Kawasefi said:
Daai sticker laat my sommer baie beter ry man !!!
Maar jy het dalk 'n punt beet, lees die volgende episode :deal:
Knopkop & Marnus's AWESOME Eastern Cape....and a bit of Lesotho..****RR DONE****
- Thread starter KnopKop
- Start date
Daai sticker laat my sommer baie beter ry man !!!
Maar jy het dalk 'n punt beet, lees die volgende episode :deal:
Day 4
Makkedaat Caves, Baviaanskloof to Joubertina = 326km
We slept like logs in the clean fresh air of the clear night. The stars here in the kloof are just amazing and they provide so much light during the dark of night. I took a walk in the morning to smell the “veld” and listen to all the sounds around me.
I knew we had a long day ahead of us, I had no idea how long Baviaans would take us and I had no idea about the condition of the road. I have heard so many stories and opinions on Baviaans ranging from “It cannot be done on a motorcycle”, “ONLY 4x4 vehicles will be able to cross it” to “It can be done in a normal sedan car” – I really had no idea and decided not to make anything of what everyone said and just see what the road dishes up and just deal with it. It cannot be all that hard in any case.
The tannie told us that they had some rain and that the river was flowing. We were happy to hear this as Baviaans is famous for all its water crossings. We could not wait to get going.
The first part was just normal open dirt roads with not much happening apart from one noteworthy water crossing although the road was very badly corrugated.
Some pics of the first water crossing, they are all cemented at the bottom – so all a bit boring.....
Marnus
Me – like I said, the crossings are smooth cement below.....
I was having a lot of fun and riding pretty hard on all the long open stretches, but as I slowed down for the Western Entrance Gate to the Reserve, I just smelled petrol. When I looked down, petrol was pissing out everywhere under my seat, on both sides, dripping on the exhaust and the inside of my pants. I immediately switched off everything and wiped the petrol from the exhaust. Just then Marnus arrived and we proceeded to remove my luggage and tank bag to take off the seat. I told Marnus, “dis seker die “f*kken petrol pomp”. When we removed the seat we saw this:
Petrol EVERYWHERE........... and this was my reaction – “Eish – wat nou?”
Marnus had a look and said we must start the bike to see where the petrol is coming out, we did this and immediately we saw it coming from the fuel hose attached to the fuel pump. We were relieved that it was just the hose and not the pump. The fuel hose has rubbed through against the frame and tore open. I am not sure if this should have been picked up by the dealer on the check-over but if they looked at the hose they would have seen that it is on the way out. I have now also learned a lesson to make sure these hoses are in top shape before a trip.
We fixed the broken pipe with some duct tape and cable ties and were on our way again.
We were happy to be back on the road again, and ready to tackle some more water crossings. Baviaans did have some rain, but none of the water crossings were that full or all that technical, I have done more hectic water crossings on Gauteng tar roads after a thunderstorm before....
Marnus
And me
I was surprised by the number of shaded tree covered areas in Baviaans, I thought it was just going to be mountains and serious water crossings, but some areas were very nice and green
Marnus having some fun around the corners
The road condition in Baviaans was very good, although heavily corrugated
Very soon after my fuel incident my fuel light came on, this means that I actually lost quite a bit of petrol. I have no idea how long before the gate I picked up the fuel leak.....ignorance is bliss they say.... Luckily I had Marnus and his fuel tanker along for the ride and I decided to stop for a re-fuel on top of the mountain.
The fuel station with the best view in the world
Marnus swinging the fuel hose dry
As we were filling up we heard a helluva commotion of roaring engines down in the valley, and we immediately though it is guys doing it on Harleys. As they rounded the corners we saw this:
Two guys from the Northern Cape on a V-Max and a Boulevard doing one massive trip and sommer did Baviaans as well. Good on them. We met up with them the next day again and they made it through without any problems at all.
After a quick chat with the guys we made our way down again to see what else Baviaans can offer us. We arrived at the famous Smitskraal water crossing, but it was very dry and no challenge at all. They have also started digging draining trenches to let the water drain – WHY ????
