Way back, in July, I entered an instagram competition for #plasticfreejuly and let’s be honest, whoever actually wins instagram competitions? But we did!!! We won a weekend away at the eco-friendly, pet-friendly, family-friendly Underhill Farm, in Botrivier, close to Elgin and Grabouw. This week I am bringing you a couple of posts about our weekend away…
Firstly, the Bot River is just about an hour’s drive from the city… the countryside, full of oak trees and apple orchards as far as the eye can see…
There is Everything to Love About Road Tripping.
Once you have had the obligatory road-trip-pit-stop at Peregrine farm stall and all her associated pop-up stalls, for their world famous pies and a quick coffee… you finally feel like you are in the country.
And yes… we had a passenger, because our first time ever, to visit accommodation that is pet friendly.
Winding roads…
Shady oak trees…
Cape fold mountains…
Wide open dams…
And alpacas…
Plotting and Planning
There are so many things to do in this little corner of the Western Cape, honestly you could visit for a month and not run out of things to do here… the thing is, it is close enough to Cape Town to make a day trip of it… but to be honest, it is so beautiful… you really want to stay over if you can.
- Top of my list of things to do would be The Cape Canopy Tours Ziplining Adventure, they have been on my wish list for years… definitely an adventure worth saving for.
- There is also Kloofing and Hiking in the Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve.
- You are definitely in wine country… and wine farms aplenty. Wherever there are winefarms there are picnics, wine tasting, and just beautiful great outdoors.
- Otherwise, seasonal fruit picking, horse riding, cycling, camping and glamping.
- A walk along the Bot River Trail.
- We did spend time at a wonderful pottery workshop in Porcupine Hills and it was absolutely fantastic.
- And of course, a visit to the Elgin Railway Market is an absolute must.
An Absolute Highlight: A Pottery Workshop
Part of the Giveaway Prize was a pottery workshop with renowned ceramicist, Zbys Kaczmarek, on the neighbouring farm, Porcupine Hills. We absolutely loved it… we learned so much, it was a vibrant and exciting afternoon and we learned not only about decorating, but firing them up in the kiln… and surprisingly, after a whole lot of magical tricks with sawdust, we got something beautiful bowls to take home with us and remember our trip by.
We even came home with some fabulous pots that we had spent the afternoon creating.
The Elgin Railway Market
When we woke up on Saturday morning it was pouring down with rain, we decided to go for a drive in the country and ended up visiting the Elgin Railway Market… I have been dying to go there for years, so it was fabulous to finally be there. It is an excellent place to visit (take a look at the website for the opening hours) any day of the week, but especially on a rainy Saturday morning.
There are dozens of vendors, serving every imaginable type of food you can imagine. From preserves, and olives, every type of platter and take out, poke bowls to wraps to waffles, and endless sweet treats.
Also wine tasting, gin tasting, coffees and smoothies…
There not only food traders, but plant stalls, and clothing, and our favourite store… a vintage store full of all sorts of treasures.
And Lazy Wandering on the Bot River Trail
And finally, back at Underhill Farm, where we were staying, there is a lovely trail along the river… so many magical little corners for adventuring and exploring… our kids would absolutley love this, loads of picnics and happy wandering…
Definitely in apple blossom and oak tree country, and totally, totally worth a visit.
More about where we stayed… and the accommodation at Underhill Farm tomorrow.
Photo Gallery from our Weekend Away
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