EtienneNXR
Bachelor Dog
I start riding faster, the rain is getting more heavy by the second and it’s getting late, coming around a blind turn there’s a watercrossing in the road, I go hard on the brakes looking up I see a Gemsbok at the other side of the water, drinking, we both get a equally big fright as she runs away I come to a halt in the middle of the water. . .
But let me first take you back to the beginning, I was a healthy 4.5kg baby, born in the sleepy town of Welkom……..ok not that far back ;D
More like two weeks ago, I really wanted to do another solo ride, so when the opportunity presented itself over the last of the long weekends in April, I quickly started making plans.
My planned route would start at Ladismith, go through Anysberg to Touwsriver and back via Oubergpass to Ladismith, after reading Trailriders report where he went through Anysberg and seeing the pictures I just had to have a go at it.
So on Saturday I set of from our farm, it’s a 10km stretch of tar before you hit the gravel, then the fun really starts.
Leaving the farm.
Klein Karoo gravel, the best there is.
We had like 110mm of rain the previous week here, so the road was damaged in places, but the area was very green.
You’re mind quickly starts to wonder once you get going, and I was thinking to myself just how privileged I am to be in this position, I get to ride my bike where ever I please, while other children my age spend there weekends playing computer games, and wondering in shopping malls….I sure hope I never change!
But enough of that, back to the ride, a small pass leads to the boundary between the Klein and Groot Karoo. Here I am entering the “groot” Karoo.
Just as the road starts to flatten out, you get a sign on the side of the road that says “Anysberg 7km” that’s the turnoff, with the first gate.
The road runs through a farm yard and you get the feeling that you might be on the wrong road, but then you come to another gate, with the nature reserve signs on it.
The road ahead
Pity the river is dried up
’
Very nice and green in this area
The road is nice and rough, there are rocks everywhere and where there aren’t rocks, there’s sand…..Can you say perfect road?
I stopped next to the road, simply because I felt like stopping, I’m in no rush so why not?
I was here
You actually need a permit to go through this reserve, but the gates aren’t manned and no where is there anybody that checks for permits.
The GPS was having a weird streak, I had plotted the route beforehand, but somehow it thought that the route needed to be recalculated every 5meters, so the GPS was rendered useless. A well, I know there’s only one way in here and one way out….I hoped
What’s better than a water crossing?
No fish in there
The road led to a sort of campsite and barn, the roads forked out in a couple of ways from there, without the GPS I didn’t know which one to take, was thinking (Garmin I got lost with it ;D) But I asked one of the Cape Nature guys and he kindly pointed me in the right direction.
The clouds were getting darker…
The road to I had to continue on towards Touwsriver, tough life I know
The road gets technical in places, I would think that a bigger bike can possibly struggle here.
My wrists did get a bit sore from the bumps and stuff, I’m not as riding fit as I used to be, because of the break I had now after the accident, but that’s going to change quickly now.
The river was just overflowing.
;D
I stopped next to the first real tree I came across that day, to have a snack
I was planning on eating in Touwsriver, so had only brought meself a pack of jelly babies, opening the pack they all flew out and onto the ground…..that kinda sucked
Riding off once again, another puddle cool!
This is the actual “Touws” river
Going out of the reserve you ride through another farm yard, then it’s a long 40km stretch of Karoo highway to the town, I filled up at the first garage, cost me R30 ;D
My bike is light on fuel, so am I
I was supposed to take the Oubergpass back to my destination, but the road I had just been on was such a blast, I decided to take it back also. I are mos my own boss ;D
The turnoff to Anysberg from the Touwsriver side isn’t marked by a sign, just this red KLR accessory.
I stopped here to put my rain suite on, I could see the rain and thunder in the direction I was heading.
Because I did this road already, having taken in the sights and smells, I could now “ride” it, I got up to a nice pace and just had a blast over the sand and rocks, through the marbled hairpin turns and watercrossings. That’s when the Gemsbok and I had our encounter.
It’s there, look closely
I don’t mind riding in the rain, quite liked it actually, the last time I rode offroad in the rain was on my first solo trip, back in August.
From here I didn’t take allot of pictures I was just riding and having a blast. Back through all the gates I went through that morning, here entering the Klein Karoo again. There I saw the only car on the route for the day, hectic!