Marnus going through Smitskraal
And me going through
We carried on to the top of the very beautiful, but disappointing road condition pass, some bone head decided to cement the 2spoor track all the way, you can drive this road in a dropped Ford Escourt now...... But they cannot cement the views – thank goodness!!
We the carried on to the top of the last pass and yet again the views are just spectacular
We even saw some baboons in Baviaans
I was having lots of fun around the corners
Some more big cliffs in Baviaans
So, what did I think of the Baviaanskloof?
It is really spectacularly beautiful, and I feel every Dual Sport rider should go and ride it. I just wished I could have done it before they fixed the whole thing up. It takes all the thrills, skills and excitement out of the ride and makes it well, for lack of a better word, boring. You can do the entire Baviaans in a sedan if you ride nicely. I have done it now and next time I will just do it in the car or bakkie to share the beauty with someone special, because it really is very pretty. But I must admit Grootriverpoort was a far “better” ride because of the roughness of the road and the rain, snotty mud and rocks, but Baviaans is much more beautiful.
The rest of the day to follow soon......
Makkedaat Caves, Baviaanskloof to Joubertina = 326km
We slept like logs in the clean fresh air of the clear night. The stars here in the kloof are just amazing and they provide so much light during the dark of night. I took a walk in the morning to smell the “veld” and listen to all the sounds around me.
I knew we had a long day ahead of us, I had no idea how long Baviaans would take us and I had no idea about the condition of the road. I have heard so many stories and opinions on Baviaans ranging from “It cannot be done on a motorcycle”, “ONLY 4x4 vehicles will be able to cross it” to “It can be done in a normal sedan car” – I really had no idea and decided not to make anything of what everyone said and just see what the road dishes up and just deal with it. It cannot be all that hard in any case.
The tannie told us that they had some rain and that the river was flowing. We were happy to hear this as Baviaans is famous for all its water crossings. We could not wait to get going.
The first part was just normal open dirt roads with not much happening apart from one noteworthy water crossing although the road was very badly corrugated.
Some pics of the first water crossing, they are all cemented at the bottom – so all a bit boring.....
Marnus
Me – like I said, the crossings are smooth cement below.....
I was having a lot of fun and riding pretty hard on all the long open stretches, but as I slowed down for the Western Entrance Gate to the Reserve, I just smelled petrol. When I looked down, petrol was pissing out everywhere under my seat, on both sides, dripping on the exhaust and the inside of my pants. I immediately switched off everything and wiped the petrol from the exhaust. Just then Marnus arrived and we proceeded to remove my luggage and tank bag to take off the seat. I told Marnus, “dis seker die “f*kken petrol pomp”. When we removed the seat we saw this:
Petrol EVERYWHERE........... and this was my reaction – “Eish – wat nou?”
Marnus had a look and said we must start the bike to see where the petrol is coming out, we did this and immediately we saw it coming from the fuel hose attached to the fuel pump. We were relieved that it was just the hose and not the pump. The fuel hose has rubbed through against the frame and tore open. I am not sure if this should have been picked up by the dealer on the check-over but if they looked at the hose they would have seen that it is on the way out. I have now also learned a lesson to make sure these hoses are in top shape before a trip.
We fixed the broken pipe with some duct tape and cable ties and were on our way again.
We were happy to be back on the road again, and ready to tackle some more water crossings. Baviaans did have some rain, but none of the water crossings were that full or all that technical, I have done more hectic water crossings on Gauteng tar roads after a thunderstorm before....
Marnus
And me
I was surprised by the number of shaded tree covered areas in Baviaans, I thought it was just going to be mountains and serious water crossings, but some areas were very nice and green
Marnus having some fun around the corners
The road condition in Baviaans was very good, although heavily corrugated
Very soon after my fuel incident my fuel light came on, this means that I actually lost quite a bit of petrol. I have no idea how long before the gate I picked up the fuel leak.....ignorance is bliss they say.... Luckily I had Marnus and his fuel tanker along for the ride and I decided to stop for a re-fuel on top of the mountain.
The fuel station with the best view in the world
Marnus swinging the fuel hose dry
As we were filling up we heard a helluva commotion of roaring engines down in the valley, and we immediately though it is guys doing it on Harleys. As they rounded the corners we saw this:
Two guys from the Northern Cape on a V-Max and a Boulevard doing one massive trip and sommer did Baviaans as well. Good on them. We met up with them the next day again and they made it through without any problems at all.
