The Boat House

A very warm welcome to The Boat House. My private residence and a place of joy and true peace. I hope that you enjoy your stay as much as I enjoy living here in Scarborough. Our little village is an Eco & Conservation village, so I kindly ask you to tread lightly and get slowly into the flow of the peace and quiet of the village, whilst youre here. Tom The Captain of the House is a true gentleman and loyal friend who is at hand at all times during the day to make your stay as enjoyable and relaxing as possible. Tom will be there to welcome you and to show the new crew The Ropes He is a wealth of knowledge so ask away I kindly ask of one thing to all guests, be it my own friends or kind people I have never met. Im a non-smoker and my home Inside is a place of healthy living, food and fresh air. Please do keep it that way and should you have the craving, please do so outside. Thanking you. Included in this Book are a few Village & Area details which might make your stay a little more comfortable and answer some frequently asked questions if Tom the Captain cant assist you. Note the Telephone Index is at the back of this book Regrettable there is no room service. Once again welcome to our home, please do make it your own Chef Bruce Robertson & Tom The Captain

EMERGENCY In case of any emergency, the first people to phone are always Scarborough Security Services (SSS). They are based just two roads away and have frequent patrols all night. Call on: 021 780 1274 or the patrol number which is 084 772 4571. They will be able to give you assistance with any problems you might have, and refer you to the appropriate agency. The closest Police Service is Ocean View: 021 783 8306/07/08 TELEPHONE The Boat House has a telephone but this only to be used for Emergency calls please. Tom to advise. MEDICAL The nearest pharmacy is at Long Beach Mall and is open 7 days a week. Conveniently, Scarborough has its own GP, Dr Charlotte Noble 021 780 1748. The nearest hospital with an emergency room is False Bay Hospital in Fishhoek, but this is a government hospital where waits can be long. The nearest private hospital is Constantiaburg in the Southern Suburbs 021 799 2911 BABOONS We have very entertaining worldly neighbours who wonder around the village popping in to visit if they feel welcome and should any opportunity arise. Unfortunately they will help themselves to any thing that half resembles food, they can open fridges, cupboardscreate absolute havoc and will leave the place in a total state, silently and normally leave a token behind! Never confront them pleaseI have personally learnt in the kitchen. It is advised, that when not in a room that is unoccupied, which includes the upstairs area if you are sleeping belowthe doors and windows MUST be closed. We live in a sanctuary that is shared with the Wild and it is in our best interests and theirs that we do not encourage abnormal eating habits. Baboons eat berries not pizza! Should you have a problem please contact the Baboon Monitor on 071 5886540 or Scarborough Security. SECURITY Though Scarborough is a sleepy village and mostly safe (baboons causing more of a nuisance than human interlopers) we still advice a little caution. Our position at the centre of the village on the beach, is one of the safest locations, however, wed advise you to be cautious and keep the gate closed and also lock all doors at night, though there is NO NEED to set the alarm whilst in the house or at night. Scarborough Security makes regular patrols and if worried about anything give them a call and theyll be round immediately. ALARM Tom will assist you in this regard and arm you with the code. In case it goes off or you cant get it to reset, press the # key, as this clears anything that is left in the memory. If it does go off, the upstairs phone will ring, answer it and you will be asked a Code from the control roomTHE BOAT HOUSE 36. Please note that the sensor-beams cover the arrival hall, front door, back door and the whole area upstairs. Excluded are the bedrooms and bathrooms, so it is advisable to close/lock doors when leaving. DOGS & PETS The Boat House is a very secure and pet friendly environment with plenty of space. The surrounding beaches are pet friendly and ideal to roam but we would kindly ask

that you clean up should your dog mess. The Boat House is a place of sharing, with the comings and goings of many people and I would kindly appreciate it if your pets could be kept of the couches and bedding as best as possible, thank you. INTERNET RECEPTION Scarborough is and isnt blessed with Connection and on a good day it is wonderfulwhen the wind doesn't blow, God Bless. The only place that is 3G Friendly is upstairs. Cell phone reception is no problem. TELEVISION Tom will advise accordingly as to operational procedures. Note: The Boat House has the main unit upstairs that controls the channels to the guest room set below. ELECTRICITY The geyser has been left on for your arrival, and the water hot. The geyser is in the cupboard under the stairs should you need to look at it for any reason. The distribution board is in the corridor between the two childrens bedrooms. The electricity and water meters are outside the property on the boundary. If by any chance the electricity goes out, check with the neighbours that youre not alone and also with SSS. There are candles and matches provided in case of an outage, and you can light the fire and enjoy a romantic evening instead WATER AND TOILETS The water in Scarborough is safe to drink, it is low water runoff that comes from the surrounding Conservation area and mountains. The Boat House like all homes in Scarborough, is not on a main drainage system and has a septic tanks instead. Therefore please do not throw anything apart from toilet paper down the loos. Please use bins provided for sanitary pads and likewise. CLEANING & HOUSE KEEPING Captain Tom is the man. He works from 08H00-16H00 everyday while you are thereshould you wish him to work alternative hours then please arrange that with him. Note; he cycles home so it is best for his own safety not to work later than 17h00. Thank you for your understanding. MAINTENANCE ISSUES Should Tom not be available to assist after hours, please contact my maintenance Manager, Justin on 082 4646108. Anytime 24/7. HEATING Scarborough is a wonderful place for a winter weekend in fact many locals prefer winter to the summer season! We have underfloor heating in the downstairs hall, which can warm up most of the house quite nicely. The switches are next to the couch in the hallway. If you use it, please dont forget to switch it off when you leave. The wood-burning stove upstairs, makes the house wonderfully warm. To light, use a few firelighters and a bit of kindling to get the stove going, leaving the door partially open. When it is going nicely, you can start adding bigger logs and close the door, controlling the flow of air with the small wheel. Take care not to overfill it, as it can get too hot. One or two logs at a time should be enough.

KITCHEN AREA

This is fully functional and very well equipped. Tom is always at hand to advise and does the basic cleaning and washing up after all mealsunfortunately he is not a chef and leaves that part up to me! and Chef Bruce has gone on holiday BRAAING/BARBEQUING Please feel free at any stage to use either the built in braai in the back garden or the Weber Braai on the back balcony. Shelter is provided: Garden/SE wind or Balcony/NW windsenjoy! KEYS All doors have selective keys. Tom carrys a spare set for the front and back doors ONLY. GARBAGE There are two bins provided in the kitchen and will be removed on a daily basis by Tom. BEACHES, SWIMMING AND SURFING There are two beaches at Scarborough. Main Beach is the one that is off the car park and stretches all the way to Cape Point Nature Reserve. At the far end of the beach a river flows, and there is often a lagoon, which forms that is a lovely place for children to play (and it can get very warm during the summer). The other beach (which we call Private Beach) can be got to by going down the path opposite our neighbors house (the double-storey house to the right, as youre looking out to sea). The beach you reach at the end of this path stretches the other way to Misty Cliffs and beyond. There are lovely rock pools off this beach and is generally a much quieter beach if you want to have time away. Please note, the sea is cold and the current is very strong, so only the strongest swimmers should try swimming in this sea. The current also means that the shoreline here is only safe for experienced surfers. (For details of surfing, see Things to do below) TOWELS: Please take the beach towels provided in the hall way and not the bath towels to the beach. OUTSIDE SHOWER: Please do make use of this facilitythe water is nice and hot. WILDLIFE As mentioned above regarding Baboons, we are truly blessed to live amongst nature. I come across snakes from time to time, though these occasions are rare. Take care whilst on the paths through the bush to the beach this is where weve seen them before. Again, if by any faint chance there is a snake on the property (More than likely a harmless celebrated Mole eater!) please call Scarborough Security and they will give you the number of the snake catchers, who will come and catch them and release them on the nature reserve. Do not harm them please In season you may well be fortunate to see whales off the coast. Sharks have been spotted in the area rarely sharks generally find the waters round here too cold. There are plenty of penguins, dolphins and seals. Seals on the beach must not be approached. My garden is blessed with great bird life and numerous families are presently nesting. Lets leave them all in peace and quite. FISHING/CRAYFISH & MUSSEL COLLECTING Please note that the coastline of Scarborough is a nature reserve and one requires a license from the Post Office should you be interested in collecting or fishing. Please adhere to Quotas and Sizing. Scarborough is a SASSI driven environment.

