Planning your own trip to South Africa? Read more about my Garden Route itinerary here.

Hermanus is the next stop on my Garden Route road trip. To recap: I’d suggest arriving here in the afternoon on Day 1, following a morning spent driving along the coast from Cape Town. Hang out in Hermanus for a few hours to spot whales and dine at one of many great restaurants, and then drive one more hour to overnight in Gansbaai (in preparation for an early shark cage diving tour in Gansbaai the following morning).

Hermanus would be a pretty place to visit any time of year, but I happen to be in town at the height of whale watching season — September and October.

This sign says it all:

Several companies offer whale watching tours multiple times a day during these months. But remarkably, you don’t have to go out to sea to spot whales — they swim very close to the shore, and if you look carefully you’ll spot a fin or a tail… or even the whole upper body.

The coastline here is exceptionally pretty. The town of Hermanus is charming as well, and it’s easy to explore the whole area in an hour or two on foot. There are dozens of restaurants with enticing menus, so plan your visit around meal time.

The town knows that whale watching is its bread and butter, and they have prepared accordingly — benches, alcoves, and overlooks with fixed binoculars dot the shore. There’s not a bad seat in the house.

I dig this statue on display at one of the viewpoints:

Splashes along the coast are a frequent occurrence. Crowds will gather and point, so everyone knows where to look.

I spy a splash…

Here’s another whale closer to shore:

I snap dozens of shots, but this one shows off more of the whale’s body — with tremendous force, he catapults above the surface. He’s only a few dozen yards away from where I’m standing on shore.

While waiting for whales to surface, I click away at the flora on display around me.

After an hour or two of whale watching, I get more serious about my restaurant options. I decide wherever I go must have an ocean view.

I end up at a place called Coco’s where I order the sangria. It arrives in a carafe.

It’s perfectly pulpy and they don’t skimp on the booze — this stuff is so strong that I can’t drive for like, three hours after finishing it.

I order dinner at a place right down on the ocean called Bientang’s Cave. I’m intrigued by its location — a cave? — and dig the seaside views.

I’ve enjoyed a few stellar meals lately and this one doesn’t live up to the others.

But since I’m still a little buzzed from the sangria, I head to yet another place for dessert. I’m proud at how I manage to sample three different restaurants in as many hours.

I don’t recall the name of this place, but when I order the brownie, the waiter insists I try the apple crisp instead. He’s not wrong…

While we’re on the topic of food, I want to share a photo from my breakfast that day — I ordered a delicious meal at Wimpy. It’s worth mentioning because this is a national chain that exists all over South Africa and beyond. It’s maybe on par with Denny’s in the States? While I’m not usually into diner food, I make a habit of eating here during my trip because they have cheap and healthy breakfast options. I think I paid $2.50 for the meal below — grilled mushrooms, tomatoes, bacon, and toast — plus $2 for a latte. AND they have wifi at most locations, so they win my devotion and a shout-out on the blog.

Okay, back to business. After sobering up over dessert, I drive the final leg of the day — about an hour further to Gansbaai.

In yesterday’s post I mentioned that I stayed with my former tour guides near Gansbaai at Uilenkraalsmond Resort (go ahead and try to pronounce THAT)— Riaan and Juliana are renting a cabin on the beach and kindly offer me their couch for the night. It’s so great to see them again and catch up. When you spend a few months traveling solo around Africa, running into a familiar face or two feels like the best stroke of luck.

I wake up early to go for a beach walk in front of their cabin. There are very few other people up at this hour and it feels great to have the place practically to myself.

Thanks for hosting me! Can’t wait to see you again!

Well, Gansbaai is home to shark cage diving… so guess what the rest of my morning will entail? (Hopefully not missing limbs.) More on that next week… and for my friends in the States, have a happy 4th of July weekend!