In search of tracks across mountains.

[Michiel]

In search of tracks across mountains.

Dustdevil – HPN    Sack – 800GS    Michiel - KLR

Here’s to a stunner of a weekend. We rode somewhere around 800km across the Western Cape.
Inevitably on the highways and byways (N1 and N7) for a large portion of the distance but by far
the most time was spent on roads so faint and technical we had to make frequent stops to debate
the way forward and of course marvel at the sheer beauty and uniqueness of some tracks as we
must have been the 1st people on motorcycles going down it in many years if not the 1st ever.

I have but a few pictures to share and resent not taking many more to try and capture a thousand
special moments. To be honest I think my pictures and words would fail to tell the story.

Moments like riding up the N1, leading the trio, and realising that the bad weather we were surely
doomed with will probably never arrive.
Moments like coming to locked gates and then three friendly farmers opening those locked gates
waiving us a farewell as we cross their land.
Moments like breaking through thick bush and coming to a little track snaking it’s way up a mountain
of silvery gravel, wheels fighting to keep traction, and then descending through carpets of small vibrantly
coloured flowers amongst burnt shrub.
Moments like flying down a small smooth surfaced Karoo road, stopping in turn to open and close gates,
looking back to see the 800GS’s orange light and the HPN’s blue light bobbing up and down as the road
follows the contours of the land.
Moments like trying to keep up with the HPN on the Karoo highways seeing it periodically disappear as
it hits pockets of pulverised road turned to powder.
Moments like riding down the riverbed and into the dunes in Katbakkies Pass to make a rest stop under
the blossoming trees.
Moments like following the Tratra River on a dead-end road and stopping in the middle of streams to
engage in philosophical discussion.
Moments like riding a road locals advised not to, falling over and putting a couple of extra scratches on the KLR.

 

[BMWPE]

Great pics :thumleft:
Looks like you guys made some of your own tracks  ;D  well done
Thanks for sharing

 

[Crossed-up]

Great stuff, as usual, Michiel!  That looks awesome.

 

[GO GIRL]

That looks like a really lekka ride to have done... :thumleft: :thumleft:

Nice pics you guys :biggrin: :biggrin:

 

[SACK]

I only rode with on the Saturday.

Which means I missed out on this road.

Looks tough. How hard was it guys?

 

[airHEAD]

Awesome looking ride guys, I am really bummed I missed out  :'(

Like the look of the new bike sack...time to update that avatar! 

 

[Outhere]

Scary stuff not on the map i would imagine.

 

[Succi]

Very nice! Thanks for sharing.  :thumleft:

 

[Trokkie]

I was the guy who stopped at the Katbakkies turnoff. How was the wedding? I have a disused 4X4 route on my farm in Ceres. You are welcome to come try it.

 

[SACK]

I was the guy who stopped at the Katbakkies turnoff. How was the wedding? I have a disused 4X4 route on my farm in Ceres. You are welcome to come try it.

Hello Trokkie.

Goed om jou te ontmoet. Mag jou dalk net opvat op daai offer.

Nice bike by the way.

 

[Dustdevil]

I pulled up next to Michiel where he is busy talking to one of the locals, a young adolescent boy. We are passing through a small colored community east of Wupperthal along a road that would become a dead end.
This small dusty track is hugging the shores of the Tra Tra river as it winds its way through this forgotten valley on it's way to literally nowhere. It is surrounded by harsh mountain cliffs carved out of sheer rock faces creating the most impressive formations, coated in vibrant hues of rusty red and orange.
"Daai pad is baie sleg" is the last I could catch from the conversation with the youngster. I was somewhat relieved as this meant that we will not attempt this road today as I was not in the frame of mind for yet another technical road that could possibly lead to us to an impassible section, forcing us to turn around and go back. Besides, I promised my wife to be back by 4 so she could go out while I look after the kids. This was the condition by which I left my family early on Saturday morning "to get away for two days".
An old lady with wrinkly face draw our attention, pointing to a large man strolling in our direction from a distance. "Ask him" she says "He is the farmer and he can tell you about the road". It is obvious the man is a resident farmer by the way he wears his hat and the large "draad tang" and "snoeisker" clutched in his large fist.
His face is open and welcoming as he tells us that he is also from Cape Town where he is a road contractor, but that he is also tending his farm here on the outskirts of the tiny village. He assured us though, in his own words, "my kop staan diekant toe" that he much prefer the quite and simple village life.
He pointed out the new house he has build for himself and digging deep in his pockets he came up with a handful of freshly picked peas.
Moments like snapping open the peal to reveal the pearl like peas inside and then the sweat explosion of taste reminding me of how perfect creation really is.
The farmer assured us the the road is for 4x4's and that it is rough but we are welcome to go check it out. The young boy protesting at the farmer that the road is really in a bad shape.
Michiel though it best to go have a look, as he put it "we can always turn around if it gets to rough".
I knew right then than 4pm will not see me back in Cape Town and the lack of cell reception in the area blissfully put my mind at ease that I will only need to deal with this when back in civilization. We have come to far for this to have to turn back now.
I clad-fully let Michiel take the lead and nervously followed on what is clearly a track out of use for a very long time. Not even 4x4's go here anymore!
We would soon find out why, but not before we have been to hell and gone.
If I was nervous when we started down this track not knowing what lay ahead, I was crapping myself having to go back and do it all in reverse. This time knowing exactly what was laying ahead. Sand turning into rocks and rocks into sand, thick sand, soft sand and rocks, big rocks, loose rocks and sharp rocks, never ending rocks.
None of this could take away from the shear beauty of the place and the moment, the solitude and the sense of adventure and discovery. I could only just begin to imagine the awe and wonder guys like da Gama and Columbus must have experienced.
Michiel stopped in front of me at the start of what seems to be a difficult but manageable section. We are finding ourselves boxed into the end of a small but steep valley. It was obvious, this road is going to become real ugly. Rounding the bend on foot I was stunned, the road literally turned up the slope and followed the incredibly steep gradient right to the top. Michiel was throwing rocks out of the road as if he was still serious to go up here. This is trails bike country and even though it took a while to sink in, eventually Michiel came round to the fact that there are some roads for which KLR's are just not made for. Give me any section of this road and I know the HPN will make it look easy, but this constant carnage of nearly 60 yards toped of with a few gnarly ledges right before reaching the top is just too much of a tall order, even for the most hard core off-roader. We were turning around!

