Driving the Cape

(TOM) We slept in and were a bit lazy this morning. Much needed, I think. We had a great day. The drive around the Cape is supposed to be a full day deal, so we knew we likely wouldn't see it all, but we needed to have a mellow day, so we started at around 11:30.

We headed straight to Boulder Beach to see the penguins. They were great. We saw them in various stages, from egg to baby tucked under Mom or Dad (they both take care of little ones), larger ones molting, etc. They are really cute and funny, but also pretty. We ate there, then headed out for the Cape of Good Hope.

The geology and topography there is stunning. And, there were clouds rolling in, making it really dramatic. As we walked up the hill to the lighthouse, we turned around to see rain coming in, fast. It rained a bit, but stopped quickly and we took some cool pics before heading back down to the parking lot as the rain really set in (sorry about the blurry pic of us, a nice tourist agreed to do this in heavy wind and fast-approaching rain, and seems to have been a bit less than steady).

So, rather than drive along the Western part of the Cape for what is supposed to be among the most beautiful drives along steep cliffs, we took the little rental car on a safer route to Cape town as a rainy night came upon us. On the way out, we finally saw some of the famous baboons. They are very cool, though not very active due to the poor weather. Through it all, they were grooming, and even doing some territorial fighting at one point. Luckily we saw one of them running along with a baby holding on underneath as she went.

So, a seemingly boring, slightly disappointing day turns out to be just what we needed. Now off to bed so I can get up and run tomorrow for the first time since we got here. I am comfortable with a little route I got from the front desk here and will try to put in about 5 or 6 easy miles. Assuming the heavy rain stops...