SHOPS Scarborough has one shop (more of a hole in the wall really known locally as The Mickey) where you can get the most basic supplies. It is located around the side of the Camel Rock Restaurant, up on the Main Road. NOTE: It closes at 17H00. For a slightly bigger selection than this, the nearest shops are at Kommetjie, where there is a superette and a small deli. (Kommetjie is approximately 9kms away). Slightly further afield still, Long Beach Mall (Sun Valley) has a good selection of everything you need pharmacy, Pick n Pay, Woolworths, clothing stores, book shops and restaurants for wet days. There is also an Internet caf at Long Beach. There are also banks here, as well as a DVD shop should you have bought a laptop/portable DVD player with you. On the way to Long Beach Mall, on the Kommetjie Road, is Imhoffs Farm, which has an excellent Farm Stall where they make their own bread and cheese (well worth a visit!). Also in the area is Simonstown, Noordhoek and Fishhoek which all have shops, both practical, more touristy and fun. EATING & DINNING OUT There are Good restaurants in the greater area, should you not wish to cook. Local of course is The Camel Rock restaurant, which serves a variety of home cooked food, fish and other local dishes. The food and the restaurant have a simple charm about it. I do recommend Zensa Lodge, 534 Egret Rdin walking distance from us. Hein is an avid foodie that serves great food: Lunch and dinner by appointment only, 021 780 1166 or 079 895 0431/REF: The Boat House. Slightly further, on the road towards Cape Point, is the Cape Farm House which serves everything from breakfast onwards. They also hold concerts here from timeto-time which are great fun to go to. Kommetjie has several pubs and cafs. The pubs are excellent places to sit and observe local life. I particularly enjoy the Green Room The British Bulldog does a good Sunday lunch and Espresso is a good caf. Noordhoek offers some different restaurants. The Food Barn, Frank/Chef Owner and a friend of mine is a must and a restaurant that definitely needs booking. People come from all over the Cape to eat here! 021 789 1390 for bookings, and if you cant get in there, they also have a Deli which is easier to get into. Close to the beach is The Red Herring, with a pub style restaurant that also serves very good pizzas. Noordhoek Farm Village also has several great restaurants and pubs. The False Bay Coast Kalk Bay, Muizenburg, Fishhoek, Simons Town etc, all also offer a good selection of restaurants, pubs and cafes to suit all tastes. There are lots of wonderful restaurants in Kalk Bay particularly highly recommended is Olympia Caf, whose rather unkempt looks disguise the most brilliant food! You cant book here you pitch up and write your name on a blackboard. They also have their own incredible bakery and supply many of Cape Towns finest shops and restaurants.

THINGS TO DO IN THE AREA Running/hiking Scarborough is the most wonderful base to run and walk from. As a simple walk, turn left out of the house and go all the way along Beach Road until you get to the Nature Reserve. The road/path on the reserve will take you round in a loop to the beach and you can return to the house from there (note: you have to cross a

stream/river depending on time of year so be prepared to take your shoes off!) There are also wonderful walks on the mountain behind Scarborough on Red Hill Nature Reserve. Access to these paths can be reached from Mountain Road, the top road in the village. (Note: you are meant to have a permit to walk on this reserve, but permits can be obtained easily and cheaply from The Mickey). There are of course also fantastic hikes within Cape Point Nature Reserve (walking maps are given to you as you go through the main entrance). A lovely easy run is to run along the main road by the sea, towards Kommetjie (ie with the sea on your left). You can go as far as you want and turn around. Otherwise for the more energetic, you can run over to Kommetjie and either get someone to collect you (about 9-10kms) or else run both ways. It is the most beautiful run. Alternatively, on the Main Road, you can also run towards Cape Point, though this is away from the sea, so can get very hot without the sea breeze in the summer. Surfing & Kite Surfing As previously stated, the coastline off Scarborough is quite rough and should only be taken on by more experienced surfers. Closer to hand, the best surfing on the Atlantic Coast for less experienced surfers is either to be found at Kommetjie or Noordhoek, or on the False Bay coast, at Muizenburg. Muizenburg is in fact the most wonderful place to learn surfing, and there are several excellent surfing schools where you can pitch up and take a lesson, either alone or in a group. Riding The best horse riding in the area is at Noordhoek, which has a variety of stables where you can go and ride, either inland or else on the incredible Long Beach, where several stables offer daily beach rides for visitors. And should you wish to ride a camel, you have to look no further than Imhoff Farm just around the corner! Golf The Cape offers some of the countrys finest golf courses, and nearby to Scarborough are Clovelly (021 784 2100) and Westlake (021 788 2020). There is also a smaller links course in Simons Town. GREAT DAYS OUT Even though Scarborough appears to be stuck right at the end of the Cape Peninsula, there is a great variety of things to do, to suit all the family and for all types of weather!

Imhoff Farm is the closest place to go and have a trip out. There is an excellent Farm Stall and several places to eat and drink, camel rides and a Snake Park for the children, a Cheese shop and several other small shops and even Area 51, for paintballing fun! Worth a visit and potter about.

