashings of satire, sit outdoors on the Piazza dolcEvita or browse around Evita se A en C, the arts and crafts shop full of soaps, candles and other gifty goodies made in the area, as well as a collection of Africana books.
Darling to Groote Post
When you leave Evita se Perron, turn left and left again into Hoof Street, heading out of town. After 10 km, turn right onto gravel, signed to Groote Post. Turn left into Groote Post at 18 km. If going straight to Cape Town, stay on the tar past the turn-off to Groote Post. At 20km, turn right R307 (R27) Cape Town. At 33 km turn left onto R27 Cape Town.
Head out of Darling on Hoof Street and you'll see a signposted turn-off to Groote Post wine estate after about 10 kilometres. Be prepared for about another 10 kilometres on gravel - it's a good idea to phone Groote Post to check the road's condition, especially if there's been a lot of rain.
Groote Post, a national monument, is a gorgeous farm dating way back to 1706 that now focuses on producing a range of excellent red and white wines. Taste them all in the winery (once an eighteenth-century fort), and then settle back for a delectable lunch in the high-ceilinged, yellowwood-floored manor house.
Groote Post to Blouberg to Cape Town
Turn left onto the main gravel road. After 10 km, turn left on R27. At about 50 km, at traffic lights turn right into Blaauwberg Road M14. At 1 km, T-junction right into Beach Road (Marine Drive). At 53 km turn left into Sir David Baird then second left into Stadler. On the Rocks is at about 54 km.
It's an easy drive to the last stop on this route, On the Rocks restaurant in Bloubergstrand, from where you can watch the sunset over the sea as Table Mountain turns from green to purple. From there retrace the route you took on Day One back to the Waterfront in Cape Town on the R27 and the N1.
Self drive routes from Cape Town invite visitors to the Mother City to experience the natural splendour, fun activities and scenic attractio...