eek. fail. will try again.
We spent 3 weeks around Cape Town in December. I asked on here before we booked but didn't get much response so thought I'd post up a few pics and a bit about the places we rode. Pictures more for scenery than to show the riding.
Flights aren't going to be cheap but total costs are not as bad as you'd expect - food, booze, fuel and accommodation are all cheaper than Europe. You can't really argue with 3 weeks of riding dry and dusty trails in December - we had two days of rain in the time we were there. Current exchange rate is 12R to the £. Decent wine starts at about 40R 🙂 All land is private so the riding is on farms, vineyards and in a few national parks. You're nearly always surrounded by the mountains but of course the farms and vineyards are on the plains so you don't go that high and little of the riding is technical but theres a lot of wonderful singletrack.
Tokai forest. Part of the Table Mountain National Park this is forest riding at its best. Basically a big fire road climb (which continues for a further 5km beyond the highest trail taking you up to the FM mast on Constantiaberg at 920m for superb views over Table Mountain and Cape Town. Car park is at c100m so a proper climb) with trails dropping off it allowing you to pick a few different routes down and making navigation easy. Good singletrack, some proper switchbacks on the "Bridal Path" and a couple of decent looking DH runs. Other than the DH most other bits of trail are good to climb as well which makes life more interesting and keeps you in the shade. Rocks, roots and on the DH some big jumps (mostly rollable but not all). 3-4hours you can ride it all but worth a couple of visits. The lowest sections are very sandy (see pic) but higher up isn't.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7060/6874337033_6b9ded50ac_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874337033/ ]Tokai Forest[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Eden forest (stellenbosch). You'll need someone to show you round but there's some sweet trails to keep you busy for half a day (4 hours). Mostly rooty and rocky forest with some well built jumps and drops and a lovely bermed trail out on the hillside. I'd have liked a second day here.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7042/6782855598_21a14fd322_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6782855598/ ]Eden Forest[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Eselfontein. Farm. Self catering house for rent. Alexander has been building trails for his own amusement for about 20 years and the full marked trail we recorded as >60km of which > 40 is singletrack (though you do about 10km of that in both directions). Mostly very exposed - it can get very hot up here but fantastic riding. We were "lucky" with the weather - day 1 it rained and we abandoned after 30km wet and cold. Day 2 The sun was out but the air was still refreshingly cool. Fantastic views, endless sinuous singletrack on sand, gravel and forest and a decent amount of climbing. Nothing in any way technical (one short techy climb) but fantastic riding and a big day out if you do the full route.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7201/6874332087_c9dd9d27f6_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874332087/ ]Eselfontein[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7188/6874331127_ef0c066fe1_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874331127/ ]Eselfontein[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7182/6874331795_36bafed2c4_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874331795/ ]Eselfontein[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Lebanon - 7/10. Farm. Self catering cottages for rent. Lovely scenic ride with some good rocky Singletrack. Recommended for a day. Showers and toilets. well marked.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7195/6874335101_8133f0e6bd_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874335101/ ]Lebanon[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7207/6874334753_62efd3e350_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874334753/ ]Lebanon[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Jonkershoek - 9/10. A wonderful c30km ride here takes in the best trails but it looks Like there is more to explore. First section takes you along jeep track then up a steep (almost unrideable) gravel path. A long, narrow, off camber, traverse with a few techy stream crossings and rocky up-and-overs takes you to the top of the woods for a smooth winding descent with tight switchbacks (the first of them has a horrific looking drop if you overshoot. Braver than me to ride it.) Lots of fun. The route then takes you along fire road to pick up a few sections of trail crossing the valley winding through the fynbos (fine bush. Fine maybe but by no means soft). No steep gradients but surprisingly techy and fun winding between (and over) the rocks and through the sand. Then it's a big climb up fire road to the top of a fantastic descent that takes >20 mins to come down. The canary trail just goes on and on - riding the first sections in a single run will have your legs screaming. A seemingly endless trail though rocks and roots that needs constant concentration. Even the final sandy run (green on the iRideAfrica map) has lovely sweeping corners.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7187/6874335859_1446e6637c_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874335859/ ]Jonkershoek[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7186/6874336299_dd9a86eeab_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874336299/ ]Jonkershoek[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Someone taking much better pics then me on [url] http://www.pinkbike.com/news/Trail-Riding-Jonkershoek-Part-2-2012.html [/url] pinkbike
Oak Valley. Vineyard. Very nice showers and toilets. Lovely wines. Felt like a really good 24 hour race course - some longish sections across fields that were not that interesting (though lovely scenery) with more interesting trails through the woods. Strangely enough they run a 24 hr race here in January though that's on a c10km course so wouldn't necessarily take in all the fun stuff. Ride, clean up, taste and buy wine. Well marked - be sure to ride all the black sections. The fence bridges are a welcome change from gates and UK trail centre anti-MX defences.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7054/6874333601_b972a37601_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874333601/ ]Oak Valley[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7180/6874333917_d72b73bf88_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874333917/ ]Oak Valley[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Welvanpas vineyard. A decent run out and nice scenery but I found the trails a bit disappointing. Well marked.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7204/6874330129_e1199a8702_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874330129/ ]Welvenpas[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Knysna (500km east of CT)
Harkeville Forest. Stunning views along the coast from the cliff path but disappointing riding. Nice enough trails in the forest but felt like english bridle way - this was a trail that went somewhere that you could ride rather than being built for fun.
