mountain_lion

I hope this is the new yellow route. Waiting in anticipation!

Finally got round to ride the new short purple loop & single track - very nice! Thanks!

New electric fence is being erected blocking the yellow route where the Middelvlei link joins in. -33.9238675,18.815017 At present the turn off from the brick paved road is still open because the gate has not been installed yet, but the exit at the bottom onto the road just before the dam has already been fenced off. Had to go back and around the fenced off area (apparently a new naartjie orchard). Unfortunately the only alternative is the road directly adjacent to the farm workers cottages.

As Dirtman said, thorns are much less of a problem now than before. The single track sections are mostly thorn free, but where the route goes through the vineyards you always have a chance of picking up some. It is seasonal. From mid autumn until early spring, you should be fine with a bit of luck. However as soon as work in vineyards start again in spring, thorns start making their way onto the route. During spring and summer I would advise using slime tubes or tubeless with sealant.

I am not aware of any incidents on the Bottelary Hills trails and often ride there alone. However you can never be sure in SA. I always carry pepper spray for what it is worth. As Vaalkol says, you have to be very careful cycling out north of Stellenbosch on the R304 past Kayamandi & the R44 past Cloetesville. I would not advise riding there alone. You can access Yellow from Middelvlei (turn off Adam Tas at the Distell traffic lights into Libertas Road) or Red/Purple from Overgaauw, (turn off Adam Tas / Polkadraai just past Neethlingshof into Stellenboschkloof Road).

Thanks for this initiative. I have been suggesting some system like this administrated by PPA and/or Amarider to trail owners for many years. I realise that getting it up and running and finding a system which is considered fair by all is not an easy task. Well done for taking it on! :clap: I do hope that Bottelary Hills decide to join.

Thanks Dirtman; there certainly is lots of potential for an alternative to short purple with some single track. Looking forward to this! I guess you already have a route in mind, but let me know if you need help with scouting and/or setting out. I never noticed that short purple was closed; most of the signs are still there and excluding the ruts at the junction with red, the route is in good condition. If you only have limited time available for a ride from Middelvlei but want to do more than only yellow, short purple is the best option available at present.

Yes, various signs are missing on the trails. On the link from Middelvlei several were lost due to farming activities, most notably at the hairpin bend (-33.935227, 18.823815) before descending to the Devonvalley road, but there are others missing too on this link. It should be safe to replace most of these now. On short purple, the sign for the left turn onto the contour (-33.918025, 18.776335) has fallen over. I have propped it up against a bush a few times, but it only takes a bit of wind to blow it over again; it needs to be replanted. There are some bad erosion ruts where short purple joins red (-33.910994, 18.784859). The ruts can be jumped if your line is right, but then you almost certainly over shoot the turn into the "new" single track on red.. Apparently the motor cycles & quads are not using the track through the ditch (-33.911248, 18.783818) any more; it is over grown. This could be opened up with minimum effort and create a safer and more convenient junction with the red route. I also believe it will be less prone to erosion than the current route straight down; worth a try in any case. As always a big thank you to Hellwarp & Dirtman + their teams for all the hard work, e.g. the new bridge over the dam overflow on yellow. It did take away some of the fun, but improved the flow of the trail and will require less maintenance.

I managed to do the yellow loop this weekend after some weeks off the bike. The little bridge across the overflow of the dam has sagged into the water. Still ridable, but should be fixed when time allows. Rest of the farm roads have mostly already been repaired by the owners where needed. Glad to read that most of the trails held up well to the recent rains.

Thanks Hellwarp Unfortunately I had a hand opp yesterday, so will be off the bike for a few weeks.

Are day permits still available from Devon Valley Hotel?

Well if that is the case, then I agree. Great that game will be brought back, but buffalo and cyclists should rather stay far apart. Unfortunate, since there is potential for great single track and I doubt that the buffalo will want to venture onto the steep slopes under the pine trees. They prefer flat grasslands. There are many other areas in the conservatory though where single track can be built.

Oh, OK. Obviously I did not try the blocked-off option, although the line did look better to me at first glance. In general this new single track is awesome. I did not have a problem with any of the other bends. It just needs more wheels over it (and some light rain) to bed it in. Now if you guys can obtain permission to extend the single track on the return section of "long purple" instead of going straight back up the jeep track like it is now, all my wishes for this area of the trails will have been granted! Keep up the good work!

What is the plan at the first hairpin bend on the climbing side of the new red single track? When I was there last, two lines had been cleared, with one blocked off. However the blocked off line is the better line. The present line gives a very tight bend going over rock, which will be impossible to ride for most (all?) riders. The other line has the hairpin slightly lower down so that you can turn before going over the rock. Ridable for most.

This can be done. From green, the price to pay is to repeat the jeep track section of the climb (after you have done the red single track).

Dankie Dirtman, ook vir die single track wat bygevoeg is op na die selfoontoring. Wonder wat het van die laaste paar bladsye van hierdie thread geword; net verdwyn??

Got our 2013 permits today. OK, so no riding during hours of darkness. Will still be good if there is a number to phone to report any suspicious activity. Any decision yet on the visitors / guest rider issue?

Back on topic... +1 for allowing night riding until 9pm or 10pm on the Bottelaryhills trails. R400 pa is not cheap. In winter the "no after dark rule" limits access to the trails to weekends only for those of us stuck in offices... (and during summer the Stellenbosch temperatures often also prohibits day time rides). I know there are security concerns, but having riders on the farms after dark could actually enhance security. Just publish a number to call when riders notice suspicious activity (Devonvalley farm watch?). We need to find a win-win situation where landowners actually want us cyclists on their property. Something to consider with the change to an "annual permit only" trail...

My suggestion is for disposable guest boards. Alternatively it should be the responsibility of the annual permit holder "host" to ensure that the guest board be returned. If need be, the host's board number can be recorded when the guest board is issued.

Do away with the armbands and only use number boards. Much easier to spot. Then any rider without a board is a rogue rider. The guest boards do not need to be durable (and expensive) as they will only be used once. If tighter control is required, only annual permit holders can be allowed to buy guest permits. The many entrances is a problem and it is not practical to man them all. However, guest permits need not be available for purchase at all entrances. Just have guest permits on sale at entrances that are manned by the farms in any case during their normal business hours and keep the website updated with the relevant entrances and hours. Ideally guest permits should be available from at least one entry point on Stellenbosch as well one on Brackenfell side of Bottelary Hill.

My wife and I have been annual permit holders since the trails opened. We understand the problem well and have also seen rogue riders on the trails. If possible we always ask them politely to pay. We support your decision, but now face a problem for our guests (usually from outside the Western Cape), who often bring their bicycles along when visiting. Bottelaryhills is our local trail and we enjoy showing it off Any ideas on how annual permit holders can have a guest accompany them without opening up a hole for abuse? Perhaps a limit of one guest per annual permit holder at a time, but then you still need a way to purchase a guest pass. Any ideas?

Last time I was out on the trail was just before construction started on the new red route single track. I trust the new trail stood the test of all the recent rain. Looking forward to trying out the new sections soon! I hope part of the future plans include extending the purple single track to avoid going up the road from where the ST ends now to return to Middelvlei. Keep up the good work!

Speedy recovery Tankman! Did they catch the bastards?

Wow, this is great news! So many options available now; you can really mix and match. Much appreciated Hellwarp. A big thank you to you and all the land owners! :clap:

Thanks Hellwarp These changes are certainly an improvement! Keep up the good work.