South Africa: Looking for one-month touring route

[Nordkapper]

Hi All,

I plan to fly into Capetown and take a month to get to Jo'burg from where I'll fly out. This will be during the July / August time-frame.

Would be most grateful for a suggested travel route.

For the national parks part of the journey I'll be in a car for obvious reasons. ;-)

Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Cheers,
Nordkapper

[estebangc]

We are planning a 15 day trip there by mid April (could get a very cheap employee flight). Originally, I thought 1 way Jo'b-Cape, but will probably remain around Cape area instead.

I hope we could give you some tips on that part.

btw, who are you renting the bike from?

Happy planning/travels,

Esteban

[Vaufi]

From Cape Town do the loop to Cape Point southwards on the west coast (Chapmans Peak Drive and back to CT on the eastern road. At Simonstown check out the Penguin colony.
From CT travel north to Tulbagh (beautiful town centre, old dutch-colonial style) then take the "Route 62" via Montague to Calitzdorp. Turn north over the Swartberg Pass (dirt road) to Prince Albert. Now eastwards through the Meirings Poort canyon down to George and Knysna (personally I prefer the route through the mountains to the Garden Route).
Further east is the fantastic Baviaanskloof NP. But the R332 going through the Kloof is pretty rough and not doable on a road bike.
North of Port Elizabeth is the Addo Elephant Park, but here you'd need a car. Very interesting.
From there I'd traverse to Lady Frere and Mount Fletcher, looking for some nice mountain passes. The highest SA pass is the Naude's Nek (2,500m), but it's dirt road again. No probs for large enduros like the 1200GS though, as long as it doesn't rain.
Mind you, July is the coldest month in SA, so you might want to keep nearer to the coast - but again: the mountain roads are a lot more scenic!
If you would like to make a detour through Lesotho, enter at Tele Bridge (south border) and exit at Quachas Nek. This is a tarred road, but exceptionally beautiful. But get local advice regarding snow, before attempting this route in winter!
Otherwise carry on north-east to Kokstad and travel more or less along the magnificent Drakensberg range. Then head for Greytown and try to find backroads leading through the Nkandla Forest NP either to Eshowe or Empangeni. Finally head for St. Lucia to visit the Wetlands (world heritage site. Stay in the town and spend at least one day for a swim at Cape Vidal. Warm up after the cold mountain trails ;o)
From St. Lucia travel north (if time allows via Swaziland) to Nelspruit and carry on to Pilgrims Rest (museum town) and along the scenic road to the Blyde River Canyon NP. You might want to rent a car again for a visit to the Kruger NP.
Well, that's it. From here you'd head straight for Johannesburg or Pretoria.

Just an idea..... Should fit into 4 weeks travel time Oh, that reminds me: The best isn't SA , but the namibian "Windhoek Draught"!!!

Enjoy!

[Nordkapper]

Originally Posted by Vaufi

From Cape Town do the loop to Cape Point southwards on the west coast (Chapmans Peak Drive and back to CT on the eastern road. At Simonstown check out the Penguin colony.
From CT travel north to Tulbagh (beautiful town centre, old dutch-colonial style) then take the "Route 62" via Montague to Calitzdorp. Turn north over the Swartberg Pass (dirt road) to Prince Albert. Now eastwards through the Meirings Poort canyon down to George and Knysna (personally I prefer the route through the mountains to the Garden Route).
Further east is the fantastic Baviaanskloof NP. But the R332 going through the Kloof is pretty rough and not doable on a road bike.
North of Port Elizabeth is the Addo Elephant Park, but here you'd need a car. Very interesting.
From there I'd traverse to Lady Frere and Mount Fletcher, looking for some nice mountain passes. The highest SA pass is the Naude's Nek (2,500m), but it's dirt road again. No probs for large enduros like the 1200GS though, as long as it doesn't rain.
Mind you, July is the coldest month in SA, so you might want to keep nearer to the coast - but again: the mountain roads are a lot more scenic!
If you would like to make a detour through Lesotho, enter at Tele Bridge (south border) and exit at Quachas Nek. This is a tarred road, but exceptionally beautiful. But get local advice regarding snow, before attempting this route in winter!
Otherwise carry on north-east to Kokstad and travel more or less along the magnificent Drakensberg range. Then head for Greytown and try to find backroads leading through the Nkandla Forest NP either to Eshowe or Empangeni. Finally head for St. Lucia to visit the Wetlands (world heritage site. Stay in the town and spend at least one day for a swim at Cape Vidal. Warm up after the cold mountain trails ;o)
From St. Lucia travel north (if time allows via Swaziland) to Nelspruit and carry on to Pilgrims Rest (museum town) and along the scenic road to the Blyde River Canyon NP. You might want to rent a car again for a visit to the Kruger NP.
Well, that's it. From here you'd head straight for Johannesburg or Pretoria.

Just an idea..... Should fit into 4 weeks travel time Oh, that reminds me: The best isn't SA , but the namibian "Windhoek Draught"!!!

Enjoy!

Excellent suggestions! Thanks so much and we'll definately keep an eye open for Windhoek Draught. :-)

[Nordkapper]

Originally Posted by estebangc

We are planning a 15 day trip there by mid April (could get a very cheap employee flight). Originally, I thought 1 way Jo'b-Cape, but will probably remain around Cape area instead.

I hope we could give you some tips on that part.

btw, who are you renting the bike from?

Happy planning/travels,

Esteban

Haven't booked it yet, probably a BMW R1200GS in Capetown. Have a great trip!

[Vaufi]

Here are some useful links:

[url=http://www.motorbikehire.co.za/]Adventure Motorcycle, Motorbike Rentals Cape Town __/\/

[Vaufi]

Sorry, the previous post went corrupt

Here are the links again:
Motorrad Executive Rentals : BMW Motorcycle Rentals - Southern Africa
Cape Bike Rentals

Adventure Motorcycle, Motorbike Rentals Cape Town __/\/������\/\__ Motorcycle hire in Southern Africa, Abenteuer Motorad, motorrad mieten in s�dafrika, Abenteuer Mororradvermietung in Kapstadt, Sudafrika.

www.capebikerentals.com/


Accommodation in South Africa - Where To Stay

Have fun!

[estebangc]

Vaufi, that was really good advice regarding routes and rentals. Thx
Accesories from Capebikerentals (panniers, GPS, etc) seem to be way much cheaper than anywhere else.

I'm considering MotoBerlin: BMW Motorcycle Rental & Motorcycle Adventure Tours, South Africa Any experience?