[url= http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7052/6874333029_9ded82d35d_m.jp g" target="_blank">
[url= http://www.flickr.com/photos/nicolaiuk/6874333029/ ]SouthAfrica201110[/url] by [url= http://www.flickr.com/people/nicolaiuk/ ]NicolaiUK[/url], on Flickr
Transport - rent a bakkie (pick up) rather than a car. We got a 2wd Hilux with hardtop, radio and Aircon for 290R a day (plus c400 one off charges) from CABS car hire. With 180k on the clock and covered in dents it had some quirks but was perfect for throwing two bikes in the back. Fuel is cheap compared to home - c10R a L for petrol.
For maps check out iRideAfrica . Trail grading is a bit random here with most places blue=short/ Black=longest usually with warnings about the climbing. iRideAfrica's gradings are more reliable and their Tokai map is more accurate/up to date than the official one you can buy from the paystation.
Tyres - a lot of people running low profile treads such as Racing Ralphs but a normal all rounder works better on the loose stuff (and you want high volume for the sand). We just stuck with the 2.2 Rubber Queens that were already on our bikes. Tubeless good for the thorns you'll find a lot of.
Lube - really worth switching to Squirt. Invented and manufactured here for a good reason - its perfect in the dusty, sandy, conditions you'll be riding in. We run it successfully all year in the UK too all year but It really comes into its own here.
Hmm, I have a mate not a million miles from there who has invited me over at some point. He keeps posting photos of dry dusty trails in Tokai just to wind me up it feels.
Worth the trip then?
I rode Eselfontein in January this year whilst out there with a friend who is training for the cape epic. It reached 43C at midday and that was enough to just about destroy me, especially with some of those steep climbs they have there. However the 10minute decent down the other side was enough to make it all worth while. I have mixed feeling about the 4 weeks of riding i done out there during January
I spent a few winters (5 months at a time) living in table view windsurfing.Anytime it was'nt blowing 30 knots the heat was intolerable. Although it is cooler in december and april.Strangeley never thought about biking other than seeing the Neethlings dirt jumps on the side of the road on the drive over to cape point.
PlumzRichard - mixed feelings? Why?
I think we we fairly lucky with the weather. It was 'unseasonably cool' for the first week so I reckon when we rode Eselfontein the air temperature was below 20C - felt cool on your lungs - even though the sun was hot. Didn't get any extreme winds either. We *did* get into the habit of getting up early and riding before lunch when it got warmer.
Did you take your bike? Any hassles at SA customs or whatever? Assume you brought them inside overnight? Did you lock them in the ute, or just have them loose in back?
OP - excellent ride report with great pics. The Western Cape is an awesome place to ride. We were also there over Dec/Jan for three weeks, but you guys got to many more places than us.
xcentric - Cape Town airport is used to dealing with bikes as they host the Cape Argus each year. South African Airways flies your bike for free - except during the certain busy periods like the Argus. The customs guys wont give you any problems. We took two bikes over, hired a car and bought a cheap bike rack from Sportsmans Warehouse.
Bikes went with us packed in [url= http://www.zoogz.co.uk/ ]Crateworks[/url] boxes and we flew with SAA who give you a 20kg sporting goods allowance in addition to your 20kg luggage. Some dispute in both directions about whether that gave you a total weight of 40kg however distributed (which was guidance from some staff and seems fair) or whether your bike box cannot weigh over 20kg (which is a problem with a trail bike in a box).
Most of the time we took them in overnight but it depended on where we were staying.
I concentrate on surfing and windsurfing when I'm in the Cape, but will print the original post out as a reference for next time I'm there!
Simon - I stayed mainly in Langabang where winds where strong the majority of the time, however this didnt spoil the riding too much. Im not sure why i had mixed feelings, i like riding my bike as much as i can althought out there i found i could only hack a few hours untill i was fatigued and getting very sun burnt. As well as this i found the trails to be very very dusty...sand pits. Dont get me wrong it was one epic trip and we had some days of rididng i would never forget.
However i am more of a Alps kind of guy. Hard days riding in Okish weather followed by a lovely french cafe to fill up on great food and drink wilst chilling with all the other cycling folk that always flock to those ares. Thats more my cup of tea.