Storms River Village is the only one of the main Garden Route towns that is situated in the Eastern Cape, not the Western Cape. It’s a cute little town nestled down among some big old trees, and brooded over by the Tsitsikamma Mountains. Be careful not to confuse the town of Storms River with Storms River Mouth, which is in the Tsitsikamma National Park, and very close by.
Storms River Mouth is a SANParks camp with comfortable accommodation boasting awesome views over the crashing ocean, a restaurant with a view that makes up for the not particularly inspiring menu, and some lovely hikes. Storms River Mouth is the starting point of the wonderful Otter Trail – a five day hike west to Nature’s Valley, and the fabulous slackpacking Dolphin Trail, which heads east. The Dolphin Trail is portered, guided and catered. Accommodation is in pretty wooden chalets at Storms River Mouth for the first night and thereafter in fabulous guest houses.
There are also shorter day walks that take in the forest and a stone age cave. There is a laid out snorkelling trail and a dive operator at Storms River Mouth. You can do a scenic boat trip up the Storms River Gorge from the mouth.
The most interesting thing to do in Storms River town is the Tree Top Canopy Tour, where you fly through the forest canopy on strong cables strung from tree to tree. A far less adventurous way of seeing the forest is on the guided woodcutter’s journey tour.
There is a fun mountain biking trail that takes you to a vantage point overlooking Storms River Mouth. Storms River is about a kilometre off the N2. There are some lovely guest houses, a handful of backpackers’ hostels, and a small hotel.