After a quick chat with the guys we made our way down again to see what else Baviaans can offer us. We arrived at the famous Smitskraal water crossing, but it was very dry and no challenge at all. They have also started digging draining trenches to let the water drain – WHY ????
Marnus going through Smitskraal
And me going through
We carried on to the top of the very beautiful, but disappointing road condition pass, some bone head decided to cement the 2spoor track all the way, you can drive this road in a dropped Ford Escourt now...... But they cannot cement the views – thank goodness!!
We the carried on to the top of the last pass and yet again the views are just spectacular
We even saw some baboons in Baviaans
I was having lots of fun around the corners
Some more big cliffs in Baviaans
So, what did I think of the Baviaanskloof?
It is really spectacularly beautiful, and I feel every Dual Sport rider should go and ride it. I just wished I could have done it before they fixed the whole thing up. It takes all the thrills, skills and excitement out of the ride and makes it well, for lack of a better word, boring. You can do the entire Baviaans in a sedan if you ride nicely. I have done it now and next time I will just do it in the car or bakkie to share the beauty with someone special, because it really is very pretty. But I must admit Grootriverpoort was a far “better” ride because of the roughness of the road and the rain, snotty mud and rocks, but Baviaans is much more beautiful.
The rest of the day to follow soon......
After Baviaans we made our way to Patensie, one of the most beautiful pieces of the entire day was this stretch next to the Grootriver on the way to the Kouga and Gamtoos rivers, that leads past Bruintjieskraal and Komodo – those mountain cliffs and river are just magical.
Arriving in Patensie we had the best Double Cheese Burger I’ve ever had! We chased this down with two Double Captains quick quick, filled up and hit the road towards Kareedouw. We then took the R62 through the Lankloof towards Joubertina. Our accommodation was booked at a place called Semane Lodge, about 13km from Joubertina. We were not sure about food arrangements and thought we would be able to have dinner at the “lodge”. So we took it easy, enjoying the views towards the lodge.
What a beautiful piece of road.....
Arriving at the turn-off to the lodge we see the buildings waaay down by the river
Faaark me, that track down to the lodge was a handful, very steep and very tight, but great fun!
As we arrived we saw that there was no one there apart from the local caretaker, a super friendly Xhosa guy called Boxo. What this meant is that we had no food. So we unpacked the bikes and high tailed up the bloody mountain again to ride the 13km back to town like we were BlueBull2007 racing in a rally!! – The sun was setting fast!
The exit from the lodge track to the main dirt road – very slippery rocks!
We made it to Joubertina just as the butchery was closed, but you gotta love small towns, they quickly opened for us to buy some wors and chops. Shame the poor girl behind the counter was so shit scared of Marnus the big biker with his strange clothes, gloves and neck brace that she hid under the counter and refused to come out!!!!
While Marnus sorted the meat, I went to buy some Ice and Blitz at the Shoprite, thank goodness we bought some more Rum in Kareedouw already!!
We then hit the 13km back to Semane Lodge again, arriving back just as the sun was setting. We poured a strong dop and went walking around a bit. Now this is such a beautiful place, by far the prettiest place we stayed at so far, just pain breathtaking!
As we were sitting overlooking the cliffs and listening to the baboons going bonkers in the mountain the local cat followed us all the way down to the river
We made one hell of a big fire and had some great tjops and wors for dinner overlooking the stars!
We were very tired after the very long day, we slept like the dead that night......
Day 5 to follow tomorrow.......
Arriving in Patensie we had the best Double Cheese Burger I’ve ever had! We chased this down with two Double Captains quick quick, filled up and hit the road towards Kareedouw. We then took the R62 through the Lankloof towards Joubertina. Our accommodation was booked at a place called Semane Lodge, about 13km from Joubertina. We were not sure about food arrangements and thought we would be able to have dinner at the “lodge”. So we took it easy, enjoying the views towards the lodge.
What a beautiful piece of road.....
