Motorbike trip to the Great Karoo on dirt roads

Motorbike trip to the Great Karoo on dirt roads. Magnificent!! 🏍️🏍️🏍️

Day 1. Somerset-wes to Barrydale.

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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 . 

The farm lies in the south eastern corner of the Great Karoo, bordering the Kamdeboo on our north, and the Baviaans Kloof, on our south. The area is of great ecological importance, as it is home to about 7000 plant species, incorporating 5 plant biomes. It is also home to some of the last remaining Cape Mountain Leopards, and the pristine beauty is further enriched by remnants of prehistoric history, Khoisan paintings and artefacts, and some colonial history. Wonderful hiking opportunities on the farm. 

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Day 5.  Bucklands Guest Farm via Antoniespass to Patensie.

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 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.  Baviaanskloof over Prince Alfred Pass to Diepwalle 

The Prince Alfred's Pass on the R339 gravel road between Knysna and Uniondale 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.   

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.

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Day 8 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 9. 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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Day 10 George to Stilbaai 

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Day 10 Stilbaai to Malgas. Using the new motorised Malgas Pont

The new motorised pont at Malgas allows public traffic to cross the Breede River at this point avoiding a time-consuming and expensive 90 km detour by road to reach the other side of the river.

Operating hours are 06:00 to 18:00 every day. However, operators may, at their own discretion and without notice, close the pont at any time for safety reasons (as was the case with the old pont). When weather, water and vessel conditions are favourable, and when the pont is not required for transporting DTPW vehicles, members of the public may have their motorised vehicles transported across the river free of charge. No pedestrians or non-motorised vehicles will be transported across the river unless there is also a motorised vehicle on the pont.

A pont is a flat-bottomed ferry. It essentially takes the place of a bridge in a location where the expense of constructing a bridge is not warranted. The old pont, which was connected to a cable and drawn by hand across the river, was put in place a century ago. The old vessel had to be replaced because it had become a hazard to public safety, and because it was no longer fit for purpose. 

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Day 11 Malgas to L'Agulhas

L' Agulhas is the southern most town in Africa where the Indian and Atlantic Oceans officially meet

Early Portuguese seafarers rounding this dangerous point called it L'Agulhas which means Cape of Needles (referring to the jagged rocks of the coastline and also the fact that a compass shows no real deviation between true north and magnetic north at this spot). 

Most visitors consider the beautiful, historic red and white lighthouse as the icon of this region. Definitely worth climbing to the top, even if you are intimidated by the wooden flights of steps. West of the lighthouse is the entrance to the Agulhas National Park.

The Cape Agulhas Region is mostly a dairy, wool and wheat farming area, but having the Atlantic and Indian Oceans around it, fishing has been an important industry since the early days.

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Day 12 L'Agulhas to Harmanus via the Overberg

The Cape Overberg Region.
What would have been a momentous journey in days gone by is today simply a case of driving "over the berg" (mountain) and into the Elgin Valley, one of the major apple-growing areas in South Africa today.

The Overberg is a great expanse of beautiful and diverse landscapes. This  region have an immense beauty  with its orchards, forests, grain fields, conola fields and vistas surrounded by rolling mountain ranges.

The Overberg stretches from the Hottentots-Holland Mountains in the west, to Swellendam in the east. In the north it reaches as far as the Riviersonderend Mountains and ventures south to include an incredible coastline that draws regular annual visits from those great beasts of the ocean, the Southern Right and the Bryde's whales

It is home to the De Hoop Nature Reserve, a beautiful reserve and wonderful place to view whales; you could spend days here. Or visit De Mond Nature Reserve which is on the mouth of the Heuningnes River and great for a picnic.

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Day 13 Hermanus 

Hermanus, situated in the heart of the Cape Whale Route, offers a host of activities that appeal to outdoor enthusiasts and culinary connoisseurs alike. Whale-watching, wine-tasting, beaches, restaurants, art galleries… this resort town has it all.

Hermanus is known for Southern Right whale watching during the southern winter to spring seasons. Although the Southern Right whale is the most prolific species in the bay, it is not the only one that visits these shores. The whales can be seen from the cliffs all along the coast from as early as June and usually depart in early-December. 

Day 14 Hermanus to Kleinmond via Hemel-en-Aarde 

Hemel-en-Aarde is widely regarded as one of the most exciting wine areas in South Africa and one of the most beautiful. To many, it is the place for fine, restrained, classically styled South African Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Falling within the Walker Bay “District", It is comprised of three contiguous "Wine Wards" located behind the historic seaside resort town of Hermanus, surrounded by nature reserves, overlooking the cool South Atlantic Walker Bay.

Hemel-en-Aarde means Heaven and Earth in old Dutch and Afrikaans and according to a visiting Moravian missionary in 1899, “Rightly has it got its name because so high are the hills which closely embrace the valley all round, that they seem to touch the sky and you cannot see anything but heaven and earth”

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