Just In Time
Pack Dog
With 2020 being the year that it has been, it was decided that an adventure ride would be the right thing to unwind relax and have a little re-set before the last hectic end of year stretch. So Coffee Bay was the destination and the route was "the long one" Leaving at 6AM with only 2 bikes made for easy travel and the route was amazing. Taking the weather into account we decided to head inland from Hillcrest and head for breakfast at the Underberg Golf Club. Full of bacon and eggs the next stop was Matatiele for a re-fuel. We did the dirt stretch from Swartberg directly to Matat and it was the right choice. Great bit of road on the bike.
From Matat we headed around the back through Mt Fletcher, Maclear and on to Ugie where we turned down towards Mthatha. This stretch of road was breathtaking. Minimal traffic amazing stretch of road with very few pot-holes and incredible views. The pass from Ugie down towards Mthatha was a highlight. The could have been in some European country it was that amazing.
A few kms of roadworks before Mthatha was easy to manage on the bikes and the handy side roads brought us to the Shell Ultra City without having to negotiate our way through Mthatha which we wanted to avoid for obvious reasons. Another refuel for the bikes and off to Coffee Bay. This stretch of road is treacherous to say the least. Avoiding pot-holes is impossible, you just have to pick the nicest ones to hit. Again, the bikes handled the road with ease. Spent more time dodging wildlife and taxi's then we did dodging the pot-holes. We finally arrived at the Coffee Shack (thank you for the reviews from previous RR's) at 16h00, a little tired but very keen for an ice cold adult beverage.
Our accommodation was basic rondawel bunk bed style and very clean and comfortable. Belinda and staff are amazing and go out of their way to make sure you are comfortable. Dinner was at The Seafood Kitchen a short walk up the road. Had an awesome time with owner Paul and his family and some other travellers enjoying the amazing seafood Paul cooks up. I highly recommend the seafood platter... After a few Transkei dumpies it was off to bed.
Saturday was unrushed with a quick ride out to Hole in The Wall for the Ï was there'pictures. Just to mention the locals can be rather ''Keen'' to help out with tour-guiding or car/bike watching which comes at a non negotiable R10 starting fee. The rest of the day was on the dirt roads to Port St Johns. A bit of follow the nose and a few looks at Google Maps was how we negotiated this section. A wrong turn (following the nose) brought us down the the entrance to Hluleka Nature reserve and a great little down onto the beach where we decided it was the perfect spot for a coffee. 31°50'26.4"S 29°17'28.8"E
-31.840667, 29.291333
From there it was up past Old Bunting and onto the R61 down to Port St Johns. Another great bit of road to stretch the bikes legs a little.
First stop in PsJ was Steve's Pub for lunch and some refreshments and to decide on where to stay. We popped into Jungle Monkey for a cold one and a recce and decided to rather check out Amapondo which was unfortunately closed. A very eye opening ride through to second beach (Imagine Durban North Beach on New Years day) ( https://www.dispatchlive.co.za/news/2020-12-05-tourists-abandon-psj-as-rowdy-revellers-take-over/ ) we decided to check out Cremorne where we spent the night in one of there fisherman's cottages. Clean but compact and also a little far from the shared ablutions but it was a great evening with good food and some nice banter with fellow adventure bikers who were also staying over. The only negative was the R100 breakfast which we should have opted out of.
Sunday was a straight trip back to Durban via Port Edward. Uneventful and feels longer then it is but got us back home safely with great memories and plans for the next one.
From Matat we headed around the back through Mt Fletcher, Maclear and on to Ugie where we turned down towards Mthatha. This stretch of road was breathtaking. Minimal traffic amazing stretch of road with very few pot-holes and incredible views. The pass from Ugie down towards Mthatha was a highlight. The could have been in some European country it was that amazing.
A few kms of roadworks before Mthatha was easy to manage on the bikes and the handy side roads brought us to the Shell Ultra City without having to negotiate our way through Mthatha which we wanted to avoid for obvious reasons. Another refuel for the bikes and off to Coffee Bay. This stretch of road is treacherous to say the least. Avoiding pot-holes is impossible, you just have to pick the nicest ones to hit. Again, the bikes handled the road with ease. Spent more time dodging wildlife and taxi's then we did dodging the pot-holes. We finally arrived at the Coffee Shack (thank you for the reviews from previous RR's) at 16h00, a little tired but very keen for an ice cold adult beverage.
Our accommodation was basic rondawel bunk bed style and very clean and comfortable. Belinda and staff are amazing and go out of their way to make sure you are comfortable. Dinner was at The Seafood Kitchen a short walk up the road. Had an awesome time with owner Paul and his family and some other travellers enjoying the amazing seafood Paul cooks up. I highly recommend the seafood platter... After a few Transkei dumpies it was off to bed.
Saturday was unrushed with a quick ride out to Hole in The Wall for the Ï was there'pictures. Just to mention the locals can be rather ''Keen'' to help out with tour-guiding or car/bike watching which comes at a non negotiable R10 starting fee. The rest of the day was on the dirt roads to Port St Johns. A bit of follow the nose and a few looks at Google Maps was how we negotiated this section. A wrong turn (following the nose) brought us down the the entrance to Hluleka Nature reserve and a great little down onto the beach where we decided it was the perfect spot for a coffee. 31°50'26.4"S 29°17'28.8"E
-31.840667, 29.291333
From there it was up past Old Bunting and onto the R61 down to Port St Johns. Another great bit of road to stretch the bikes legs a little.
First stop in PsJ was Steve's Pub for lunch and some refreshments and to decide on where to stay. We popped into Jungle Monkey for a cold one and a recce and decided to rather check out Amapondo which was unfortunately closed. A very eye opening ride through to second beach (Imagine Durban North Beach on New Years day) ( https://www.dispatchlive.co.za/news/2020-12-05-tourists-abandon-psj-as-rowdy-revellers-take-over/ ) we decided to check out Cremorne where we spent the night in one of there fisherman's cottages. Clean but compact and also a little far from the shared ablutions but it was a great evening with good food and some nice banter with fellow adventure bikers who were also staying over. The only negative was the R100 breakfast which we should have opted out of.
Sunday was a straight trip back to Durban via Port Edward. Uneventful and feels longer then it is but got us back home safely with great memories and plans for the next one.
