EtienneNXR
Bachelor Dog
Ever since I got my bike, a Cederberg trip has always been on the maps, earlier this year I got the opportunity to go do it at the Outriders Dual Sport Festival, but I crashed out within the first few kilometers and missed out on all the fun.
The first week of the holiday had barely passed and I was on my way back there again, this time confident to complete it.
The main idea was to ride the first day from Cape Town to Sandrif a campsite next to the river in the Cederberg, on the second day do the wuppertal route and stay at the Cederberg oasis, and then the third day ride back to Cape Town.
I left early on Thursday morning, lucky to not have to ride in the rain again I headed to Wellington.
Filled up, bought some snacks and headed towards Bain's kloof Pass.
Bain's kloof is amazing, it's a tarred pass, but the tight sweeping bends makes it a must do on anyone's list, I can see why the King Of The Mountain Race is held here every year.
There is a height restriction of 3.4m for the pass, this is why.
The view from the top, there are also lots of tyre marks around the bends, made by cars drifting through the pass.
Further on the road, on my way to Prince Alfred Hamlet, there was snow on all the mountain peeks, putting a chilly bite in the air. I bought myself some food at the local butchery and headed on to the strange little town of Oppi Berg- Yes that's actually the name.
Filled up at the local co-op, you fill up at the pumps and then go pay inside at the store.
The turnoff to the Cederberg starts here, this is where the adventure really starts.
These gravel highways are really boring on this slow bike, but luckily the fantastic scenery made up for it!
Did I mention there were water crossings? I love water crossings! Who doesn't?
I eventually arrived at the Sandrif reception, it's on a different road than the campsite. Go inside to pay and the Lady tells that I can camp and have the whole campsite to myself but...
The road to the bridge that leads there had been washed away, she said i can go have a look first. So I ride down to the campsite and came across this sight.
It was decision time...Do I unpack and carry my stuff over, or do I ride on, and look for another place.
I decided to unpack and camp, having the whole site would be great!
The place was deserted.
5min later.
When I parked my bike on the other side of the river, I noticed a Yamaha YBR125 with british plates on standing under a tree... Later on when I walked back to my bike I met the guy- Nick
Sorry for the dark-ish picture.
Turns out I have read about him, he left the border of Wales 10 months ago on his Yamaha 125, rode through Europe, the middle east and Africa and he was on he's way to Cape Town. Read about him here:
https://www.talesfromthesaddle.com/
He works on a very tight budget and doesn't even camp in campsites, he says he just camps next to the road somewhere, he invited me to come with for the evening... I said I'll think about it... 4 seconds later my mind was made up, and I headed back to pack up my tent AGAIN and travel with him. This was my chance to travel with an epic trans world adventurer.
He's plans also included the Wuppertal route, so we headed in that direction on the 4x4 track.
Someone had been here before me...
Nick's gloves had been stolen 4 times already on he's trip, he said he bought the new ones from PEP ;D
The bike he's on isn't even a DS bike, but he doesn't complain, he just rides it no matter what. He rode in front looking for a suitable camping spot in the area. There was a faint track turning of from the 4x4 route, so we followed it.
We came to this beautiful area next to some rocks and decided to spend the night there.
We put up camp quickly before the sun started to go down.
He had come off a couple o days before in Namibia at about 80km/h the screen on the bike is a bit bent and broken, but it just keeps going.
Nightfall came, and Nick told me all about he's travels across the World, he's plan is to go to South-America from here then into Russia and then ride the bike all the way home.
Next day to follow...
The first week of the holiday had barely passed and I was on my way back there again, this time confident to complete it.
The main idea was to ride the first day from Cape Town to Sandrif a campsite next to the river in the Cederberg, on the second day do the wuppertal route and stay at the Cederberg oasis, and then the third day ride back to Cape Town.
I left early on Thursday morning, lucky to not have to ride in the rain again I headed to Wellington.
Filled up, bought some snacks and headed towards Bain's kloof Pass.
Bain's kloof is amazing, it's a tarred pass, but the tight sweeping bends makes it a must do on anyone's list, I can see why the King Of The Mountain Race is held here every year.
There is a height restriction of 3.4m for the pass, this is why.
The view from the top, there are also lots of tyre marks around the bends, made by cars drifting through the pass.
Further on the road, on my way to Prince Alfred Hamlet, there was snow on all the mountain peeks, putting a chilly bite in the air. I bought myself some food at the local butchery and headed on to the strange little town of Oppi Berg- Yes that's actually the name.
Filled up at the local co-op, you fill up at the pumps and then go pay inside at the store.
The turnoff to the Cederberg starts here, this is where the adventure really starts.
These gravel highways are really boring on this slow bike, but luckily the fantastic scenery made up for it!
Did I mention there were water crossings? I love water crossings! Who doesn't?
I eventually arrived at the Sandrif reception, it's on a different road than the campsite. Go inside to pay and the Lady tells that I can camp and have the whole campsite to myself but...
The road to the bridge that leads there had been washed away, she said i can go have a look first. So I ride down to the campsite and came across this sight.
It was decision time...Do I unpack and carry my stuff over, or do I ride on, and look for another place.
I decided to unpack and camp, having the whole site would be great!
The place was deserted.
5min later.
When I parked my bike on the other side of the river, I noticed a Yamaha YBR125 with british plates on standing under a tree... Later on when I walked back to my bike I met the guy- Nick
Sorry for the dark-ish picture.
Turns out I have read about him, he left the border of Wales 10 months ago on his Yamaha 125, rode through Europe, the middle east and Africa and he was on he's way to Cape Town. Read about him here:
https://www.talesfromthesaddle.com/
He works on a very tight budget and doesn't even camp in campsites, he says he just camps next to the road somewhere, he invited me to come with for the evening... I said I'll think about it... 4 seconds later my mind was made up, and I headed back to pack up my tent AGAIN and travel with him. This was my chance to travel with an epic trans world adventurer.
He's plans also included the Wuppertal route, so we headed in that direction on the 4x4 track.
Someone had been here before me...
Nick's gloves had been stolen 4 times already on he's trip, he said he bought the new ones from PEP ;D
The bike he's on isn't even a DS bike, but he doesn't complain, he just rides it no matter what. He rode in front looking for a suitable camping spot in the area. There was a faint track turning of from the 4x4 route, so we followed it.
We came to this beautiful area next to some rocks and decided to spend the night there.
We put up camp quickly before the sun started to go down.
He had come off a couple o days before in Namibia at about 80km/h the screen on the bike is a bit bent and broken, but it just keeps going.
Nightfall came, and Nick told me all about he's travels across the World, he's plan is to go to South-America from here then into Russia and then ride the bike all the way home.
Next day to follow...
