The wind is as much part of the wallpaper of Pringle Bay as the mountains and sea. Perhaps for two months of the year, in April and in May, there will be stillness for days on end, but for the rest, befriend the wind or avoid the last of False Bay’s coves. Clarence Drive, the part of the R44 between Gordon’s Bay and Kleinmond, is among SA’s must-drive coastal scenic routes. After leaving Somerset West’s traffic behind, it is just a few kilometres until the natural wonders begin. Pringle Bay, between Rooi Els and Betty’s Bay, is a historic bolthole. Just over an hour’s drive from Cape Town, it has gravel roads, quiet nights, and mountains and sea enclosing a protected fynbos biosphere. Although the fynbos recently burned in raging fires, green shoots are already evident on the mountain path to the Brodie Link, a walking route between Betty’s Bay and Pringle Bay. The fire did not reach the Hangklip side of the reserve, which is still covered in pristine fynbos. It is a challenging cli...

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