NC_lurker Posted September 21, 2018 Share Day 1 - Buffelsjagrivier to Riversdale completed.85km - 1200m climbingRide time 3hr50, total duration closer to 5hrs. First proper ride on my gravel bike, very happy with how it performed. It appears steel really is real! Slightly concerned that I might be a little under geared. Hit a few 16% bumps and was having to drop into my easiest gear. Might be interesting with the addition of 4kgs of bike packing luggage!(Didn't need my bags as today I was getting back to my car) Prince Albert Cycles and DJR 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 21, 2018 Share Beautiful weather DJR, cat-i, Pusher and 10 others 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 22, 2018 Share Day 2 - Stilbaai area to van Wyksdorp completed.88km - 1100m climbingRide time 4hrs, total duration just over 5hrs. Interesting day. Started in the dry arid back of Stilbaai area, moved through a pretty green section between Riversdale & Garcia pass then emerged into the arid Klein Karoo. Having said that, sections are pretty green for Karoo, guess it's the time of year. Sage is doing well, I'm trying to ignore the nasty click/creak coming from her rear wheel..NC_lurker however is taking a bit of strain...who knew going up hills was so much hard work, no wonder some people seem to not enjoy it! Had another late start, definitely going to have to get moving earlier tomorrow. Long day to Oudtshoorn & I suspect Rooiberg pass is going to be a bitch. Prince Albert Cycles and cat-i 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Prince Albert Cycles Posted September 22, 2018 Share That section between Stilbaai and Riversdale is taxing . Well done ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 22, 2018 Share Thanks, I cheated by getting a lift 16km up the river Rd & only started at the Blombos - Riversdale Rd intersection. Still, sections of the Rd before you intersect with the Vermaaklikheid Rd were pretty rocky & corrugated. Probably actually the worst Rd conditions today. My plans for lunch at Muiskraal just over Garcia pass were screwed by them being closed! Sat lunchtime on a long weekend, clearly they don't like making money. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 23, 2018 Share Day 3 - van Wyksdorp to Oudtshoorn completed.97km - 1500m climbingRide time 5hr10, total duration closer to 7hrs. Big day out! Great start to the day by failing to check my map before heading out so rolled down the hill until an intersection 2km out of town which led me to realise my mistake...back up the hill into town then followed Google's route through some farmers backyard... supposedly a shortcut to the main Rd, luckily the great Dane & Boerboel trying to collect toll fees realised I was too skinny for a good meal.. So Rooiberg pass was the elephant waiting to be eaten. Turned out that the climb wasn't the problem, but rather the descent on the Calitzdorp side.Only stopped once on the way up for a photo opportunity, but had to stop 3 or 4 times on the descent to prevent my back from going into spasm. Really rocky in large segments, not so much loose rocky but more like the road surface has been eroded away and has left rock steps everywhere. Not much fun on a rigid gravel bike, serious upper body workout stuff! Glad I wasn't trying to climb it from that side. According to a local that passed in his bakkie, recent rains haven't been kind to the road. Pulled into the Calitzdorp spa to raid their snackshop. Parked for 45min doing some recovery & refueling. Took me 3hrs riding to get there, for only 46km covered, still left 50km to get to Oudtshoorn.Stuck on the gravel for as long as possible until joining the concrete Rd, then missed my turning & ended up having to do the last 10km on the r62 racetrack. Day done. Against more intelligent suggestions (sorry Arno, saving Montagu for next time), I'm reverting to my Robinson pass route tomorrow. Logistically it's the option that works best. Slight modification in that I'm likely to call it quits at Herbertsdale, 85km or so in. Blokman, DJR and Prince Albert Cycles 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 23, 2018 Share Hilly first half, arid flat second half. cat-i, Andrew_Smith, BSG and 6 others 9 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 24, 2018 Share Day 4 - Oudtshoorn to near N2 Gouritz bridge area 107km - 1700m climbingRide time 5hr15, total duration around 7hrs. NNM Tour done, dusted...or should that be dusty! Pretty buggered, been a long last 2 days in the saddle with a fair bit of climbing, taking into account the overall bike weight etc.I'm very interested to see how I feel when I get on my road bike on Saturday. Should feel like I'm propelling a bike made of feathers! Started later than ideal again.. it's possible I lack urgency when solo. Especially when I know I'm going to be out for so long anyways. It's definitely a model I'd have to change if I did a trip in peak summer! First 55km were on tar over Robinson pass. Traffic wasn't too bad, I might've got lucky with my timing. Road is a little narrow, but I guess years of road riding in CT have accustomed me to cars. I actually really enjoyed the route, beautiful pass & the long sweeping decent was an awesome reward for the climb. Interestingly I didn't find the climb that bad, hugely different to how I felt on day 2 climbing Garcia pass. Can only think I've managed to get my head around climbing tar with a slower steady style approach. Turning off the tar onto gravel to Herbertsdale changed things. I was back on day 1 type farm roads with steep hills 12%+ and this time fully loaded. Give me Robinson pass any day rather! Hit Herbertsdale local cafe after about 2hrs of punishment. Luckily I'm not a big coffee drinker, definitely no flat whites on offer!Had decided earlier on that I was keen to finish up with a 100km day so arranged a pickup just off the n2 near Gouritz bridge.Karma