Garden Route Unearthed

Hiking the dune trails at Simbavati Fynbos on Sea in Sedgefield

When you are out and about in Sedgefield, you will notice a building on the dune by Swartvlei Lagoon.

It is hard to miss this building as it is the only one built on the dune. It is Simbavati Fynbos of Sea, which is a 9-bedroom Lodge, plus has a stand alone, self-catering cottage as well as a Bistro and is surrounded by 600 hectares of fynbos reserve.

Luckily for those of us living in Sedgefield and for those visiting Sedgefield and staying elsewhere in the Garden Route, you do not have to stay at the lodge to enjoy the hiking trails, mountain biking routes and the most incredible view of Sedgefield, the Swartvlei Lagoon and the ocean.

The entrance to Simbavati Fynbos of Sea is next to Rosie’s Steak House and the Links Golf Course, on the road to Swartvlei Beach alongside the lagoon.

If you are driving from Sedgefield to George, take the left turn, off the N2 as you cross the Swartvlei Lagoon. Drive over the cattle grid and on your right-hand side, you will see The Links Golf Club House and the electric gate to Simbavati Fynbos on Sea to the right of the Club House.

You will need to call reception (the number is shown on the gate), in order for them to open the gate for you. Once through the gate, you start the drive up on to the dune. At points along the drive, you catch glimpses of the view over the lagoon and Sedgefield and it is truly spectacular. You also pass part of the Protea Farm and in season, the plants are full of beautiful protea flowers in bloom.

There are many different activities to enjoy at Simbavati Fynbos on Sea, from self-guided hiking trails, mountain bike routes, Guided fynbos walks, Guided 4×4 nature drives, even a tour of the Protea farm and for those with enough experience, paragliding.

We have visited Simbavati Fynbos on Sea a few times, both on our own and with different visitors and each time have enjoyed the 5km hiking trail.

The 5km hiking trail takes you across the fynbos reserve with views of the Outeniqua Mountains in the distance. The trail is sandy and clearly marked. I would describe it as an easy walk. There are some inclines, where you may need to stop, catch you breath and check out the scenery, but mostly it is flat and easy to navigate. Just watch out for the cane rat mole holes. these are plentiful and can be quite deep, so tread carefully.

Every time we have hiked this particular trail we have seen zebra grazing and roaming around.

Sometimes they have stopped to regard us with a suspicious and an inquisitive eye, other times they put on a little display playing amongst themselves and racing away the nearer we get. Either way, it always makes you smile to see these animals enjoying their habitat.

As well as zebra, on one occasion when we were hiking here, we were extremely lucky to see a couple of eland. They were very close to us, but relaxed and undisturbed by our presence.

Eland are the largest antelope that are found in South Africa and when you see them up so close, you realise just how big they really are.

There are also, bushbuck and waterbuck in the reserve, but we have not spotted either of these species yet.

Perhaps our most amusing sighting when we were hiking the 5kms trail one time, was a cane rat mole hard at work, digging away furiously. I guess our footsteps may have spooked him and he wanted to hide and protect himself, or maybe he just found our conversation uninteresting and was determined to get underground as quickly as possible, to escape!

There are also a variety of different bird species to enjoy listening out for and spotting on these hikes, so be sure to take some binoculars with you.

As you continue along the hiking trail, you will eventually reach the view point, which is also the launch site for the Paragliders.

From the view point you have the most incredible coastal view.

From Gerickes Point to your right, you can walk back along Swartvlei Beach, to the Swartvlei parking area, then continue to the mouth of the Swartvlei estuary and past the mouth, as far as the eye can see is Myoli Beach, followed by Cola Beach, all the way to the rocky point, where the beach then rounds the headland and continues to Plakbank Beach and eventually on to Buffalo Bay.

The distance in one direction from Gerickes Point to the rocky point at the end of Cola Beach is approximately 12kms. And the entire stretch is a beautiful sandy beach.

When the estuary mouth is closed, it is possible to walk the entire stretch of the beach, from one end to the other.

From the view point, it is then a relatively short distance back to the lodge and the Bistro at Simbavati Fynbos on Sea.

If the Bistro is open, then definitely pop in for a refreshing drink or a bite to eat. The panoramas from both the Bistro and the Lodge itself are breathtaking and provide a view of both the coastline and the Swartvlei lagoon.

We are so lucky to have Simbavati Fynbos on Sea right on our doorstep. I mean, how many places can you go to that have wildlife, hiking and majestic views all in the same location. If you haven’t visited yet, then I definitely recommend you go.

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