Overberg / Whale Coast

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Trailrider

Bachelor Dog
Joined
Dec 10, 2006
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Location
George
Bike
Honda TransAlp XL700V
Day 1

Barely 2 days after we returned from the Baviaans trip we were on our way again. This time to take the coastal route along the Whale Coast to the Southernmost tip of Africa and do some exploring of the Overberg area in between.

Rooipoot offered some accommodation for us at Witsand for the first night and so the plan was set in motion. He didnâ??t want to miss any of the trip though so he decided to shoot through to George (400km on his trusty DR200) the day before.

Early on Day 1 we were ready to roll! ;D

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The plan was to take 4 days and see as much as we can see. The only requirements I had of this trip was to cross the Breede river on the Pontoon at Malgas and to photograph my bike at the Southernmost tip of Africa.

Today we decided to hug the coast taking as much gravel as is possible. This would take us all the way to Witsand and our accommodation for the first night.

We took the gravel road from George to Groot Brak and from this little gravel pass we saw the Indian Ocean and the first of many river mouths.

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When I take my bike I usually head for the mountains. Taking a coastal route was a nice change and who knew there were so many unexplored roads here? Wow. We rode past Reebok, Tergniet, Mosselbay, and took the Boggomsbay / Vleesbay road to get to the gravel a.s.a.p. This took us all the way to Cape Vacca.

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I have lived less than 100km from here most of my life and I have never heard of this place. Sure is beautiful. Itâ??s a conservation area and is being preserved for the generations to come. No Golf Estate development here  :thumleft:

The road meanders along the coast through the â??Sandveldâ? and across the many rivers running into the sea. The bridge across Gouritz:

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And a snack stop next to the Indian Ocean.

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Who knew you could take gravel roads so close to the Ocean? Thereâ??s not much traffic either. Itâ??s a leisurely ride along the coast with great scenery and the smell of the sea.

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We had to stop at a closed gate at the Reins Nature Reserve and backtrack a little bit for a slight detour. This was just the first of many mistakes we picked up on the Slingsby Garden Route map. We could see the Ystervarkpunt Lighthouse though.

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This lighthouse was commissioned on 4th August 1964 and was originally a lattice tower. This new lighthouse was recently constructed. 2006. Active; focal plane approx. 65 m (213 ft); white flash every 10 s. Approx. 39 m (121 ft) round cylindrical concrete tower, painted with red and white spiral bands.

This lighthouse is situated on a promontory about 80 km (50 mi) southwest of Mossel Bay near the mouth of the Gouritz River between Mossel Bay and Cape Agulhas.

Originally a 21 metre aluminium tower, now a concrete structure of the same height and painted in striking candy stripes of red and white. This lighthouse is not open to the public but visible from the road within the Reins Nature Reserve. The tower supports a fully automatic electric light system with a range of 24 nautical miles.

Beautiful red and white stripes, a pleasure to the eye.

Next up was the Duiwenhoks River mouth:

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All along the coast you see fishermen and at virtually every river there are boats being launched. The people are friendly and stike up a conversation easily volunteering all kinds of info about interesting routes in the area.

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Finally, after riding 306km for the day, we reached Witsand and home for the night.

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It was the first time in a long long while that I rode a whole day on new roads I have not seen before. What a blast!

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After a nice braai and the usual chatter we turned in. Who would have guessed that day 2 would turn out to be even better than this?
 
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