Sand, sand, more sand...

[MissM]

Nice photos! I'm looking forward to doing that Wupperthal road on Sunday. Hopefully it's sandy.....

Why don't we do this whole route? The route to Cederberg looks awesome!

[Dee64]

Lekker RR and great pics 

[RobD]

Awesome awesome post! Thank you for taking the time to share with us.... The adventure bug is biting down hard..... As said.. "What's not to like?"

[Zanie]

This is the very best ride report I have EVER seen, well done. My reason is simple it had detail I as an Newbie (no shame) can use. I can note the actual route and use it.

Thanks. When writing the ride reports I also get a good idea of where I've been, retrospectively. Often, during the ride, I'm just following Lance; not having a clue where I am!

Enige kans dat jy vir ons die GPX track oplaai sodat ons kan kyk waar julle was

Ongelukkig het ek net die GPX track van die beplande roete (reply #2) en nie die eintlike roete wat ons gevolg het nie (die wat ek in Google Maps wys).

Well done ladies! Die sand kan 'n mens goed rattle as jy nie gewoond is daaraan nie, veral met 'n groot fiets soos daai. Maar as mens eers gewoond is daaran dan smile jy as jy sien die sand raak dik in die pad verentoe. En damn die Kaap bly maar mooi! En ja, Biedouw vallei is stunning in die blomme seisoen.

Ek was op 'n intro to sand kursus net so 3 weke gelede. Ek dink nie ek's meer so bang vir diep sand nie (nie dat ek dit goed kan ry nie) - dit maak mos nie seer as jy val teen lae spoed nie! Wat my nog pla is as jy lekker ry op 'n pad wat redelik goed lyk en dan tref jy eweskielik sand. Dit het met my gebeur laas naweek. Sand getref teen so 60-70km/h. My motorfiets het lekker orals gedans. Lance weet nog steeds nie hoe ek oorleef het nie. Dit moes nogal snaaks gelyk het van agter af.

Nice photos! I'm looking forward to doing that Wupperthal road on Sunday. Hopefully it's sandy.....

Why don't we do this whole route? The route to Cederberg looks awesome!

You should try the sand road on our route. It's definitely more hairy than Wupperthal, in that it is a far longer stretch of sand. What I liked about the route is the feeling of being in the absolute dead centre of nowhere. It had a strange, otherwordly feel to it, as if time decided to stand still in that area.

[MissM]

Nice photos! I'm looking forward to doing that Wupperthal road on Sunday. Hopefully it's sandy.....

Why don't we do this whole route? The route to Cederberg looks awesome!

You should try the sand road on our route. It's definitely more hairy than Wupperthal, in that it is a far longer stretch of sand. What I liked about the route is the feeling of being in the absolute dead centre of nowhere. It had a strange, otherwordly feel to it, as if time decided to stand still in that area.
[/quote]

Awesome. I must check this out on my WR. Glad to hear that it is more hairy than Wuppertal as I am still confused as to where that sand is!  You should come and see Parklands sometime and then you'll understand why. 

[Zanie]

Awesome. I must check this out on my WR. Glad to hear that it is more hairy than Wuppertal as I am still confused as to where that sand is!  You should come and see Parklands sometime and then you'll understand why. 

I know all about Parklands. I spent a day in hospital next to a boyfriend drugged up to the eyeballs with morphine thanks to a well-hidden ditch in the sand. Now he wants me to join Sand Camp. I'm a bit worried, given our particular run of bad luck: 3 broken bones in the space of 6 months between the two of us...

[MissM]

Awesome. I must check this out on my WR. Glad to hear that it is more hairy than Wuppertal as I am still confused as to where that sand is!  You should come and see Parklands sometime and then you'll understand why. 

I know all about Parklands. I spent a day in hospital next to a boyfriend drugged up to the eyeballs with morphine thanks to a well-hidden ditch in the sand. Now he wants me to join Sand Camp. I'm a bit worried, given our particular run of bad luck: 3 broken bones in the space of 6 months between the two of us...

Eeep that's pretty bad. You should definitely come and check it but just don't hit high speeds on it. We've not had any accidents, other than broken bikes, so perhaps we will negate your bad luck?

[JJ259]

Very nice RR, thanks for sharing.

[Prototype]

Wat my nog pla is as jy lekker ry op 'n pad wat redelik goed lyk en dan tref jy eweskielik sand. Dit het met my gebeur laas naweek. Sand getref teen so 60-70km/h. My motorfiets het lekker orals gedans.

