The North End

The North End of the Beach

- 3 September 2013 -

While sitting and having drinks with Scott and Michael we occasionally looked north along the beach and wondered what the lights against the distant sand dunes were. I knew if I continued north till the first "point" in the distance I would reach Ponta Malongane, but I had no idea if that was indeed the case and what was in-between.

So one morning I decided I would go check it out at the crack of dawn. After-all it doesn't look that far away.

Even at this hour the boats are already out on the water, and I don't blame them, it is a beautiful time of the day.

The beach was relatively quiet this time of the morning but I did find a dog wandering about as I passed the Motel do Mar, he looked to be having fun too.... and he was friendly.

I parked at the beach entrance closest to Motel do Mar and headed out from there. The Motel was our alternative accommodation next to the Ocean View Cabanas, but from the photos the Motel looked a little old and rundown, however I did notice they were busy repainting the Motel.... hopefully they renovate the inside too.

Previously in the week Mike and I noticed a mountain bike for sale in a shop near the market and we wondered what anybody will do with a mountain bike in a town covered with soft sand, but when I saw a young woman with her three dogs going for a morning run on the beach, it all became clear. The sand at low tide is as hard as concrete and riding on the beach looked like a breeze. At this point I had been walking for about 30 minutes and started to wish I had a bike... the "point" in the distance still looked very far away.

It wasn't long until they disappeared into the distance, but soon they were heading back towards me, her dogs were close behind but with some additional toys they had picked up along the way.

I was starting to get a bit bored and it felt like I was getting nowhere but soon I arrived at some rocks which appeared to have been dropped in the middle of the beach by some majestic hand.

The second row of rocks were the most intriguing, they appeared to have been placed there strategically... almost like massive tiles laid out on the beach sand.

From the tracks left from the "mountain bike lady", they didn't make it out this far, so I was all alone out here, it was awesome. Unlike the south end of the beach, this place is very close to uninterrupted coastal beauty.

I passed the rocks and found the reason for the lights on the hill, which can be attributed to what appears to be a lodge and some lavish homes. At this moment I was about three quarters of the way to the "point" (which I suspected was Ponta Malongane) and I had been walking for about one and a half hours (I stopped a lot to take pictures). I was eager to reach the point and confirm that I was indeed at Ponta Malongane but all I could think about was that every step I take in this direction means the more steps I need to take to get  back home, so I turned around and started heading back to Ponta do Ouro.

I was accompanied by some additional joggers and insects in my journey back, but I stopped less than before, when I looked again I was back at Motel do Mar.

I headed back to our chalet, my walk had taken two and a half hours.... and it was worth it. I do envy the home owners at this end of the beach, it is absolutely beautiful.