Noordhoek has quite a lot on offer. The Farm Village offers a variety of shops, pubs and restaurants and a play park makes it an excellent place for small children. Riding or walking on the beach, as well as exploring the area near The Red Herring are also alternatives. From Noordhoek, enjoy a drive over one of the most scenic passes in the world, Chapmans Peak. This drive takes you all the way over to Hout Bay, and there are places to stop and enjoy the view and take photos along the way. Take note this is a toll road so you will need money. Also please note that this road is shut from time to time when there are rock falls. Hout

Bay at the other end (a self declared Republic) is a suburb with excellent restaurants, shops and everything else you may need. From here, you can also reach into the Southern Suburbs by driving over Constantia Neck.

Cape Point Nature Reserve is right on your doorstep (11kms) and definitely worthy of a day out. Opening/Closing 06H00-18H00 Summer (October-March) 07H00-17H00 Winter (April-September) Entry fees: Adults R85.00/Children under 12Yrs R30.00 It is the Southern most point of the Cape Peninsula, and known by sailors as a treacherous point to sail around. However, contrary to popular belief, it isnt in fact the most Southerly point of Africa, which is at Cape Aghullas. (Surely this would mean that Cape Point should be renamed Cape Pointless?!) However, it is widely accepted that this is where the Indian and Atlantic Ocean currents meet and whatever the truth of the location; it is a wonderful place to visit. You have to pay a fee at the entrance, and once there you can take wonderful walks and drives, go to the visitors centre, see old shipwrecks, and walk or take the funicular to the tip. There is a restaurant near the end as well as a gift shop. There are also great beaches to enjoy in the Reserve (though take care when picnicking as there are several active troupes of baboons who would love to share your picnic with you). There is also a great variety of wildlife, and you may see ostriches, several varieties of buck and whales in season. On the road from The Boat House to Cape Point you will also pass several interesting places to stop in at, including an ostrich farm, a wine farm and the Cape Farm House.

The False Bay Coast is also a wonderful area to explore, from Simons Town, through Fish Hoek to Kalk Bay, St James and Muizenburg. These little coastal villages all offer great beaches, restaurants, pubs, shops and other wonderful browsing opportunities. There are several small museums, antique shops, coastal walks, and other exciting opportunities to explore. In Simons Town (home of the SA Navy) it is possible to take a water taxi to Kalk Bay, as well as to go on an escorted canoe trip along the coast. Kalk Bay is a very vibey little village with some great places to visit, and its a wonderful place to meander through at any time of the year, stopping in wherever you feel interested for a coffee or ice cream, to look at art or antiques, to see the fishermen in the harbor coming in and selling their fish, or to visit any number of great restaurants.

Also on this coastline of course, is Boulders Beach, home to a large colony of Jackass Penguins. At this beach (which is very sheltered) it is actually possible to go swimming with penguins. Nearby is the Penguin centre, where you can see and learn more about these creatures. In general, the beaches on the False Bay coast are much more family friendly, as the sea is calmer and quite a bit warmer. Note that if you are going to Boulders Beach it can get VERY crowded in the summer, and once the car park is full, no more visitors are permitted. (On a beautiful summers day do yourself a favour and get up and go to Boulders early, and then leave for a late brunch when the beach starts to fill up. A much more pleasant way to visit this beach!) Muizenburg has plenty of things to do for families, including a putt-putt course, a water slide, a great beach, childrens play park and surfing for all

the family. A wonderful ice cream shop and beachfront restaurant (Knead) make it a perfect place for a day out. Further afield, there is plenty to do. Scarborough is less than an hour from anywhere in Cape Town youd want to go Table Mountain, the centre of town, shopping and nightlife yet you can also reach the wine lands of Stellenbosch in not much more than an hour, along the scenic coastal road Baden Powell Drive from Muizenburg.

TELEPHONE DIRECTORY
CAPTAIN TOM CHEF BRUCE EMERGENCY 24HR SCARBOROUGH SECURITY POLICE DISASTERS FLYING SQUAD AMBULANCE CAPE MEDICAL RESPONSE SEA RESCUE FIRE SERVICE 0719431638 083 3058533 021 782 0333 021 780 1123 021 783 8306/7/8 107 10111 10177 082 782 4444 021 449 3500 021 590 1900

Please be advised that Im possibly out the country and cant be reached

Beach Superintendant 021 782 5503 Cape Town Weather 082 231 1640 24HR Tourism Hotline 083 123 6789 The Whale Hotline 083 910 1028 Kommetjie Tourist Info Centre 021 783 1721/81 Kommetjie Veterinary Clinic 021 783 4493 Boat House Maintenance 082 4646108/Justin