The Real Ostriches of Oudtshoorn

Planning your own trip to South Africa? Read more about my Garden Route itinerary here.

Today’s drive to Oudtshoorn covers a mountainous stretch along scenic Route 62.

The weather is grey and drizzly, but that doesn’t stop me from pulling over a few times to snap pics of the landscape.

At this point I reach the town of Barrydale, one of the more populated areas along today’s route. It’s only about an hour into the drive but it’s an ideal place to walk around and get an early lunch.

Here’s my light lunch somewhere along the main street in town (right on Route 62) — I don’t remember the name, but it’s on the opposite side of the street as the Country Pumpkin.

Love this crazy light fixture:

As the drive continues, clouds move off and a blue sky emerges.

One notable stop just outside Barrydale is Ronnie’s Sex Shop, a quirky bar / cafe with undergarments on display (it used to be called Ronnie’s Shop until someone added the word ’sex’ to the name to drum up business). I don’t go inside but its Trip Advisor reviews are colorful and it sounds like the food is quite good. Perhaps this would be a fun lunch stop instead of the main street in Barrydale?

While the rest of the drive to Oudtshoorn is scenic, I resist the urge to pull over for photos — perhaps because it’s Day 3 of this Garden Route trip and I’ve done more than enough stopping on the first two days. I’m also eager to get to get to my first activity in Oudtshoorn…

Welcome to Cango Ostrich Farm, where you can ride an ostrich if the weather is good (it’s not during my visit) and take a quick tour to learn more about the largest living species of bird.

Ostriches also happen to lay the largest egg of any living bird:

In fact, ostrich eggs are so strong that they can withstand the weight of a human.

Interesting fact about ostriches: they swallow pebbles and small stones along with their regular diet (seeds, shrubs, grass, fruit, flowers) because they don’t have teeth — so the stones get stuck in their gizzard and help to grind down food for digestion. The contents of an ostrich’s stomach are on display here and it’s nuts to see them carry around all those stones. Sadly, they also eat other random litter as they don’t know better — I recall seeing a lipstick tube among the stomach contents.

Ostriches frequently lose the nail on their outer toe:

But lack of a toenail doesn’t stop them from being the world’s fastest two-legged animals — ostriches can run up to 43 miles per hour.

Our guide shows off the ostrich’s body under all that plumage:

Their meat is very lean — and delicious.

(It is weird that I don’t feel guilty for ordering an ostrich filet for dinner later that night? I should feel guilty, right?)

This guy below is a dwarf ostrich, much smaller than its full size counterparts.

The woman who leads the tour asks if I’d like to feed the ostriches, and I WAY underestimate the intensity of this activity. She suggests I put my hair down… so that they don’t peck at my ears. And I have to walk backwards… so that they don’t peck out my eyes. Until this moment I haven’t thought to be scared of ostriches but now I’m rethinking it.

I make this face while my life flashes before me:

Whew, I survived.

Before leaving I check out the gift shop… who wants a fake baby ostrich emerging from its egg? Spoiler alert: eight of you are getting one for Christmas.

I find another cute B&B for the night, again booked at the very last minute to get a good rate. This is called Burga’s B&B and I’m so pleased to have found it. It’s owned by a couple named Burga and Louis — she is from Germany, and he is from South Africa. Since it’s the off season, I am the only one staying here tonight and they give me my pick of the rooms.

There’s a pool just outside:

Louis recommends The Black Swan for dinner and it does not disappoint. I eat my first ostrich filet (delicious, as I described earlier) and when I can’t decide between the basil pesto mashed potatoes or the roasted garlic mash, my waitress offers to combine them for me. LOVE those flavors. (The veggies and wine are good, too.)

Oh, and since I’m apparently saying YES to all dessert on this trip, I order a peppermint crisp tart. It’s essentially alternating layers of biscuits, whipped cream with caramel, and shavings of a chocolate mint bar. I remember when my overland guide Juliana made it during our tour — the recipe is yummy, super easy to make, and highly customizable if you’d prefer a flavor like peanut butter instead of mint.

While we’re on the subject of food, here’s my lunch the following day — the Moroccan chicken with cous cous at Jemima’s Restaurant in Oudtshoorn. Really loved this place.