Back to at the farm, a safe trip, not even a puncture. Must say, I like “not falling” makes the ride so much better.
But let me first take you back to the beginning, I was a healthy 4.5kg baby, born in the sleepy town of Welkom……..ok not that far back ;D
More like two weeks ago, I really wanted to do another solo ride, so when the opportunity presented itself over the last of the long weekends in April, I quickly started making plans.
My planned route would start at Ladismith, go through Anysberg to Touwsriver and back via Oubergpass to Ladismith, after reading Trailriders report where he went through Anysberg and seeing the pictures I just had to have a go at it.
So on Saturday I set of from our farm, it’s a 10km stretch of tar before you hit the gravel, then the fun really starts.
Leaving the farm.
Klein Karoo gravel, the best there is.
We had like 110mm of rain the previous week here, so the road was damaged in places, but the area was very green.
You’re mind quickly starts to wonder once you get going, and I was thinking to myself just how privileged I am to be in this position, I get to ride my bike where ever I please, while other children my age spend there weekends playing computer games, and wondering in shopping malls….I sure hope I never change!
But enough of that, back to the ride, a small pass leads to the boundary between the Klein and Groot Karoo. Here I am entering the “groot” Karoo.
Just as the road starts to flatten out, you get a sign on the side of the road that says “Anysberg 7km” that’s the turnoff, with the first gate.
The road runs through a farm yard and you get the feeling that you might be on the wrong road, but then you come to another gate, with the nature reserve signs on it.
The road ahead
Pity the river is dried up
Very nice and green in this area
The road is nice and rough, there are rocks everywhere and where there aren’t rocks, there’s sand…..Can you say perfect road?
I stopped next to the road, simply because I felt like stopping, I’m in no rush so why not?
I was here
You actually need a permit to go through this reserve, but the gates aren’t manned and no where is there anybody that checks for permits.
The GPS was having a weird streak, I had plotted the route beforehand, but somehow it thought that the route needed to be recalculated every 5meters, so the GPS was rendered useless. A well, I know there’s only one way in here and one way out….I hoped
What’s better than a water crossing?
No fish in there
The road led to a sort of campsite and barn, the roads forked out in a couple of ways from there, without the GPS I didn’t know which one to take, was thinking (Garmin I got lost with it ;D) But I asked one of the Cape Nature guys and he kindly pointed me in the right direction.
The clouds were getting darker…
The road to I had to continue on towards Touwsriver, tough life I know
The road gets technical in places, I would think that a bigger bike can possibly struggle here.
My wrists did get a bit sore from the bumps and stuff, I’m not as riding fit as I used to be, because of the break I had now after the accident, but that’s going to change quickly now.
The river was just overflowing.
;D
I stopped next to the first real tree I came across that day, to have a snack
I was planning on eating in Touwsriver, so had only brought meself a pack of jelly babies, opening the pack they all flew out and onto the ground…..that kinda sucked
Riding off once again, another puddle cool!
This is the actual “Touws” river
Going out of the reserve you ride through another farm yard, then it’s a long 40km stretch of Karoo highway to the town, I filled up at the first garage, cost me R30 ;D
My bike is light on fuel, so am I
I was supposed to take the Oubergpass back to my destination, but the road I had just been on was such a blast, I decided to take it back also. I are mos my own boss ;D
The turnoff to Anysberg from the Touwsriver side isn’t marked by a sign, just this red KLR accessory.
I stopped here to put my rain suite on, I could see the rain and thunder in the direction I was heading.
Because I did this road already, having taken in the sights and smells, I could now “ride” it, I got up to a nice pace and just had a blast over the sand and rocks, through the marbled hairpin turns and watercrossings. That’s when the Gemsbok and I had our encounter.
It’s there, look closely
I don’t mind riding in the rain, quite liked it actually, the last time I rode offroad in the rain was on my first solo trip, back in August.
From here I didn’t take allot of pictures I was just riding and having a blast. Back through all the gates I went through that morning, here entering the Klein Karoo again. There I saw the only car on the route for the day, hectic!
Back to at the farm, a safe trip, not even a puncture. Must say, I like “not falling” makes the ride so much better.
