McGREGOR - Almost there

Situated just 21 kms south of Robertson, McGregor almost threatens to be a part of the R62 Route, but doesn't quite make it.  The town's ambience is really quite special, and it was an absolute pleasure to overnight there at the NSRI house which our daughter and her family had rented at the NSRI Volunteer prices which are extremely reasonable for those who get out there and risk their lives on our behalf each and every day and night of the year, particularly when things are particularly hairy and really quite dangerous.

I made a point of getting up at sunrise and walking literally the entire town before anyone other than a few of the locals (who were still fairly high on the previous night's concoctions), were to be found abroad. It is a very pretty town by general South African Town standards, and is (happily), totally devoid of any of the "Pretoria by the Sea" architecture that has totally destroyed all and any semblance of "beauty" or "character" in virtually every sea-side town or 'close by' village other than Pater Noster - from Ponto D'Ouro in the East to Port Nolloth in the West.

For the most part 'modern' Cape Dutch design prevails, and almost all the new homes found in the town slot comfortably into this idiom and are generally quite attractive with very nice gardens despite the drought. There are a whole host of Restaurants and Art Galleries dotted here and there in the main street and one or two blocks off the main track, and a prolific pottery with numerous kilns that churns out something for literally every taste that passes through the town. Do they all manage to make a living and pay the rent ........ I have no idea!

Just a few kms out of the town in almost any direction there are myriad off-road tracks and drives into the mountains which offer views to absolutely die for, and a whole host of camping and other facilities that I had no idea existed in the area - donkey rehab centers, Stud farms and relaxation 'oords'  of one form or another. These are well kept secrets, and deserve to remain in the domain of those who first discovered them and now frequent them, fairly safe in the knowledge that the hordes are not about to descend upon them and wipe out what made them precious in the first place.

I suspect that an "art" culture is slowly becoming entrenched in McGregor which is currently being supported by a fairly well established retirement community, and at least in part by the 'Pink' pound. Whether it will turn into another Greyton or Prince Albert is yet to be seen (already property prices are pretty high), but lets wait and see what happens over the next few years.