Arriving at the turn-off to the lodge we see the buildings waaay down by the river
Faaark me, that track down to the lodge was a handful, very steep and very tight, but great fun!
As we arrived we saw that there was no one there apart from the local caretaker, a super friendly Xhosa guy called Boxo. What this meant is that we had no food. So we unpacked the bikes and high tailed up the bloody mountain again to ride the 13km back to town like we were BlueBull2007 racing in a rally!! – The sun was setting fast!
The exit from the lodge track to the main dirt road – very slippery rocks!
We made it to Joubertina just as the butchery was closed, but you gotta love small towns, they quickly opened for us to buy some wors and chops. Shame the poor girl behind the counter was so shit scared of Marnus the big biker with his strange clothes, gloves and neck brace that she hid under the counter and refused to come out!!!!
While Marnus sorted the meat, I went to buy some Ice and Blitz at the Shoprite, thank goodness we bought some more Rum in Kareedouw already!!
We then hit the 13km back to Semane Lodge again, arriving back just as the sun was setting. We poured a strong dop and went walking around a bit. Now this is such a beautiful place, by far the prettiest place we stayed at so far, just pain breathtaking!
As we were sitting overlooking the cliffs and listening to the baboons going bonkers in the mountain the local cat followed us all the way down to the river
We made one hell of a big fire and had some great tjops and wors for dinner overlooking the stars!
We were very tired after the very long day, we slept like the dead that night......
Day 5 to follow tomorrow.......
gser
Race Dog
Lekka mnre E & M.
BeF#kk@n
BeF#kk@n
Marnus said:Kawasefi said:
BWHAHAHAHA... yep... behalwe vir die fork seal was al die skade aan die agterkant
Ja nee, my bike staan nou daar by Runner, daai fork-seal is moer toe!!
Oetie
Race Dog
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Bevange!!! THX :thumleft:
- Joined
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very lekker
Thanks for sharing
Thanks for sharing
GlenInk (R.I.P)
Race Dog
eepwall:
Skipskop
Race Dog
Thanks for sharing. I was talking to Nemo Dakar and his wife Sweetness ,the other day( local Patensie dawgs and Baviaans specialists :thumleft:,as most of you know),and he also mentioned that the Grootrivier poort (Antoniesberg pas)will become the new attraction for DS riders instead of the Baviaans due to the upgrading of the road in the Baviaans pas.
The couple,friends of mine, (husband and wife)on the V Max(faark but those pipes on the V Max are loud!!) and the Boulevard are the ones I inquired about earlier on the forum.They say they enjoyed the trip but realize their bikes weren't made for that road-en die pad was f@kken stamperig! se hy. I don`t think the suspensions on those bikes where meant for those conditions.They still enjoyed the trip !
The couple,friends of mine, (husband and wife)on the V Max(faark but those pipes on the V Max are loud!!) and the Boulevard are the ones I inquired about earlier on the forum.They say they enjoyed the trip but realize their bikes weren't made for that road-en die pad was f@kken stamperig! se hy. I don`t think the suspensions on those bikes where meant for those conditions.They still enjoyed the trip !
tankgirl said:moerse thanks vir die invite by the way
nogal 'n heel cool report sover
I am working on another Lesotho trip next year................hang vas.......
:thumleft: :thumleft:
The Badger
Race Dog
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Very nice RR. Thanks for the heads up on Grootrivierpoort.
cloudgazer
Grey Hound
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Great report - and some awesome pics.
Thanks for all the compliments guys, hang in there, I will try and get another day or two done tonight.
This ride report stuff is hard work! BIG respect to BB2007, Metaljockey, Leo, Trailrider and all the other guys writing great ride reports!! It is because of their ride reports that we did this trip and many more trips to come!!
:deal:
This ride report stuff is hard work! BIG respect to BB2007, Metaljockey, Leo, Trailrider and all the other guys writing great ride reports!! It is because of their ride reports that we did this trip and many more trips to come!!
:deal:
Gee eS
Race Dog
+1 for a great report!cloudgazer said:
KnopKop said:
These burgers were so good we just had to take a picture of them, man I could do with one of those right about now, and one of those Captain Morgans!!
:drif: :drif: :drif:
