....If I was a flower growing wild and free, all I'd want is you to be is my sweet honey-bee,sings Barry Louis Polisar in "All I Want Is You", the theme tune to the cult-movie 'Juno'.
 It's also not a bad track to kick off a spring-flower road-trip. With the sun shining and the birds a' singin', spring is the time to hit the N7 north of Cape Town to marvel at what all that winter rain has given rise to.
The annual explosion of spring flowers has become one of South Africa’s most popular natural events, drawing tourists from across the globe to marvel at the swathes of colour that carpet the Western and Northern Cape each year.
After two years of bumper displays – the best in living memory according to more than one farmer I met – good winter rains this year mean that the scene is set for another spectacular splash of spring flowers.
You can find flowers on a day-trip from Cape Town, but to see the hillsides of colour that the postcards are made of you’ll need to head further north. Namaqualand is without doubt the Shangri-La of spring flowers, but if you’re short of time you can do just as well a few hours from the Mother City.
Heading out of Cape Town on the N7 you’ll start to see the tell-tale daisies along the roadside as far south as Citrusdal, with splashes of orange and white amongst the citrus orchards hinting at what’s in store.
Fifty-odd kilometres further north brings you to Clanwilliam; one of South Africa’s oldest towns and a popular spot to spend the night if you’re taking things easy. The family-owned Strassberger Hotel is the most famous guesthouse in town, offering comfortable rooms and warm country hospitality. While you’re in town, make sure you pay a visit to the Ramskop Nature Reserve, which includes the Clanwilliam Wildflower Garden, on the eastern shore of the dam. The garden contains dozens of species of indigenous plants, and in flower season you can buy bulbs and seeds from the tea room.
…The dry, desolate Knersvlakte …
Clanwilliam is the place to leave the N7 if you want to explore the northern reaches of the rugged Cederberg mountain range. It's here that you'll find the Biedouw Valley, about 55kms north-east of town. This fertile valley between the Biedouw and Tra-Tra Mountains is famous for its veld flowers and – because it’s a little off the tourist trail – is less popular than other flower areas, so you can have it all to your bloomin’ self. If you've saved your pennies and want to spoil yourself, the Bushmanskloof Wilderness Reserve offers five-star flower-viewing in five-star luxury.
Back on the N7; keep heading north from Clanwilliam until you hit Vanrhynsdorp. This small 'dorpie' is known as the 'gateway to Namaqualand', but also offers spectacular spring flowers of its own.
The dry and hostile Knersvlakte surrounding the town may seem lifeless, but take a closer look and you’ll find that in amongst the dry white pebbles are thousands of tiny succulents eking an existence from the harsh landscape. The best place to see the succulents in all their glory is on Buys Wiese’s farm Quaggaskop, where a section of land left untouched for the last 20 years shows off the boksportjies, kameelspoor, baby toes, hitch-hikers and candy toes in all their glory. You can also see the succulents at the nursery (also started by Wiese) in Voortrekker Street.
Vanrhynsdorp is the point where you need to choose between left and right. Left takes you north along the N7 to Namaqualand, but your best bet if you've only got a few days is to keep right at Vanrhynsdorp and head over the winding Vanrhyn’s Pass to the Bokkeveld Plateau and Nieuwoudtville.
Historic Nieuwoudtville – as famous for its honey-coloured sandstone buildings as its flowers –makes a great base for exploring the area. Known as the bulb capital of the world, the farms around Nieuwoudtville spring to life in August and September as millions – literally – of Tritonia, Freesia, Ixia, Babiana, Sparaxis and Dierama bulbs burst through the usually arid soil.
Over three hundred different species of flowers have been recorded here, making it far and away the best place to experience the entire range of spring flowers South Africa has to offer.
Renishia Brandt, information officer at the Nieuwoudtville Publicity Association, says that the region is enjoying a bumper flower season: "From early September the bulbs will start coming out and they will last until the middle of September," says Brandt. "Anybody visiting the flowers should come to the information office on the Main Road and we'll show them exactly where to go. We have maps available for just five rand."
You’ll see flowers literally everywhere you look at the height of spring, but Brandt says that the Matjiesfontein Padstal, fourteen kilometres out of town on the road towards the Botterkloof Pass, is one of the highlights of the area. Dirt roads criss-cross the farm behind the padstal offering spectacular views across fields of flowers… you can even take a picnic table and enjoy breakfast amongst the blooms!
On your way back to Nieuwoudtville, stop for a look at the Oorlogskloof glacial pavement five kilometres from the village. It’s clearly signposted and just 100 metres from the road you can take a look 300-million years back in time to when glaciers covered much of the area.
Thankfully it’s warmed up a bit since then, and the Nieuwoudtville wildflower reserve two kilometres east of town is a good spot to enjoy the spring sun on your back as you gaze at the flowers. Founded in 1974, the reserve can be explored in under an hour and the 'koppie' in the centre makes a fine place for a picnic lunch.
From the outcrop you can see across the valley to the Hantam National Botanical Garden, which was recently established by the South African National Botanical Institute on the Glenlyon Conservation Farm of Neil and Neva MacGregor. Glenlyon has long been famous for having some of the best flowers in the region. The Garden is open from 7.30am – 4.30pm from Monday to Friday, but opens over weekends during flower season. Entrance is R10 per person (R5 for children) from August to October, and free of charge throughout the rest of year. Bus tours are conducted during the flower season at a cost of R150 per person.
I doubt Barry Louis Polisar has been to South Africa, but if he ever wanted to see his flowers "growing wild and free", the empty plains of the Karoo Bokkeveld surrounding Nieuwoudtville would be a good place to start.
This article originally appeared on http://travel.iafrica.com.
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