Road Bikes Charged for MTB Activity at Cape Point

[Eddy Gordo]

I think you may just have unearthed a brilliant strategy!

Problem is they will take a year or two to realize that majority are riding illegally.

[Shebeen]

 

R60 applies to "

 north of Table Mountain National Park?"

 

Cape Point is 2x the price, and having a valid Wild Card does not help you when you are on a bike. Apparently rules changed recently - in July. 

 

The whole system is ridiculously confusing. You need to spend hours phoning and reading their site, and even then you might not get the story straight as to how much you are in for.

 

oh. ok. never heard of that.

 

incidentally, if you want to go to kirstenbosch and it's too expensive for you. go park at cecillia forest, and walk 5mins on the contour path, and walk into the gardens from the top.

 

perfectly legal.

[Red Zone]

I remember there being some press about this towards the end of last year. I think that Sanparks realized that there were quite a few roadies using the park, to avoid traffic / ride somewhere different, and decided that there was another target market to shaft. There was an announcement that as of 2015 activity cards would be required. I don't agree with it, but it was definitely announced some time ago.

[Lucky Luke.]

oh. ok. never heard of that.

 

incidentally, if you want to go to kirstenbosch and it's too expensive for you. go park at cecillia forest, and walk 5mins on the contour path, and walk into the gardens from the top.

 

perfectly legal.

 

good tip.

 

Honestly, I could have just paid them today, but I am so over the inefficiency and cock ups that I have experienced with SAN Parks.

 

- My first Wild Card took 5 months to arrive, and I was not credited with the missing 5 months - valid from the day of purchase. 

- When I renewed my card recently, I received an email stating a new card would arrive in 6 weeks - nothing - phoned them after 3 months to be told 'just use your old one, we reactivated it' - so 3 months sitting around waiting for something I didn't need. 

- Then today I actually try to use the thing for the first time, and I'm told I need to stump up another R120 - the only valid response at this point was thanks but no thanks.

[Lucky Luke.]

I remember there being some press about this towards the end of last year. I think that Sanparks realized that there were quite a few roadies using the park, to avoid traffic / ride somewhere different, and decided that there was another target market to shaft. There was an announcement that as of 2015 activity cards would be required. I don't agree with it, but it was definitely announced some time ago.

 

I think you have nailed it.

[tubed]

That issue with bikes and Cape Point has been for time as far as I know.

Just try and see what happens if you have a bike 'concealed' in the car and they see it. Same story.

 

My best is the Silvermine road farce, on the road to the dam beyond the car park you cant ride a bike up or down the tar road, for that, I was ordered "you need to use the trail", even if its a road bike - no bikes beyond this point. Amusing.

 

I see Sandy Bay now has dog walker permit signs up and a max of 2 dogs per person and of course no bikes - even though bikes and walkers have co-existed there for decades, ensuring each others safety.

 

What next?  

Edited November 2, 2015 by tubed

[Simon123]

Same as Tokai only "hopefully" opening some time next year.

 

It's a farce, and sadly everyone talking to anyone who actually listens is either wasting their breath or on the same team that gives no f*cks.

[DJR]

good tip.

...............

- My first Wild Card took 5 months to arrive, and I was not credited with the missing 5 months - valid from the day of purchase. 

- When I renewed my card recently, I received an email stating a new card would arrive in 6 weeks - nothing - phoned them after 3 months to be told 'just use your old one, we reactivated it' - so 3 months sitting around waiting for something I didn't need. 

- Then today I actually try to use the thing for the first time, and I'm told I need to stump up another R120 - the only valid response at this point was thanks but no thanks.

I went to get my family, all parks, most expensive, Wildcard in person from the Tokai SANParks office. I filled in all the forms, provided all the paperwork and paid.......then they told me to expect the card in the post in 6 weeks! If I had known that I might as well have done it online! The idea was to walk out of there with the thing in my hand because I knew how useless they are with their admin........been there before, done that before, but guess I'm a slow learner! It took them 10 long months to get that simple little piece of green plastic to me. E-mails by the dozen, handsfull of phone calls, 3 trips to the Post Office.......and I got it a week after the big Kruger trip I mainly wanted it for. They did accept my receipt though and I didn't have to pay more. Now I keep getting more notices to come and collect the card from the Post office, the same card that I collected already with great effort...........and they just sent me an e-mail to remind me that it has expired and I can so conveniently renew it online......jaaaa right........I think I'll rather pass! My experience of their Wildcard and Activity Card system is a mess!

 

In protest, I will only get a new Activity Card when Tokai re-opens! Not before! I will not get another Wildcard until I have a specific need for it that will save me money! (Perhaps I should add that I have been a supporter of the Wildcard scheme since its very start, more than a decade ago........but no longer!)

 

Currently I get too much of a "rip off money grabbing" smell! Pay for entry, pay for fishing, pay for boat, pay for bike, pay for baby, pay to fart!