Day 438 South Africa 14/01/2012, Knysna – Milkwood Farm, George. 49.58miles/80.33km, 5hr05minutes, Av 9.7mph.

We were presented with a little bit of everything along the road today. The overcast weather that we woke to was a relief after the heat of the last few days. As we approached the town of Sedgefield it even started to rain, which was nice until it started to get heavier. By the time we had dived into a local supermarket it had almost stopped, so we carried on to Sedgefield's farmers market to have a second breakfast.

Sufficiently full of Mexican wraps and hot dogs, we rejoined the road and had a rolling but brisk ride to the town of Wilderness. Here we were suddenly riding along the sea, watching a lone para-glider come in to land on the beach. The weather was still pretty overcast, but we had a beautiful view along the beach as we started to climb out of the town. In fact this was to be the last big climb along our route to George.

Having made it to the top, we continued along the N2 past George. Eventually turning off towards the airport, where we helpfully picked up a headwind. See, I mentioned that we had a bit of everything, the sun even started to push through the clouds. Pressing on, we found the turn off towards the farm and set off down the gravel road. I say we found the turn off, in truth I was hopelessly lost and Debs was the one who, once out of the wind, led the way at breakneck speed; this being a relative term when it come to a bicycle of course!

Having made good time, we arrived at the farm by about 2:30pm and were greeted by Georgie and baby Tom. A baby who is not quite as happy as we remembered at Christmas. It seems teething has turned him into a bit of a grump!

We soon got cleaned up and settled in our room, we aren't camping this time.When Phil arrived back from milking we enjoyed a nice meal, an evening of chatting and a few glasses of beer/wine.

It had been a pretty long day so we turned in early. We will be staying for a few days so will hopefully get to have a look round the area, before we head onwards down the coast.

Day 437 South Africa 13/01/2012, Knysna Backpackers, Knysna. A spot of sightseeing.

The room may have been really hot during the night, but it was good to sleep on a real bed. Having had a late start, we headed down to Knysna's waterfront. Starting first with a walk round the very expensive looking Thesen Island, we stopped and sampled the local Mitchell's ales.

Slightly wobblier on our feet, we had a spot of lunch and then headed to the quay. Knysna is famous for its oysters, which unfortunately neither of us are very keen on. In a lot of ways the restaurants and bars around the waterside were pretty wasted on us. It is still quite an attractive area however and should you have a few million rand to spend, probably a very nice place to live!

Having had our fill of the shops, that all seemed to sell pretty much the same thing, we wandered back to town. Once again it was a very hot and humid day, so our shopping didn't last long. Instead we opted for returning to the relative cool of our hostel. Provided we stayed out of our room that is. We must have the hottest room in the here!

It will be an early one tonight, as we head to George tomorrow. Rather unhelpfully the reception doesn't open until 8am here, so we won't get much of an early start. With luck, we will cover the 80km day ahead of us before it gets too hot.

Day 436 South Africa 12/01/2012, Plettenberg Bay - Knysna Backpackers, Knysna. 21.08miles/34.44km, 2hr12minutes, Av 9.4mph.

With only about 35km to go to the town of Knysna, we had a slow start this morning. There was no repeat of the previous night's party, so we woke feeling pretty good. It was certainly a very hot day though, which is not ideal cycling conditions.

Starting the cycling day by having to double back on ourselves, because of an inaccurate map, wasn't the most auspicious of starts. The whole town being built on a steep hill didn't help either, especially considering the heat. We soon got ourselves back on track and headed out of Plett and onto the main road.

Over the last few weeks we have struggled to find a shop or anywhere to have a drink along the road. So today, it came as a bit of a surprise when the road seemed almost wall to wall B&Bs, craft shops and farm stalls. We are obviously now fully on the 'Garden Route' to Cape Town.

Having stopped for a drink at very friendly staffed café, we set off again and just after 12pm arrived outside Knysna Backpackers. Set in an old Victorian era house, it is a pretty grand looking backpackers. We will be spending a couple of nights here, this time in a room, which will be nice after the tent!

Before heading out to have a look round the town, I had to fix Debs saddle which for some reason sprung apart. What looked to be an easy fix, turned into a bit of a pain until a flash of inspiration had it all put back together. I have no idea what she keeps doing to her gear, but I will be keeping a closer eye from now on! At least I just lose things, rather than break them!

Not wanting to spend too much time out in the heat, we only had a short look round the shops. Heading down to the waterfront will have to wait until tomorrow. What we saw of the town though looks quite nice. It is certainly an older more Victorian looking town than we have seen for a while.

While I returned to the hostel with the shopping, Debs had a nice massage and is now feeling a little better. We will be having dinner here tonight and a few glasses of wine should round off the day. Sightseeing tomorrow!