bit me in the ass at the 99.5km mark when I hit an 11%+ hill for just over 1km. Probably the closest I came to walking over the 4 days. All in all a great 4 day adventure, pretty chuffed.Next one I'll do with friends...always makes me feel better when I see others suffering [emoji6] cat-i, TIB, Andrew_Smith and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 24, 2018 Share Another beautiful day, really scored with the weather. TIB, Prince Albert Cycles, DJR and 5 others 8 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 10, 2019 Share Ok, it's bikepacking time of year again.. Sage, my trusty steel companion, and I will be heading back out onto the gravel roads of the Southern Cape & Klein Karoo in a couple of weeks time. Once again, I'd appreciate any comments on my proposed route. Bit concerned by the lack of available refueling stops on Day 3 & 4 so info about any secret spaza shops/cafe's etc would be appreciated! Day 1:Stilbaai to Groot Brak via Vleesbaaihttps://goo.gl/maps/bq4QjoeBYpbBXq3s5122km - 840m climbing Day 2: Groot Brak to Oudtshoorn via Montagu passhttps://goo.gl/maps/xWo25QuF45KAbebN788km - 1110m climbing Day 3: Oudtshoorn to van Wyksdorp via Armoedhttps://goo.gl/maps/HehgHiFFAjKzhGKE894km - 1150m climbing Day 4: van Wyksdorp to Albertinia via Herbertsdalehttps://goo.gl/maps/NqDhwFTUCdRuUCJy5103km - 1300m climbing Edited September 11, 2019 by NC_lurker Rowl, JohanDiv, Andrew_Smith and 2 others 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilipV Posted September 10, 2019 Share (Not so)Pro tip:Use Komoot to plan your trip. It's an app on your phone, but with a great online web side that makes it a breeze to plan on the computer, and this route is then automatically synced with the app on your phone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohanDiv Posted September 10, 2019 Share Ok, it's bikepacking time of year again.. Sage, my trusty steel companion, and I will be heading back out onto the gravel roads of the Southern Cape & Klein Karoo in a couple of weeks time. Once again, I'd appreciate any comments on my proposed route. Bit concerned by the lack of available refueling stops on Day 3 & 4 so info about any secret spaza shops/cafe's etc would be appreciated! Day 1:Stilbaai to Groot Brak via Vleesbaaihttps://goo.gl/maps/bq4QjoeBYpbBXq3s5122km - 840m climbingStilbaai to Groot Brak.png Day 2:Groot Brak to Oudtshoorn via Outeniqua passhttps://goo.gl/maps/xWo25QuF45KAbebN788km - 1110m climbing Groot Brak to Oudtshoorn.png Day 3:Oudtshoorn to van Wyksdorp via Armoedhttps://goo.gl/maps/HehgHiFFAjKzhGKE894km - 1150m climbing Oudtshoorn to van Wyksdorp.png Day 4:van Wyksdorp to Albertinia via Herbertsdalehttps://goo.gl/maps/NqDhwFTUCdRuUCJy5103km - 1300m climbing van Wyksdorp to Albertinia.png On your Day 1 I'd take the road going to the right (towards the coastline) between Stilbaai and Gouritz. I loved riding that road. Rolling, mostly smooth gravel with a view over the ocean almost the entire way to Gouritz(I might have fallen in love with that section because of the massive tailwind I had that day). It's only 15km longer than your planned route, plus you get an extra fueling point at Gouritz..Vleesbaai's shop could have very limited options this time of year. Skubarra 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spokey Posted September 10, 2019 Share Awesome trip.Day 3. Nothing on that route except for the occasional remote farm house. You will join the P1661 between Rooiberg Pass and Assegaaibosch Pass. ( I think you travelled that last year)Day 4. Nothing for several kms leaving Van Wyksdorp but there is a small farming community at the junction where the R327 turns left to parallel the Langberg Mountains toward Herbertsdale. Klein Karoo Welgevonden Guest House (bit off the road though) is near there and a little while further on is JP Bredell Wines on the Langberg Halt Farm. Just before the final Pass to Herbertsdale is the Dwaars Rivier Country Getaway. Hope this helps.When do you plan to do this? If I am in SA, I will happily bring water/ supplies on Day 3 or 4 if required. Any excuse for some Gravel Travel, either in the bakkie or on the motorcycle! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 10, 2019 Share (Not so)Pro tip:Use Komoot to plan your trip. It's an app on your phone, but with a great online web side that makes it a breeze to plan on the computer, and this route is then automatically synced with the app on your phone.Thanks, I'll have a look at it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC_lurker Posted September 10, 2019 Share On your Day 1 I'd take the road going to the right (towards the coastline) between Stilbaai and Gouritz. I loved riding that road. Rolling, mostly smooth gravel with a view over the ocean almost the entire way to Gouritz(I might have fallen in love with that section because of the massive tailwind I had that day). It's only 15km longer than your planned route, plus you get an extra fueling point at Gouritz..Vleesbaai's shop could have very limited options this time of year.Thanks, I was meant to do a recon of that section last time I was in Stilbaai but got lazy. Definitely sounds like the better option. I wasn't sure if the Vleesbaai shop would be a viable option so thanks for the heads up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbie Stewart Posted September 10, 2019 Share Day 2, Montague Pass. Have your wits about you as you enter the bottom part of that pass from the N9 Outeniqua Pass, as there have been reports about some criminal behaviour around that spot. (I lived in George all my life until 7 years ago, so find out from locals closer to the time).The pass itself is a beautiful climb, and there is a lekker coffee shop on the other side just before Herold, where you can refuel for the leg to Oudtshoorn. BSG 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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