Driving back through Wupperthal I was again surprised with the beauty and tranquility of the place. Something that struck me was how the quaint houses are all overlooking the small veg patches across the road and I could not help but wonder what went wrong in the modern city of today. Why is it that land had to be given up for more houses, businesses and factories, valuable land that were producing food. Land that would space us apart somewhat and land that would help to recycle the organic wast we produced, but most important, land that would give communities a sense of purpose and pride. We have allowed councils to make decisions on our behalf of how our towns should be structured and never have we questioned the "authority" of city planers and architects who left us with a legacy of gray, unattractive, miserable, grid-lined cities, fit only for paid slaves to live in.
God, I don't know how most people can't see how ugly Cape Town really is. We have been relying to long on the table and the bay to hide this mess and then they think they can dolly it up with a god-awful stadium and long overdue highways and bypasses that would not have been needed if people would choose to live and work and produce the bulk of their food and basic needs inside their communities.
But as long as we allow capitalism and consumerism to run unchecked will we slowly turn our world into a wasteland, sucking dry all resources to wastefully dispose of cheaply made unneeded goods and to poison our soils with the production of cheap and good looking food grown in record times, wrapped in harmful artificial packaging. Convenience, convenience is written all over everything we do, but what happened to real peacefulness, or friendliness or happiness.  What happened to our communities and our sense of social well being.
Today I have to admit that I am poor, poor in my soul because nothing I do can satisfy me, as it all ends up being for one purpose alone and that is to be able to pay the bills at the end of the month and if I am lucky I can venture here into this incredible beauty knowing that one day we will all live like the Wupperthalers out of choice or because we will be forced by economic collapse due to rising prices as resources are becoming more scarce and harder to come by.
Sorry for the moment of philosophical venting but when I am meandering along endless Karoo highways I can't help but think about these things. I guess it is the fresh Karoo air and being able to stand back from it all that allow me to clearly see the error of our ways.

 

[Dustdevil]

I was the guy who stopped at the Katbakkies turnoff. How was the wedding? I have a disused 4X4 route on my farm in Ceres. You are welcome to come try it.

You have a farm? you lucky bastard!!
We'll only come if you are prepared to go in front!

 

[XTJoe]

Dustdevil , very nice bike, is that the same one built by the gs workshop, was in bikemag lastyear. Thanks, very good read and nice pics.

 

[Dustdevil]

I only rode with on the Saturday.

Which mean I missed this road.

Looks tough. How hard was it guys?

Don't worry, we did not do it. Too steep near the end, and you know yourself that when Michiel agrees something to be to steep even for one attempt!!! only trails bikes and very advanced 4x4 drivers with non standard 4x4's will make it up this hill. Problem is that we could see some other hairy sections higher  up the mountain. We did not plan to go on this trail but it was rather a last minute decision to go check it out. If we could have been successful crossing here the road would have taken us past the Sentinel meeting up with the Clanwilliam road about 5km north of Wupperthal.
We have however made connections to use another 4x4 track to the top of the mountains to the south in the near future.

 

[Dustdevil]

Dustdevil , very nice bike, is that the same one built by the gs workshop, was in bikemag lastyear. Thanks, very good read and nice pics.

Same bike yes, and build by me as well. Best thing since sliced bread. Full tank with nearly 50 liters of fuel and luggage and handled the mountain like it was a walk in the park.

 

[eikeboom]

I fully appreciate your guys' sense of appreciation for the moment, the beauty, the smallness of man. I hope I can ride with you guys some day (maybe not on THAT trail). 

 

[Dustdevil]

I fully appreciate your guys' sense of appreciation for the moment, the beauty, the smallness of man. I hope I can ride with you guys some day (maybe not on THAT trail). 

You know what, once you get used to your bike on it's side, roads like that is not nearly as hard as it looks.

 

[Oppad]

Bloody good stuff.

Michiel it is amazing where you keep on taking that KLR. Dustdevil you have a very pretty bike, appreciate your views on the "legacy of gray, unattractive, miserable, grid-lined cities, fit only for paid slaves to live in"

Keep on tracking

 

[Trokkie]

I was the guy who stopped at the Katbakkies turnoff. How was the wedding? I have a disused 4X4 route on my farm in Ceres. You are welcome to come try it.

You have a farm? you lucky bastard!!
We'll only come if you are prepared to go in front!

Done deal!

 

[Dustdevil]

Michiel thanks for the images. Currently I am under great financial and other stress and it is amazing the calming effect it has to reflect back on this trip by just looking at these images.