This evening is our last evening in Montagu. Most people who come to visit Montagu only stay for one or two nights and only get a glimpse of life here in the Little Karoo. That is really a shame as this place has plenty of reasons to stay a little bit longer. We stayed here for two weeks and we loved every minute of it. We met wonderful local people and realized that many of them used to live in places like Cape Town, but have moved to Montagu to escape the hustle and bustle of big cities and live a much more relaxed life here. They now run galleries, a B&B or a farm here. After our two weeks here we can understand why, as this place has something special.
This morning at breakfast we looked back at our time here in Montagu and asked the kids what they liked most about Montagu. Together with them we created the Top 10 things we really liked and that we can recommend to anyone visiting Montagu with young children. So here we go – the Great Family Leap Top 10 (in no particular order)
1. The scenery
There are lots of things you can do in Montagu. But what we loved most was just sitting on our patio and looking at the great mountain scenery behind the Pecan orchard in front of us. But the scenery is not only great from our patio, but everywhere you walk or drive you have great views of the mountains and the passes like the Kogmannskloof.
2. Hiking
Some days the temperatures are a bit cooler and Montagu offers some superb hiking. With two small kids we could not try all of them and we skipped the long and difficult ones, but we did walk the Badskloof trail and the Lovers Lane and we all really liked this. The path follows a small mountain stream with stunning views of rock formations all-over.
3. Petting zoo and playground at Guano Caves
Several people had recommended us to visit this place, as it is great for kids. And they were right. We only visited the petting zoo and the playground, but our kids loved this place and wanted to go back there again and again. The place has rabbits you can pet and a whole range of other animals that you can feed. We enjoyed the feeding of the ostriches. The place also has a swimming pool and obviously caves, but there was already so much to do and see in the zoo and playground that we did not feel the need to visit the rest.
4. The friendly people of Montagu
On another travel blog I read that the things you remember most is not the places you visit or highlights you have seen, but often it is the people you have met and the stories they told. Well we will definitely remember the many friendly people we met here. Tian, Janetta and their family who were so kind to invite us for their Christmas lunch. Max who organised the New years party or Rosa and Larry from the Secret garden, who invited us for a lovely afternoon in their beautiful garden to talk about their decision to leave Cape Town and start a B&B in Montagu.
5. Wine tasting at van Loveren
Montagu is close to the Robertson valley, one of the important wine areas in South Africa. In the valley around Robertson there are about 50 different wineries and all of them offer tastings & tours. So there is plenty of choice. We picked van Loveren as they are great for kids. They have a special kiddies grapefruit tasting, they do a short but interesting cellar tour and they have a large garden where the kids can play while mum and dad enjoy their wine.
6. Restaurant Bourbon street in Robertson
Robertson is the closest larger city and we went there one day to do Christmas shopping. Most days we cook our own dinner, but we also enjoy eating out now and then, so we decided to look for a child friendly restaurant in Robertson. Bourbon street was recommended to us and we wanted to try it out. We liked it there so much that we even came back another day. They are really flexible with dietary constraints and have a large collection of lego. On top of it they just serve good food. So a perfect restaurant for our family.
7. Wijnberg cottage
We found the perfect spot in Montagu. The Wijnberg cottage is a 2 bedroom self catering cottage on a small farm in Montagu. Horses, chickens, dogs and cats roam freely, but they all like small children and we liked them. The baby kitten and the small white dog Snowy were the favourites. But more importantly this place gave us the place and space to pick-up our normal family life. Home schooling and arts and crafts with the children. Writing our journals and updating the blog. Cooking christmas dinners or simply making pancakes together. When you travel for extended periods you need to create your home away from home and this cottage was perfect for that.
8. The bird tree
In the centre of Montagu is a small pond with some acacia trees that act as a roosting spot for a multitude of sacred ibis, egret, cormorant and weaver birds. It is amazing to see how many birds can house in one tree. It also has a small look-out point where you can spend endless times watching and photographing these birds.
9. Pony rides
One morning we were eating our breakfast outside when the daughter of our hosts came to our cottage and asked if Lucas and Emily would enjoy a pony ride. Of course they would and within a few minutes they were dressed and ready to go. They both loved it and really enjoyed it.
10. Many coffee and lunch places
Montagu has a whole range of places where you can enjoy a nice cup of coffee, a cake or to have a lunch. We did not try them all, but two of our favorites are the Die Kloof Padstal, as they also have a large playground in the garden or the great coffee at the Choc Box coffee shop.
p.s. there are many more new pictures uploaded on our pictures page.