Hankeeb
Pack Dog
So after our first day trip my fiancé and I had a bit of an argument, and no not about me wanting to ride the bike everywhere, but about being able to make a 2 day trip with only a tank bag. She said yes we will be able to and I said no we won’t be able to. She tried to prove me wrong by packing our clothes for 2 days and 1 night. I lost the argument….
So the obvious next step was to find a place to go. We looked inland to Boesmanskloof, up the West Coast to Darling, up the South Coast to Cape Agulhas. Finally we decided on the Cederberg, one of our favourite place to go for mountain biking and a place where other adventure riders visit often.
We booked an A-frame tent for one night and started getting everything ready for the trip. I was somewhat worried about getting a flat tyre since I only found out a day or two before the trip that my bikes’ 19 and 24 spanner is not in the toolkit and I also do not have tyre levers. With the majority of the shops closed the only thing I could opt for was getting some sealant in my tubes and hoping for the best.
We started packing and Arné, my fiancé, soon realised that the tank bag is not enough. Lucky for me I had one of those cheapie Mr Price sport Yellow water and dust proof duffel bags. So we packed it to the brim and strapped it to the back of the bike. Arné also got us some high visibility jackets to be more visible to other road users on the road, especially now with the holiday season in full swing and some people just drive like real idiots.
DAY 1 (Words by Hanco)
Packed and ready to roll we leave Stellenbosch via Wellington, already taking the back roads we got our first bridge close to a good friend of ours family farm. The Lady Loch Bridge is the oldest steel bridge in South Africa. The bridge was first constructed out of wood in 1853 and was named after the Governors’ wife. The bridge was opened the same year that Bainskloof opened. In 1910 the bridge was rebuilt from steel and thus became the first steel bridge in South Africa.
A quick stop to remove the GoPro from my helmet and on we go again. The view of the old blockhouse just as you leave Wellington always reminds me that we have left home, and adventure is coming. This is also the most southern blockhouse built by the English.
The road from Wellington to Gouda was absolutely horrible. Single lane, both directions, no shoulder with a cross wind of about 50~60km/h and to top it huge trucks passing us at scary speeds. Blowing us all over the road Arné started to panic and every time a truck goes by I hear these anxious squeaks over the intercom. She really did not like it at all.
Lucky for us we came to the Gouda Wind farm turnoff and now got the wind from behind on a nice wide lane with a shoulder.
In no time we got to Porterville and just in time for a coffee stop before we tackle the Cape Namibia road (N7) to our next destination, Citrusdal.
Before we get to Citrusdal we have a mountain pass to conquer, Grey’s Pass or more well known as Piquenierskloof later simplified to Piekenierskloof. The older pass which was built by Thomas Bain can still be found next to the new road but sadly we could not get permission to drive it, so we took the new road and made a stop at Kardoesie Farm Stall at the top of the pass.
Coming in to Citrusdal we knew that this will be our last bit on the black stuff and from there on out fuel will be hard to find. So we stopped for a fill up. Happy to find that I was getting 25km/l. Not bad for a semi loaded bike with a pillion in some hectic wind.
Taking the back road out of Citrusdal we got our first bit of dirt road. A quick stop to let down the tyre pressures and we were on the best part of the trip. The road was good until we got to what most adventure riders fear…sand. Now I understand what GS stands for “Geen Sand”. All that came to mind was “stand up, look up, open up”. Sadly the stand up option was not going to happen as Arné was not very comfortable on standing with me. We got through the sand and soon got to our lunch spot by the river…which turned out to be a pretty dry river with no water or shade and so we decided to push on.
Nieuwoudts pass is next on the list and here I convinced Arné that we should practice standing on the good parts of the road to get her confidence up. Soon she was comfy and with the left hand on my left shoulder and right hand on my right hip I can just tell her “1,2,3 stand” and on the feet we are. Taking the rougher terrain like a piece of cake. Going around corners through rocky sections, and anywhere the Dakar likes to go.
A quick roadside lunch stop outside Algeria and we were on the road again.
Moving along to our next stop, Kromrivier, where we planned to stop for a local craft beer. Very friendly people running the farm. You can find some of the finest cold craft beers there to freshly baked bread and cake.
From there on out we took the back road out to Cederberg Oasis. A lovely twisty little road over private property and 2 gates. More deep sand came our way but by now we had the skills to overcome the sand.
In no time we saw the sign saying 2.5km to Cederberg Oasis, and we got very excited!
We saw the yellow smiley face and we knew we got to an oasis, Cederberg Oasis! We met Gerrit there, the friendliest man on this earth! Who in no time showed us to our tent and told us to go cool down in the pool.
We went for a swim, and relaxed next to the Dakar, who also cooled down in the shade. The local Jack Russel did not take long to make friends with Arné.
While waiting for the best plate of ribs I have ever had we saw some rain on the other side of the mountain. Some epic cloud formations, lightning and a double rainbow made dinner just that bit more amazing.
