If an overseas holiday is out of reach, but you’re amped to get out of town, then Port Edward is were you should be heading.
There are many fantastic activities to keep busy with as you rediscover the town, one such hidden gem is the “Petrified Forest”.
On the South Coast, visitors can enjoy the breathtakingly beautiful and unspoilt beaches and explore the mysteries of the Petrified Forest while staying in a nearby accommodation.
The forest is not a traditional forest that stands tall but rather underneath – as you walk, you will see 80-million-year-old fossilised trees and deposits on the rocks.
An oblivious person walking along the beach would be completely unaware of what lies beneath their feet; therefore, a tour guide is essential to appreciate the history and sights from the Cretaceous period and volcanic remains.
Tour guide, Lonwabo Dlamini, who is very knowledgeable, will take visitors through the Petrified trees, fossilised rocks, shells, animal and dinosaur fragments with great excitement, as if we were his first tour and not his 100th.
Meeting point for the tour is at the parking of the Wild Waves Water Park and down a short path onto the beach where the two hour 2km tour starts.
Kick off your shoes and walk along the rocks and discover the tree and log formations, as well as beautiful examples of tightly coiled ammonites, echinoids (sea urchins) and bivalve shells, with the magnificent Indian Ocean on one side and a 10-metre cliff on the other.
Petrified Forest guided tours are R90 per person. Contact Bheki Nzimande on 063 338 8766. Tours are aligned to low tide, so times vary.
Tips
* Apply sunscreen
* Wear slops, as you walk through water and would need to carry your shoes
* Pack lightly if you pack anything at all – you only need water if it is a hot day.
Hiking Tours
For hiking enthusiasts, options of 8km half day tours or full day tours that range between one day or up to eight days of hiking, where visitors will hike between 15km to 21kms a day.
All full day tours start inland hiking through the wilderness and end on the beach with the Petrified Forest and are R100 per person per day.
The four-day hike is 83kms and hikers will spend their nights in home stay villages and experience the hospitality of the locals.
R4 000 per person gets you catering in the villages, packed lunches and transport back to Wild Coast Sun.
Contact Lonwabo Dlamini on 078 631 2730 for inland guided tours.