The future is Riversdale green

Riversdale is in one of the most fertile agricultural regions in the Southern Cape, and the town and surrounds have many great places to stay. Turn off the N2 and make a holiday of it!

- TOAST COETZER

It’s August and the landscape around Riversdale is as green as the bakkie parked in front of the Suid-Kaap Verf paint shop. As you drive to town, the scenery next to the N2 is hypnotic: to the north is the hazy blue Langeberg; to the south, green wheat fields undulate towards Still Bay and Vermaaklikheid.

Wheat, barley and lucerne grow green, but the other crop that is easy to discern is John Deere yellow: canola. The fertile soil and relatively high rainfall (the region only experiences drought sporadically) make this area ideal for farming. Merino sheep swarm like khaki-coloured ants; Friesian and Jersey cows mark a dairy farm; and an unexpected camp of ostriches appears, their long necks held high.

How many times have I driven through Riversdale? I usually fill my tank at the Engen or buy a coffee at the Wimpy or at Ou Meul, then I continue my journey.

Not this time. I’ll explore the town for the next few days, but first I want to know the story behind the green Suid-Kaap Verf bakkie…

“We mixed this shade of green ourselves,” says manager Andy Lawerlot. “The more popular paint colours in town are currently shades of grey.”

Must be because there’s enough natural green to go around…

Down the road, a black building catches my eye. Trends Café is aptly named and sets the tone for Riversdale’s coffee shops. From decor to service to the quality of the coffee, they can compete with the coolest coffee shops in any city.