Dit is presies wat my vrou ook nog pla. Het die naweek agter haar gery en 'n paar keer presies dieslefde, sanderige deel op 50-60 km/h en dan spring daai agter wiel soos 'n springbok op steroids. Lyk scary van agter af! Mar toe ek haar vra of sy uit beheer gevoel het se sy nee, glad nie. Ek dink dit is presies daar waar "look up, open up" belangrik is, sagte hande op die handle bars en tyd in die saal

 

[spoedvark]

Great RR Zanie with outstanding pics!

My bucket list has grown! Will need a tour guide there though. Especially if we stumble across that closed gate!

SPOED 

[RyanI]

Great RR and thanks for sharing. As a Gautenger this is great to read and you ladies are super brave. I know all about the sand monster and how your "mind space" can have a huge affect. 2 years ago I hated soft sand but after learning the correct techniques now I'm comfortable.

A mate and I just spent 6 days riding from CT to JHB on the back roads through the Karoo and Kalahari and that sand can be scary. I am hoping to put up a RR soon.

Well done!

[Duif]

Day 2: Sunday 26 July

Google Maps route: https://goo.gl/56y6Ej

The next morning, we headed off to do the infamous road to Wupperthal.



It was very cold early in the morning. I think the temperature was in the low negatives.



Early on, you could see the road would at least be more “interesting” than gravel highway




One section had a chicken run option.

Which one would you take?


No contest for me – I choose the high road


Ilse follows my lead. Of course, Gerhard always likes to try the route less travelled.


Ilse down again


It had nothing to do with head space this time. Phobia is the correct word. Apparently there was a snake in the road. Ilse did some strange manoeuvres to miss it and ended up on the ground. Lucky for her, the snake had decided that it was all a bit too exciting to hang around there.

Do I have to pick it up?


Amazing Cederberg rock formations


Gerhard having fun


Little village in the middle of nowhere


Shortly after the village, there’s a turn-off to the right (where the main road kinks to the left) to the view point at the Eselbank River waterfall and gorge. I have been on this road I don’t know how many times before, either as a pillion on a bike or a passenger in a 4x4, but I had never been here before. Do not miss it. The views are lovely.

These boots aren't really made for hiking. At least it’s a short walk.


Get in touch with a rock today


Me on a rock with a view


Lance with spectacular surrounds


Some locals took fright at us scary bikers




We headed on, past some more amazing rock formations.







And then we hit sand…





After yesterday’s fiasco, we were mentally prepared. The sandy bits seemed short in comparison. The sand was also not as bad as it would be in mid-summer. We got through without event.

There were even some puddles to remind us of yesterday.



We spotted a bunch of other bikers taking a break. I hoped they weren’t laughing too hard at my pace…

Lance checking out the others

 
The bikers that you cross, was us and we did stop there to braai some wors. After lunch we travel to Oases for a cooldrink and took the Aleria road. First  we check in at Sandrivier and take the gravel road back to Algeria Bosbou stasie and all the way to Clanwilliam on the Ou Kaapse road and fill up the bikes and headed for home. Thanks for the RR.



Some prefer to do it the hard way


The road was quite rocky on some stretches, but as long as I was allowed to go at my own speed (i.e. dead slow in either first or second gear) I actually had fun. It felt a bit like mountain biking, just without the sweat (and also with a much heavier contraption that can fall on you if things go wrong).

Lance shepherding me




Eselbank Pass – steeper than it looks


Below is proof that the guys are also not infallible. Gerhard stopped on a corner of Eselbank Pass, looked behind him to find Ilse, and dropped the bike.



Ilse stopping to help out


Eselbank Pass is very steep. If you are a newbie and are not comfortable with speed, stick your bike in first gear to use the engine’s compression to slow you. It’s amazing how much speed you can still pick up in first gear though! I only used my brakes before corners. Sitting on the brakes the whole way down is not a good idea. I think they heat up and are then useless when you really need them?

Eselbank Pass is amazing. I was having difficulty choosing the best pictures, so here is a whole bunch:




















We headed down into the Biedouw Valley. Apparently this is a great place to check out flowers when they are in bloom.


Heading out the other side of Biedouw Valley.






We would be back in this area, doing a very similar route, in 7 weeks’ time. What’s not to like?