LuckyStriker
Bachelor Dog
9 July 2006
GoogleEarth
Ceres lies just beyond the Witzenberg and Skurweberg mountain ranges and the development of an access route to the fertile Ceres Valley came in five stages.
Click here to find out more about the History of Ceres
First came the indomitable pioneers who battled their way up the Breede rivier valley with its impossible terrain to open up isolated farms on the higher ground around Ceres.
In 1765 a local farmer named Jan Mostert built a 13km stretch of road at his own expense. Mostert justifiably charged a toll to recuperate his disbursement and the road became a much used lifeline.
The road had its drawbacks however. Firstly it crossed and re-crossed the river several times. The river was occasionally in flood and levels rose to such height that horses lost the track or were completely unable to ford the torrents.
Secondly, the upper two kilometres of the pass was so rocky and precipitous that the wagons had to be unloaded, disassembled and carried in parts on the back of oxen, together with their freight, to the other side where the whole lot had to be put back together again.
Click here to find out more about the Transport Riders
There were other attempts to cross the mountain to Ceres but these routes were equally if not more dangerous. In the interest of this thread I will not discuss them here but please take the trouble to research Veld Koronet Jan Pienaar and his suicidal Witzenberg pass that travelled like an arrow straight over the mountainous terrain.
A third phase began when the genius of Andrew Geddes Bain was directed at the pass. With the help of 240 convicts, some specialist assistants and his son Thomas, Bains completed the pass in the amazingly short period of just two years. The pass no longer crisscrossed the river but had instead several bridges and tremendous retaining walls. Horse drawn carriages could now for the first time gain access to the settlements in the Warm and Kouebokkeveld valleys. Ox draw loads now also took 12 days to reach Cape Town in stead of the usual 20 days, A marked improvement.
Bainsâ?? pass carried traffic for nearly 100 years before receiving major attention in 1938. The pass was in steady decline thanks in part to a railway line that had reached Ceres in 1912. Due to wartime restrictions on bitumen and other materials, the Divisional Council was forced to pave the road with un-reinforced concrete. The newly refurbished pass much as we see it today with its broad sweeping curves was unveiled in 1946.
Unfortunately the pass was almost completely buried in landslides due to the great Earthquake of 29 September 1969.
Click here to find out more about the Great Earthquake of 69
The fifth phase of the pass consisted of clearing up the road, which thankfully had not slid down the side of the mountain, and upgrading the surface to late 20th Century standards.
Blasting, tarring and final gradient adjustment was begun in 1988 and all done without closing the pass to trafficâ?¦a most tricky project. In 1992 the pass was again unveiled with huge fanfare.
Mitchellâ??s pass was nominated for a special award from the SA Institution of Civil Engineering and in 1998 was declared a National Monument.
- Source: Ross, Graham L.D. 2002. The Romance of Cape Mountain Passes. David Philip Publishers. ISBN 0-86486-663-1
End of the history lesson
The tarred surface of the pass is in excellent shape and Motorcycle riders from the City and surrounds love to breakfast in Ceres just so they can ride Mitchellâ??s.
On this wide pass you can really get your knee down and rub away the chicken strip without fear of crashing into the Armco.
The views from the lookout points are spectacular and you may even be lucky enough to see a fresh fruit laden train creeping along the track below you.
Bikes parked outside the Spur in Ceres
The old toll house has a tea room at the back were you can sit and relax before continuing on your way to Ceres.
Kaboef and Marli
KiLRoy and Butch
Thank you. I am LuckyStriker and your father smelt of elderberries!
GoogleEarth
Ceres lies just beyond the Witzenberg and Skurweberg mountain ranges and the development of an access route to the fertile Ceres Valley came in five stages.
Click here to find out more about the History of Ceres
First came the indomitable pioneers who battled their way up the Breede rivier valley with its impossible terrain to open up isolated farms on the higher ground around Ceres.
In 1765 a local farmer named Jan Mostert built a 13km stretch of road at his own expense. Mostert justifiably charged a toll to recuperate his disbursement and the road became a much used lifeline.
The road had its drawbacks however. Firstly it crossed and re-crossed the river several times. The river was occasionally in flood and levels rose to such height that horses lost the track or were completely unable to ford the torrents.
Secondly, the upper two kilometres of the pass was so rocky and precipitous that the wagons had to be unloaded, disassembled and carried in parts on the back of oxen, together with their freight, to the other side where the whole lot had to be put back together again.
Click here to find out more about the Transport Riders
There were other attempts to cross the mountain to Ceres but these routes were equally if not more dangerous. In the interest of this thread I will not discuss them here but please take the trouble to research Veld Koronet Jan Pienaar and his suicidal Witzenberg pass that travelled like an arrow straight over the mountainous terrain.
A third phase began when the genius of Andrew Geddes Bain was directed at the pass. With the help of 240 convicts, some specialist assistants and his son Thomas, Bains completed the pass in the amazingly short period of just two years. The pass no longer crisscrossed the river but had instead several bridges and tremendous retaining walls. Horse drawn carriages could now for the first time gain access to the settlements in the Warm and Kouebokkeveld valleys. Ox draw loads now also took 12 days to reach Cape Town in stead of the usual 20 days, A marked improvement.
Bainsâ?? pass carried traffic for nearly 100 years before receiving major attention in 1938. The pass was in steady decline thanks in part to a railway line that had reached Ceres in 1912. Due to wartime restrictions on bitumen and other materials, the Divisional Council was forced to pave the road with un-reinforced concrete. The newly refurbished pass much as we see it today with its broad sweeping curves was unveiled in 1946.
Unfortunately the pass was almost completely buried in landslides due to the great Earthquake of 29 September 1969.
Click here to find out more about the Great Earthquake of 69
The fifth phase of the pass consisted of clearing up the road, which thankfully had not slid down the side of the mountain, and upgrading the surface to late 20th Century standards.
Blasting, tarring and final gradient adjustment was begun in 1988 and all done without closing the pass to trafficâ?¦a most tricky project. In 1992 the pass was again unveiled with huge fanfare.
Mitchellâ??s pass was nominated for a special award from the SA Institution of Civil Engineering and in 1998 was declared a National Monument.
- Source: Ross, Graham L.D. 2002. The Romance of Cape Mountain Passes. David Philip Publishers. ISBN 0-86486-663-1
End of the history lesson
The tarred surface of the pass is in excellent shape and Motorcycle riders from the City and surrounds love to breakfast in Ceres just so they can ride Mitchellâ??s.
On this wide pass you can really get your knee down and rub away the chicken strip without fear of crashing into the Armco.
The views from the lookout points are spectacular and you may even be lucky enough to see a fresh fruit laden train creeping along the track below you.
Bikes parked outside the Spur in Ceres
The old toll house has a tea room at the back were you can sit and relax before continuing on your way to Ceres.
Kaboef and Marli
KiLRoy and Butch
Thank you. I am LuckyStriker and your father smelt of elderberries!