And so our day came to an end. It was night time and the stars covered our heads.
DAY 2 (Words by Arné)
The sun got to us earlier than we expected and we were out of the feathers by 06:15 the next morning. We planned on riding the first part of our journey with another couple we met the previous evening, but with us being up so early we decided to greet farewell and head off before the deadly sun got the better of us. We decided to head out with our first mission being to find some decent coffee.
Mount Ceder was our first stop. Here we enjoyed the stunning views while having a cappuccino – unfortunately we soon realised it was one of those Nescafé instant sachets – at least we got a little bit of caffeine into our bodies with a whole lot of sugar!
After caffeinating we took to the road again, heading towards Tankwa. Hanco was very disappointed to hear that a part of the road he wanted to ride was now on private land and inaccessible to him. Instead we had to stay on the road and take the Kagga Kamma turn off. The Katbakkiespass was quite gruelling and the uphill’s made us wonder whether our normal car would have made it. Not long after the pass, the scenery started changing, the jagged rocks synonymous with the Cederberg, became less and less and we were greeted with a typical Karoo landscape: kilometres and kilometres of nothing…
We soon reached the Tankwa Padstal – a first for both of us. We have both heard a lot about the Afrika Burn festival and it was interesting to see some of the relics of the festivals over the years. The friendly owners greeted us and served us some delicious breakfast complete with a roosterkoek to top it off. The homemade ginger beer was an absolute highlight and was so welcome in the 45 degree heat!
Here after we took the long Tankwa road in the direction of Ceres. And, wow! What a long road it was with an unbelievable view of the beautiful Karoo nothingness. Hanco managed to do 120-130km/h on this road. It started getting really hot and I did not mind the faster speed as I knew it meant we would reach our next stop sooner!
I am not sure whether it was the heat or maybe another undiagnosed problem, but our bike started losing power around 100km/h. This stressed us out a bit as we were quite far from home and we still had a few stops in between. We decided to make Klondyke in Ceres our final stop before heading home.
Klondyke was another highlight where we got to pick our own cherries from the orchards. The farm was not as busy as I have seen it before and we enjoyed our stop there, having a cold drink before heading homewards.
Our last adventure was riding through Michell’s Pass – another pass that we know quite well. By now we were properly boiling in our riding kit and it felt as if it was close to 50 degrees outside. We had to make a last emergency stop at Florida Farm stall to drink some ice cold water as I felt as if I was about to pass out from the heat. There after we headed home, I was very happy to see the Stellenbosch Road sign as this meant that we have almost reached home!
So the obvious next step was to find a place to go. We looked inland to Boesmanskloof, up the West Coast to Darling, up the South Coast to Cape Agulhas. Finally we decided on the Cederberg, one of our favourite place to go for mountain biking and a place where other adventure riders visit often.
We booked an A-frame tent for one night and started getting everything ready for the trip. I was somewhat worried about getting a flat tyre since I only found out a day or two before the trip that my bikes’ 19 and 24 spanner is not in the toolkit and I also do not have tyre levers. With the majority of the shops closed the only thing I could opt for was getting some sealant in my tubes and hoping for the best.
We started packing and Arné, my fiancé, soon realised that the tank bag is not enough. Lucky for me I had one of those cheapie Mr Price sport Yellow water and dust proof duffel bags. So we packed it to the brim and strapped it to the back of the bike. Arné also got us some high visibility jackets to be more visible to other road users on the road, especially now with the holiday season in full swing and some people just drive like real idiots.
DAY 1 (Words by Hanco)
Packed and ready to roll we leave Stellenbosch via Wellington, already taking the back roads we got our first bridge close to a good friend of ours family farm. The Lady Loch Bridge is the oldest steel bridge in South Africa. The bridge was first constructed out of wood in 1853 and was named after the Governors’ wife. The bridge was opened the same year that Bainskloof opened. In 1910 the bridge was rebuilt from steel and thus became the first steel bridge in South Africa.
A quick stop to remove the GoPro from my helmet and on we go again. The view of the old blockhouse just as you leave Wellington always reminds me that we have left home, and adventure is coming. This is also the most southern blockhouse built by the English.
The road from Wellington to Gouda was absolutely horrible. Single lane, both directions, no shoulder with a cross wind of about 50~60km/h and to top it huge trucks passing us at scary speeds. Blowing us all over the road Arné started to panic and every time a truck goes by I hear these anxious squeaks over the intercom. She really did not like it at all.
Lucky for us we came to the Gouda Wind farm turnoff and now got the wind from behind on a nice wide lane with a shoulder.
In no time we got to Porterville and just in time for a coffee stop before we tackle the Cape Namibia road (N7) to our next destination, Citrusdal.
