a roadtrip: episode 1

yes please

How did this all begin?
It all began months ago, with the idea of a race, which seemed meaningless. But as time passed, everything seemed to make more sense: a roadtrip across the country to PMB, followed by a holiday in Durban sounded like a great idea.

hello Clarens!

Clarens was to be our first stop along the way. After a 12 hour stretch of driving we happily arrived to a spectacular welcoming sunset.

artists paradise

The arty town, known as the jewel of the Free State (pêrel van die Vrystaat), seemed like a little ski village and specially the cold night proved that this place is truly in the mountains. Lovely cafés, gadget shops and art galleries waited to be explored and we did just that the next morning before heading out to the Golden Gate Highlands National Park.

Clarens backgarden

defrosting the highlands freeze 

Driving there was already incredible, but once in the park we were really blown away. Eroded sandstone cliffs and outcrops coloured in golden, ochre hues loomed over us. A photographers paradise, which took a little longer than planned to drive through.

Brandwag Butress

stunning landscapes, stunning colours

amazing view!

Sterkfontein Dam

Eventually we made it to the R74 turnoff to get to the northern Drakensberg in Kwazulu-Natal. We passed the huge Sterkfontein Dam Nature Reserve before we finally dropped into the valley of the Royal Natal National Park with it's Amphitheatre awe. Rainy season in the Drakensberg is in summer, so unfortunately the land was pretty dry and everything was different shades of the same yellow. But it was beautiful nonetheless!

view off Oliviershoek Pass 

Amphitheatre with it's mountain villages

spectacular! here's where the 2nd highest waterfall in the world is to be found: next time

cool little room of ours

After the long drive we were feeling restless and decided to stretch our legs. So off we went, pedalling into the hills of the Berg, thinking a short afternoon ride it will be. But hell no, trail riding on our bikes just isn't that fun. We tried a shortcut on the route and ended up carrying our bikes down a cliff! Quite some excitement before arriving at the Amphitheatre Backpackers. A braai with Clarens mountain lamb chops, 1999 Fleur du Cap Cabernet Sauvignon and a funny crowd around a fire: who could ask for more at the end of the day?

biking muppets

great views

shortcut route in the back

Our time was limited in the Berg, so the next day we did some more driving to get to Giant's Castle in the Central Berg. On and on we drove along narrow, windy and badly potholed roads, no wider than one car, village after village. We thought we'd never get there until 3 hours later we finally arrived at the gate to another stunning Nature Reserve. Definitely worth the increased heart rate on some moments!

camp in Giant's Castle Nature Reserve

nature's calling

This is the home of the endangered Bearded Vulture (also known as the Lammergeier), the Cape Vulture and other predator birds. We would have liked to get to the hide and watch them feed on bones and soar in the sky, but you need to book a year in advance! So instead, we went to check out the bushman paintings in the cave about a 45min walk from the camp, where hunter-gatherers lived from at least 5000 years ago. Unfortunately, no biking allowed in the reserve.

Pete with guide at the cave

trail to the main cave

huntsmen and the elands

wild fantasies from a long time ago

view from the cave

where is my bike now?

cozy place 

We decided to carry on to Highmoor, instead of staying in the expensive camp. Just another hour later we found our backpackers in ashes and had to look for another accommodation. With limited options, we checked out the place across the road and found ourselves on a little farm with roosters, peacocks and a crazy cat. Not too keen on the idea of getting woken up at 4am, we moved into a little cottage furthest away from things. With a warm fire and some wine we enjoyed the last moments in the quiet Berg. And it turned out to be a good one.

stunning sunrise

The next morning, our searches for coffee failed hopelessly, everything was either closed or had no electricity. So we decided to drive on to Pietermartizburg...

Read here for the next episode.