Swiss grandparents Urs and Barbara Lambrigger were convinced by their 20-year-old son Jonas, that cycling was a good way to travel.
“We’ve always cycled since then,” said his mother during a stop this week between Cape Town and Port Elizabeth, as part of their South African trek.
They became cycling converts after Jonas sent them postcards from a trip from the far north of North America to the southern-most town in South America.
Now they’ve set aside three months to explore the country, aiming to cover an average of 50km a day.
“It’s best to start early in the morning then rest for the heat of the day and do two hours in the evening,” said Urs.
They’re full of praise for South African hospitality, which has seen them being rescued from high winds in Noordhoek, Western Cape, and offered bread baked especially for them on a remote mountain pass near Oudtshoorn.
“We were grateful but preferred that the woman who offered it to us kept it. She was poor and had many mouths to feed.”
The couple cycle frequently in Europe.
They’ve also spent three months exploring Central America.
They plan to include Lesotho, KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga on their Southern Africa itinerary.
