Our Coastal Tour 2011

We are all so blessed to be able to live in this wonderful country of ours, with all its beauty and brilliant riding routes.  We were in the privileged position this year to enjoy our second tour through awesome South Africa.

It was a rainy day in Alberton when we set off on our Coastal Tour.  Dressed in our awful rain suits we braved the weather all the way to the Caterpillar and Catfish in the Drakensberg, where we stayed the night to dry off and rest before setting off for Umhlanga the next morning.  It was our mission to skip all toll roads which put us on the most beautiful back roads like Nottingham Road past the Howick Falls and the Comrades route.

KZN is a very interesting province and on day 3 we already knew that we should have allowed more time to enjoy more of the beauty of the area.  The South Coast is built for bikers – great roads and beautiful beaches.  Port Edward was a real surprise – the beach is lovely, the people friendly and accommodation affordable. 

A highlight of our tour was without doubt travelling through the old Transkei to get to Coffee Bay and the Hole-in-the-Wall.  The quality of the road surface is good, but riders should be ever alert for cows, goats, horses, sheep, geese and humans.  The best part of the road was from Lusikisiki to Port St Johns – 133 breathtaking twists and bends – enough to send any biker to paradise.

From Mthatha to Coffee Bay Paul had to concentrate really hard and we could only average a speed of 50 km/h.  After unpacking at the hotel it was time to visit the Hole-in-the-Wall. 

The first sign board we saw – MOTORCYCLES DEAD SLOW – should have indicated as to what was to come.  Even though the Triumph Tiger 1050 is described as a dual-purpose bike, we were definitely not prepared for the next 12 kilometres that awaited us.  Dirt roads fit for serious scramblers, up and down with sharp bends, loose gravel and deep grooves (and donkeys) had me panicking so much that I decided it best not to hold on to hubby anymore, but rather use the bike handles to steady me through this gruelling trip.

But by the time we reached the Hole-in-the-Wall, Paul handled the Tiger like a pro and it was worth every panic-stricken moment of that 12 kilometres - the Hole-in-the-Wall is truly a magical sight.

After the old Transkei we rode through East London and on to Port Alfred, where we immediately felt at home.  We also visited Grahamstown before spending a wonderful couple of days in Jeffreys Bay.  A bit of sea and sand is always good for the soul.

With our wheels back on the Garden Route (and friends to share it with) we visited many interesting little places, crossed the Outeniqua Pass (which must have been designed by a biker) and rode Route 62.  Super enjoyable – with long open stretches to open up a bit before hitting a new set of twists and turns for extra enjoyment.

Like all good bikers we visited Ronnie’s Sex Shop before heading off for Barrydale and a lovely lunch with friends.

After spending the night in Barrydale we all left together, over the Tredouw Pass, stopped for ‘roosterkoek’ in Buffeljagsrivier, met more friends en-route to Bredasdorp and from there on to visit friends in Hermanus.

Many awesome routes were planned for our stay in Hermanus, but Mother Nature was not having any of that.  Eating, drinking and hanging out with friends were our only amusement, which is not always a bad thing.

As the sun peeped out on day three it was time to say good-bye and carry on by ourselves to Cape Town, past Betty’s Bay, the beautiful scenic route to Gordons Bay and from there to Blouberg Strand.

Our last destination was Green Point in the heart of Cape Town, to spend our last day riding around and doing the tourist thing.

After 14 days in the saddle, and from previous experience, I convinced Paul that we (and the bike) should return home on the Premier Classe train.  This was a great experience and we arrived back in Johannesburg relaxed and well rested.  This is a really good option that I can recommend to anybody.

And so our wonderful trip came to an end - 2 weeks (and 3 041,1 km’s) to hang out, admire and just see our country from a different angle.