Cannon Rocks

 This camping-first at Cannon Rocks was proof that you need the absolute minimum to go camping. Tent, chairs and a small table.

It's a beautiful caravanpark with lots of trees and bushes that seperates the campsites.

Cheers to our first tent camping!🥳🥳

We also took the hammocks and had a afternoon nap in them.

Close to Cannon Rocks is Boknes and we decided to go check it out before heading home again.

In the parkinglot at Boknes beach is this cute little shop and we bought some coffee and pancakes from them.

We sat down at this lifeguard tower to enjoy the pancakes.

You can walk along the beach to a Diaz cross, but unfortunately our time was limited and we could not go all the way there.

There is still many things and places in this area to explore and we will definately return for them.

Padda-Dam

 This little house started it's existance as a storage dam for a windmill on a farm about 30 kilometres outside Graaf Reinette. The name of the house "padda-dam" translates to "frog-dam". The owners converted the dam to a selfcatering guesthouse in typical Karoo style after it was no longer used as a storage dam.

The trip was done on motorcycle, a first for Elske. With very limited luggage space, we had to plan carefully and leave all the luxuries at home (read hairdryer😃)

With indicators like these, we could immediatly see that we came to the right place for adventure !

Because of the heat, we explored the Waterfall first. We ended up spending several hours here, cleaning the area of flood debris. We work/played like children in the waterstream - special moment.

Fun-smiles all around !

I took some dry ingredients to bake bread in my Titanium pot (1.25 litres). Quickly saw the need for a small tripod and with my leatherman and some scrap wire I found laying around, constructed a mini tripod for the pot.

Also made a little tool to turn the pot without touching it with hands.

The bread came out really well ! 🤩🤩

Just add olive oil and balsamic vinegar 🥳

The next morning's breakfast was leftover "braaivleis" and some avo on the last remaining bread slices. This little bread  was repeated for each of the remaining nights.

Taking up very little space on the bike, but with some amazing special effects, fairy lights to add to the Karoo night sky.

Add some good (and loud) music with a bluetooth speaker and spontanious dancing came naturally around the campfire. 🥳

One of the "special" features of Padda-dam, is a big old enamel bathtub, nicely postioned between the thorn shrubs.

The bathtub is getting a little too much sun, so we gathered 3 long tree branches and constructed a tripod over it 

Adding 2 Kikois and you have a lovely shaded bathtub that can be enjoyed in the heat of day !

Double tragedy striked when I manage to break both my Croc flipflops in one move, trying to save myself from slipping and falling flat on my face 🙈🙈. No fear when paracord is near 😄

What is the one thing to pack for the best coffee when out in nature? Can you quess ?

 Spesial mention should also be made of a new drink that was created on this trip:

Red wine mixed with Blue berry Drink-o-Pop

😄😄😄

So the big one was kept for the last full day: the hike up to God's Balcony. We came a little unprepared for a hike like this, so a few plans had to be made. (constructed)

Steep up- and downhill in very rocky terrain called for hiking poles. Two suitable bamboo poles were cut from a bush growing in the main-house garden (with permission of the owner). 

The second challenge was to carry enough water with us on the hike, as we brought only one water bottle with us. An empty wine bottle was cleaned to serve as the second water bottle.

The final challenge was a way to carry the water bottles along with some food and snacks for the hike. An empty plastic bag that contained firewood and a strap used on the motorbike to secure luggage, was repurposed for a hiking bag.

Because of the heat and elevation, the hike was tough, but we were able to finally reach God's Balcony. The views are simply magnificent and definately worth the hike!

This is the closest my fear of heights would allow me to the edge of the balcony 😱

Concluding with some random photos of the guestfarm:

Padda-Dam was a truly unforgetable experience ❤️❤️

Intro

Here is a truth nobody tells you when you're younger: love does not come with an expiration date. Life, with all its wonderful unpredictability, has a habit of surprising us — and sometimes those surprises arrive exactly when we've stopped expecting them.

Finding love after 50 isn't about rewinding the clock or pretending the years in between didn't happen. It's something altogether better than that. It's starting fresh — with the hard-won wisdom to know what truly matters, the confidence to care far less about what anyone else thinks, and a capacity for acceptance, both of yourself and of another person, that only life experience can teach. 

There's a lightness that comes with all of that. A freedom. And, if you're lucky, quite a lot of fun and laughter.

This blog is a celebration of exactly that. It's about the quiet magic of rediscovering connection later in life — and the particular joy of collecting "firsts" all over again. First trips, first places, first adventures... 

It turns out there is nothing quite like experiencing something for the first time with someone who makes you feel alive and kicking again.

Whatever your age, wherever you are, love still holds surprises. The story is not over. In fact, some of the best chapters haven't been written yet.