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Chokka Trail Breakaway

The Chokka Trail by StoryScape Travel (The Chokka Story!)

The Chokka Trail is situated in the St Francis area, Eastern Cape, and is an award-winning slackpack hiking trail. Esti & Eric Stewart, the owners walked (or is it hiked?) away with the National Lilizela Award for Best Visitors Experience for four consecutive years

StoryScape Travel is fortunate to have obtained a few slots for this “Bucket-List” Hiking adventure in 2023.

If coastal hiking is your passion then this is definitely the Breakaway for you.

It is much more than just a hike, it also includes a canal cruise on the famous St Francis canals, a calamari tasting and if possible, a visit to the Seal Point Lighthouse.  A great Breakaway for a family or a group of friends.

Read the Daily Itinerary below to get a better idea.

Duration: 5 days, 4 nights.
Destination: The 62km trail lies between Oyster Bay, St       Francis Bay and Cape St Francis
Accommodation: Oyster Kaya, Oyster Bay,                                Dune Ridge Country House, Cape Saint Francis Resort
Included:
Breakfast, Packed lunch &  Dinner.
Bubbles & Oyster tasting,
Group Yoga session.
Sunset cruise on the Saint Francis canals with              sundowners & snacks.
All hikes are guided.
Guided.
Excluded:
Drinks & Snacks (Bring your own), Gratuities,  All Transfers, Shuttles & Flights to and from the Destination.

 

 

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The 62km trail lies between Oyster Bay, St Francis Bay and Cape St Francis, however, in true slackpacking style (you hike with a small daypack while your luggage is transported).  You will spend 2 nights at the Oyster Kaya, 1 night at Dune Ridge Country House and 1 night at the Cape St Francis Resort, while hiking is over 4 days

Accommodation

Trail owners Eric and Esti Stewart chose three unique privately owned overnight points to make sure your day starts with a hearty breakfast, your packed lunch is delicious and at your next destination, a cooked meal, hot shower and a cold beer or glass of wine will be waiting!

Fitness

Whether you are a seasoned hiker, novice, or only “lifestyle fit”, you will enjoy this diverse hike.  All you need is a positive attitude, a good sense of humour, hiking shoes, a small comfortable day pack and enough bottles or camel pack for water (at least 2 litres)

Food & Snacks

We provide a full breakfast and cooked dinner, and a packed lunch. The lunch pack includes some snacks, but you are welcome to bring your own, particularly if you have special dietary requirements.
Each guest house is licensed and drinks are available for purchase from the establishment

 

5 Day / 4 Night Itinerary

Day 1

If you are flying in, there is a shuttle** available which will pick you up from Port Elizabeth Airport, and take you to the Oyster Kaya in Oyster Bay. Depending on your arrival time, it will make sense to stop somewhere for lunch before you proceed to Oyster Bay.

Once at the Oyster Kaya, hosts Bokkie and Lindy Lombard will treat you to a glass of bubbly and oysters (there is a well-stocked bar at their restaurant if you fancy something else).  You can enjoy a late afternoon stroll on the beach, or just relax around their swimming pool.

Dinner is served in the evening.

**( Not included in the price & to be booked with StoryScape Travel in advance)

Day 2

After a hearty breakfast, Lindy will hand you your lunch packs, and make sure you find your way to the beach from where you will set off on your guided out-and-back hike to Thysbaai, all along the coastline.

Highlights of the day include Thysfontein, a little beach with a holiday cottage, where you might find the spoor of the cape clawless otter.

The trail continues past a rock gully, where during low tide you can see circular rock walls in the water – it is ancient Koi-San fish traps, more than 2 000 years old.  The total distance to Thysbaai and back is 19km, but your group can turn back anytime.

Just make sure you are back at the Oyster Kaya before sunset

Dinner is served in the evening.

Day 3

You will be accompanied by an experienced local hiker to traverse the dunes of the Sand River, a dune field mobilised by wind and water.  It changes from week to week, and mapping, marking or even describing this route seems impossible. Windblown patterns and rare finds of pot shards will take you to another world.

18km long, this could be the most challenging day of the trail, especially in inclement weather, but nothing beats the feeling of conquering the Sand River!

The trail stops at the Dune Ridge Country House, where you will enjoy a group yoga session to release those muscles!

Breakfast, Packed lunch & Dinner.

Day 4

Starting times on the third morning is always a problem, as most hikers are reluctant to leave the tranquillity of Dune Ridge and owner Sarah Swanepoel’s hospitality.  Your guide will eventually get you going, and the trail starts through a beautiful section of coastal forest and thicket until you reach the shoreline.

Enjoy walking through this special landscape, filled with bird calls, and keep your eyes open for grey duiker, mongoose, porcupine quills, bushbuck or caracal.  Look for otters in the rock pools as well as Oystercatchers, Kelp Gulls, terns, and Turnstones.

You will pass Mostertshoek, and walk along the Wild Side, so named for the untamed sea that crashes onto the rocks in a breath-taking fashion.  You will see the second largest blow hole in SA, an unknown grave, the remains of the HMS Osprey that ran onto the rocks in 1867, as well as the Cape Recife (1929).

Your day finishes at the Cape St Francis Resort, and you will enjoy a cruise on the St Francis canals – with some snacks and sundowners of course!

Breakfast, Packed lunch & Dinner.

Day 5

The last day kicks off on the Cape St Francis beach and follows the footpaths via Shark Point to Port St Francis, where Clive Cantor from Chokka Block will tell you more about the Chokka industry and serve a calamari tasting. We finish off with a light lunch.

If you are not driving, your shuttle will fetch you from the Port so those who need to catch a plane can leave around 15h00.

Breakfast & light lunch at Chokka Block Restaurant.

 

We Hope to see you again!!