Noordhoek Beach, is a vast expanse of protected beach on the Atlantic side of the peninsula. It has few buildings along its edge, except for some immaculate thatched homes. The beach was the location of the filming of Ryan's Daughter and is the perfect location for horse riding.
Overlooking Noordhoek Beach is the start of Chapman's Peak Drive, which was carved out of the cliff by convicts in 1915. (Interestingly it is also known as the M6!) It was closed for remedial work in 2000, reopening in 2004 as a toll road, to recoup some of the expense involved.
The road twists and turns along the coast and at one spot the cliff overhangs the road forming a canopy. You can just make it out in this photo (the dark horizontal shadow just before a piece of light cliff face).There are viewing places at regular intervals, allowing cars to pull off the road.
The road eventually drops down into Hout Bay, a sheltered fishing village, where you can take boat trips to see the seal colony living nearby. But there is a rather strange sight perched on an upright boulder, facing the seals; it is a bronze leopard, placed their as a memorial to the leopards who once roamed the area.
In hout Bay we then saw another curious sight - a very rusty boat's cabin for sale!
Finally, as we drove back near Cape Town harbour we noticed an enormous oil rig platform, which must have been brought in for repairs.
The guide book doesn't mention any of these structures!
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