An interview with Plett Camino Founder – Iain Bryant
Where did it all begin?
We began with the concept of the Plett Camino in the early part of 2022. Just after COVID, I and was looking to do something to get myself out of the office and back into nature. As a recovering chartered accountant, I had spent most of my working life in offices and I wanted to do something outdoors and that also involved putting a smile on people’s faces.
Breathtaking natural landscapes meet you every step of the way !
What gave you the inspiration to set it up?
Well, I had been looking at various alternative life pursuits for a long time and I came across the concept of a Camino done quite successfully by other local operators. And I realized that there was something I could do that would combine my previous innovation work in customer centred experience design, with my talents for organization and people skills, my business skills and my natural attention to detail, so I knew that we could set up something that was really quite special.
Why did you choose Plettenberg Bay?
The reason we chose “Plett” was because my family is intricately linked to both “Plett” and “Knysna” through the generations and so I am deeply familiar with the area. What I also realised early on was that we have a very unique weather pattern here that is fairly temperate and ideally suited to hiking most of the year round. It’s not subject to the radical summer winter extremes that you have elsewhere in South Africa.
You also have a wonderful mix of natural elements from the sea and a rugged coastline, to beautiful natural Afro-Montane forest, and very large substantial river valleys which flow into wide open pine forests. To add to that you have the infamous Robberg Peninsula, the Keurbooms estuary, the Plett Game reserve and all the seasonal whale’s to mention a few attractions. So you have so many elements at your disposal to put a very special experience together that goes way beyond just a hike.
What is your favourite part of running the Plett Camino?
There are few parts but one of them is to meet and greet everybody and I get to see who is here for the week and really set up the team to make sure that that particular group has the best time we can give them.
And then also I love to walk on a few of the days. It’s so beautiful to walk and chat to people and really you know get to know them but also experience the beautiful terrain that we go through first hand.
We have a stunning team of dedicated, like-minded people and so another really important element for me is interacting with all of them on a daily basis, and also all the hosts and hostesses along the way who make this journey quite special. I believe that you should never ask of one of your people, something that you are not prepared to do yourself.
What is your favourite day of the 5 days?
The favourite day is very hard to pin down.
Day 1
You know, the very first day you go deep into the forest. It’s beautiful and enchanting at the same time and your senses are overwhelmed with smells, and birds and trees and all sorts of fungi and small plants.
Day 2
On the second day, you transverse indigenous forest on one side of the path, contrasted with pine forest on the other side. There are heart stopping views along the way, and an unexpected lunch stop that will take your breath away, before you tuck into the wine and delicious food.
Day 3
On the third day we go descend through the forest and through the Bitou River valley and in many cases but most people come out of that day and they say it was the best day yet. As you get to the end there are drinks around the pool waiting for you and massages to relieve your weary limbs.
Day 4
On the fourth day we traverse the Plett Game reserve with its natural beauty and teeming wildlife and then descend into the Keurbooms River Valley, which is absolutely breathtaking, before heading for the crags far in the East and a well deserved wine tasting at Kay and Monty vineyards.
Day 5
On the last day we again head into the forest and down through an ancient unspoiled river bed, and then up the other side where cappuccinos are waiting.
On other occasions we’ve also included the Robberg Nature Reserve hike which has to be one of the most iconic 1-day hikes in the country. And it always astounds me how beautiful it is.
The trick for me is to always do these walks with a beginners mind, and remember what my experience was the first time I did it. Each day has some breathtaking moments that most visitors to the Garden Route never experience.
Why do you think the Plett Camino is more than just a hike?
The thing that makes the Plett Camino so special is undoubtedly the people that you meet along the way. From your guides to the people making sure that your bags are all in the right places, to the caterers along the way and the hosts and hostesses of the various lodges that we stay at. It’s all about these beautiful people who have come together to create this experience that is the Plett Camino.
It’s not just a hike. It is a whole week of experiences where you are far away from your own world, whatever it may be, and you don’t have to do anything except walk. Everything else is done for you and you’re left with these most fabulous memories.
What other hikes or Caminos around the world would you like to do?
In terms of any other Camino in the world, I would love to do one of the Camino’s in Spain, but I’m a little concerned about the monotony of the long daily distances and that there are so many people doing it every day, so I would possibly rather do that one on a bicycle to cover more distance in a short space of time.
But in terms of other famous walks, I haven’t been lucky enough to do the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu yet, but that is certainly on my bucket list. The Inca Trail would feed the intense curiosity of past civilizations of which we know very very little, that I have had since I was a little boy .