Before we get to Citrusdal we have a mountain pass to conquer, Grey’s Pass or more well known as Piquenierskloof later simplified to Piekenierskloof. The older pass which was built by Thomas Bain can still be found next to the new road but sadly we could not get permission to drive it, so we took the new road and made a stop at Kardoesie Farm Stall at the top of the pass.
Coming in to Citrusdal we knew that this will be our last bit on the black stuff and from there on out fuel will be hard to find. So we stopped for a fill up. Happy to find that I was getting 25km/l. Not bad for a semi loaded bike with a pillion in some hectic wind.
Taking the back road out of Citrusdal we got our first bit of dirt road. A quick stop to let down the tyre pressures and we were on the best part of the trip. The road was good until we got to what most adventure riders fear…sand. Now I understand what GS stands for “Geen Sand”. All that came to mind was “stand up, look up, open up”. Sadly the stand up option was not going to happen as Arné was not very comfortable on standing with me. We got through the sand and soon got to our lunch spot by the river…which turned out to be a pretty dry river with no water or shade and so we decided to push on.
Nieuwoudts pass is next on the list and here I convinced Arné that we should practice standing on the good parts of the road to get her confidence up. Soon she was comfy and with the left hand on my left shoulder and right hand on my right hip I can just tell her “1,2,3 stand” and on the feet we are. Taking the rougher terrain like a piece of cake. Going around corners through rocky sections, and anywhere the Dakar likes to go.
A quick roadside lunch stop outside Algeria and we were on the road again.
Moving along to our next stop, Kromrivier, where we planned to stop for a local craft beer. Very friendly people running the farm. You can find some of the finest cold craft beers there to freshly baked bread and cake.
From there on out we took the back road out to Cederberg Oasis. A lovely twisty little road over private property and 2 gates. More deep sand came our way but by now we had the skills to overcome the sand.
In no time we saw the sign saying 2.5km to Cederberg Oasis, and we got very excited!
We saw the yellow smiley face and we knew we got to an oasis, Cederberg Oasis! We met Gerrit there, the friendliest man on this earth! Who in no time showed us to our tent and told us to go cool down in the pool.
We went for a swim, and relaxed next to the Dakar, who also cooled down in the shade. The local Jack Russel did not take long to make friends with Arné.
While waiting for the best plate of ribs I have ever had we saw some rain on the other side of the mountain. Some epic cloud formations, lightning and a double rainbow made dinner just that bit more amazing.
And so our day came to an end. It was night time and the stars covered our heads.
DAY 2 (Words by Arné)
The sun got to us earlier than we expected and we were out of the feathers by 06:15 the next morning. We planned on riding the first part of our journey with another couple we met the previous evening, but with us being up so early we decided to greet farewell and head off before the deadly sun got the better of us. We decided to head out with our first mission being to find some decent coffee.
Mount Ceder was our first stop. Here we enjoyed the stunning views while having a cappuccino – unfortunately we soon realised it was one of those Nescafé instant sachets – at least we got a little bit of caffeine into our bodies with a whole lot of sugar!
After caffeinating we took to the road again, heading towards Tankwa. Hanco was very disappointed to hear that a part of the road he wanted to ride was now on private land and inaccessible to him. Instead we had to stay on the road and take the Kagga Kamma turn off. The Katbakkiespass was quite gruelling and the uphill’s made us wonder whether our normal car would have made it. Not long after the pass, the scenery started changing, the jagged rocks synonymous with the Cederberg, became less and less and we were greeted with a typical Karoo landscape: kilometres and kilometres of nothing…
We soon reached the Tankwa Padstal – a first for both of us. We have both heard a lot about the Afrika Burn festival and it was interesting to see some of the relics of the festivals over the years. The friendly owners greeted us and served us some delicious breakfast complete with a roosterkoek to top it off. The homemade ginger beer was an absolute highlight and was so welcome in the 45 degree heat!
Here after we took the long Tankwa road in the direction of Ceres. And, wow! What a long road it was with an unbelievable view of the beautiful Karoo nothingness. Hanco managed to do 120-130km/h on this road. It started getting really hot and I did not mind the faster speed as I knew it meant we would reach our next stop sooner!
I am not sure whether it was the heat or maybe another undiagnosed problem, but our bike started losing power around 100km/h. This stressed us out a bit as we were quite far from home and we still had a few stops in between. We decided to make Klondyke in Ceres our final stop before heading home.
Klondyke was another highlight where we got to pick our own cherries from the orchards. The farm was not as busy as I have seen it before and we enjoyed our stop there, having a cold drink before heading homewards.
Our last adventure was riding through Michell’s Pass – another pass that we know quite well. By now we were properly boiling in our riding kit and it felt as if it was close to 50 degrees outside. We had to make a last emergency stop at Florida Farm stall to drink some ice cold water as I felt as if I was about to pass out from the heat. There after we headed home, I was very happy to see the Stellenbosch Road sign as this meant that we have almost reached home!
