Day 1. Somerset-wes to Barrydale.
Motorbike trip to the Great Karoo on dirt roads. Magnificent! I was priveleged to be part of the support team.
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Antoniesberg Pass, the locals refer to it as the Grootrivier Poort Road, is a remote, gravel Pass that crosses over the Grootrivier on the northern side of the Baviaanskloof Mountain in the Eastern Cape. This Pass is no Sunday drive and not for the faint hearted but magnificent scenery and a great adventure!
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Day 2. Barrydale via Swartberg Pass to Prince Albert
The 27km Swartberg Pass is considered one of the finest mountain passes in the world: an untarred road that winds to the summit 1583 metres above sea level in steep zigzags and sudden switchbacks with breathtaking views at every turn.
The road is supported in places by hand-packed stone walls, a trademark of brilliant road engineer Thomas Charles Bain. Declared a national monument in its centenary year, 1988.
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Day 3. Prince Albert via Meiringspoort to Willomore.
Meiringspoort towering sandstone cliff walls and breathtaking rock formations has jaw-dropping beauty as it winds its way through the Swartberg Mountains. The Poort follows the natural gorge hewn by the Groot Rivier (big river) through the Swartberg range connecting, on either end, the towns of Klaarstroom and De Rust, or the Groot and Klein Karoo respectively.
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Day 4. Willomore to Bucklands Guest Farm .
Day 5. Bucklands Guest Farm via Antoniespass to Patensie.
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Day 6. Through the Baviaanskloof.
The Baviaanskloof Region in the Eastern Cape, a land of raw wilderness with its rocky passes and rugged gorges, has recently been awarded World Heritage Site status. The gorge stretches for over 100 kilometres in the valley between the Baviaanskloof Mountains to the north and the Kouga mountains to the south.
This 192 000 hectare u-shaped reserve can only be travelled from east to west or from west to east. The pass was built between 1880 and 1890 by Thomas Bain. The single dirt road winds its way through the valley with no other access, in or out.
It is named after the baboons that roam the area - a mix of the Dutch word ‘baviaan’ for baboon and the Afrikaans word ‘kloof’ for ravine.
Baviaanskloof offers hours of beautiful scenery - veld, indigenous forests, crystal mountain streams, sheer cliffs and waterfalls, and is home to an amazing diversity of plants and species - from yellowwoods to karoo bossies and Fynbos.
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Day 7 Baviaans via Prince Alfred Pass to Diepwalle, Knysna
The beautiful Prince Alfred's Pass is on the R339 gravel road between Knysna and Uniondale, also known for the Karoo-to-coast cycle race.
The pass is Thomas Bain's Opus Magnum - a work of monumental proportions carried out with rudimentary equipment and convict labour, but with science, ingenuity and Bain's "can do" attitude making it all possible. Bain constructed 29 passes mainly in the Cape colony in his lifetime. This pass epitomises all of his unique touches, but especially his exceptional dry walling method of construction.
The pass is probably Thomas Bain's greatest work. Not only was this an extremely long pass, but it also presented almost every possible technical obstacle to the pass-builders. At 68,5 km it is the longest (publicly accessible) mountain pass in South Africa by a considerable margin, as well as being the second oldest unaltered pass still in use.
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Day 8. Camp in the indigenous Forest at Diepwalle. Walk elephant trail. Visit Big Tree.
Camping in the Knysna Forest in the Diepwalle indigenous Forest area is great. There are wooden decks that can accommodate a three man tent. Ample beautiful hike trails.
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Day 9: Diepwalle onwards via Kom se Pad
Kom se Pad, a beautiful drive through the lush indigenous forests of the mountains north of Knysna, winds its way between Diepwalle in the east Gouna in the west. This is one of the best publicly accessible roads in deep indigenous forests where one doesn't require to be in a 4WD vehicle.
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Day 10: Seven Passes Road to George.
Seven Passes Road is the oldest direct road link between George and Knysna. The road which traverses seven passes was engineered by Thomas Charles John Bain and Adam de Smidt. It was completed around 1883 and is situated just south of the Outeniqua Mountains.
This 75 km historic road was completed in 1883. Rivers generally flow in deep gorges on their way from the mountains to the sea, therefore there are seven passes along the way, hence the name of the route. These are the passes crossing the Swart-, Kaaimans- and Silver-, Touw-, Hoogekraal- and Karatara rivers, the Homtini gorge and the Phantom pass.
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