Port Elizabeth was founded in 1820 as a landing place for British settlers, who came by sea to Algoa Bay in a scheme to strengthen the eastern frontier of the Cape Colony. Sir Rufane Donkin, the acting governor, named the settlement after his late wife, Elizabeth, and built a stone pyramid on a hill in her memory, which still stands in the park that bears his name. The city has been renamed Gqeberha officially, but the old name persists on road signs and in daily speech, and its history is tied to the nineteenth-century wool trade and later to the car industry.
The coast to the west is the other reason to be here. The Garden Route Coast begins with Jeffreys Bay, about seventy kilometers along the N2, a surf town that is home to one of the longest and best right-hand waves in the world, and the competitions held there draw pros from everywhere. Beyond it lie small fishing villages and long, empty beaches, then the forest and gorges of the Tsitsikamma coast. The N2 is fast and well kept, but the older roads off it, especially along the sea, give more variety and the chance to see whales and dolphins from the cliffs.
For riders, the season matters. The Eastern Cape has a mild climate, and the best months are from March to May and September to November, when it is warm and dry. Summer is busy and hot, and sea fog and strong south-westerly winds can make the coast cold and damp in winter. The traffic on the N2 near the city is heavy, with trucks and fast cars, so it is better to leave early in the morning.
Everything is easy here. The city has fuel stations on almost every corner, dealerships and good repair shops, and the beachfront at Humewood has cafes, seafood restaurants and a long promenade. The Fort Frederick, a small stone fort from 1799, stands near the harbor and is one of the oldest buildings in the area.
If you are heading west toward the Garden Route, fill up here, since the road between Humansdorp and Storms River has fewer stations than you might expect.