This past December holiday period saw us spending a bit of time up in Mossel Bay, and for one of our planned day excursions we decided to take the girls out for a boat trip to the Knysna Heads. Of course, getting to Knysna from Mossel Bay means passing through my beloved Sedgefield, and if you are going to be passing through Sedgefield on a Saturday morning then it is virtually impossible to ignore the massive throng of people turning off to pay a visit to the award-winning Wild Oats Community Farmers’ Market.
Situated adjacent to the beautiful Swartvlei lagoon on the outskirts of Sedgefield, this 20 year old, world renowned farmers’ market was first launched back in 1999 and operates, come rain or shine, every Saturday morning from 08:00 (07:30 in Summer) to 12:00. The market brims with locally produced foods, free-range meats, cheese and dairy, bakes, and of course, fresh-from-the-field fruit and vegetables. There is also coffee and all sorts of breakfast on offer, so basically no reason at all to stay inside and make your own breakfast back home then.
The stalls are all neatly covered (i.e. there is no product sitting baking under the hot sun), there are loads of trees to provide enough shade where needed, and the constant buzz of people milling about or sitting and enjoying the company of friends and family over a good cup of coffee all swirls together to make for a wonderful vibe.
The market is pet friendly, and in general comes across as very earth friendly too, and certainly whatever it is doing it is getting right, because the amount of people visiting the area each and every Saturday morning is quite the sight to behold!
While fresh farm produce wasn’t really on our minds for this particular visit, hunting down delicious nibbles, pancakes and fresh fruit juice most certainly was, and on that mission front I’m pleased to announce that we had great success! (After all, this seems to be Chantelle’s natural environment!)
Mind you, not that we were quite finished with browsing markets just yet – the more craft-orientated Mosaic Village Outdoor Market and the Scarab Art and Craft Village markets are both literally next door!
Related Link: Wild Oats Community Farmers Market | Sedgefield