2007 Paper Template - Motorcycle Tours South Africa ... even more.pdfBACKROADS • JULY 2009 Page 25...

BACKROADS • JULY 2009 Page 25

The Bantam B22 Micro Light aircraft banked tothe right and dropped altitude. Below me half a dozenelephants casually looked skywards as the small craftbuzzed over their mighty grey heads.

To the west the sun was just beginning to give its final kiss before rapidly dropping fromview and offering the land to the embrace of a waning moon.As we came into land I could see the group of motorcycles, parked for the night, looking so small

from the height. It was our first full day on the road in Africa and things were just beginning.We flew in, a few days earlier to Johannesburg, South Africa, on a flight from JFK, with a quick hour

layover for fuel and additional passengers in Dakar. You would think that landing in Dakar your journeywould be almost over.Not so; much like “South of the Border” on I-95 where you are less than half way to the Keys, Dakar is clos-

er to NewYork than Johannesburg. With another 8 hours to go it can almost be depressing.Still soon enough the near 20 hour trip brought us to Jo-Burg and into the capable hands of South African

Motorcycle Adventures, or SAMA.A tight family run operation headed up by Darryl Berman and run with son and daughter Jonathon and Nicole, we had

met them a few years back at the New York Motorcycle Show and were impressed by what they offered riders wanting toexplore South Africa. They picked us up at the JoBurg airport and soon we were riding to the outskirts of Pretoria, where a quaintand secure inn would be our home for the next couple of nights.The nation of South Africa has a deep and rich history, some of not well looked upon, but things are different these days and much

of the more colorful parts of this region’s history is still here to be seen and ridden through.Shira and I had traveled in this part of the world before but that was a decade ago and opportunities to ride in such an exotic land do not

The Spirit of AfricaOn Tour with SAMAThe Spirit of AfricaOn Tour with SAMA

words: Brian Rathjen • images: Brian Rathjen and David Foscue

023JL09_P027:2007 Paper Template 6/14/09 7:36 PM

come often so we made our plans and off we went.Our first plan was for Shira and I to do this solo and self-guided, but we

had some friends join us so it became more of a standard motorcycle tourwith a leader and chase truck.

Coming along on this trip were our friends from Washington state Daveand Ellen Foscue, who had traveled with me to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska andalso to Ushuaia, Chile just a year or so ago. When it comes to touring thesefolks like to head out in a big way. Also with us was Backroads’ alumniMike Mosca, who saw our poster for this journey at the NewYork show thisyear and put it all together in a matter of weeks to join us.The tour ran like many others. Each day there would be a briefing on the

upcoming ride, what to expect, to look out for and the all-importantreminder of staying on the left side of the road.Nicole would not be joining us. Darryl, a gregarious guy with a solid

sense of humor, would lead the ride and be our “fixer” if we ran into any sit-uations or problems. Jonathon, a young man with a perpetual laugh and asolid fellow as well, would follow along with a chase vehicle, carrying aspare bike and our luggage. Usually he beat us to the lodges and our bagswould be waiting in our rooms.We were ready to ride the Best South African Road Trip Ever Tour!

Our first day in Africa started off with a quick briefing, at SAMA head-quarters, on the rules of the road and the tour in general.This sojourn would start in Pretoria, spin up to Kruger National Park and

then swing south through Swaziland, a tiny landlocked nation of its own andhome to the Zulu, before reaching the Indian Ocean and continuing southalong the coast all the way to Cape Agulhas.Cape Agulhas is the southernmost point in Africa and it would be quite

excellent to touch this point on the planet with the same riders I have trav-eled with to Prudhoe Bay and Ushuaia - the northernmost and southernmostpoints in the Americas. Our tour would end a few weeks later in Capetown.After taking the bikes from SAMA, all BMW F650GS’ except for two

R1200GS’ ridden by Darryl and myself, we did a short tour of Pretoria, tak-ing in the Voortrekker Monument and the history of the city itself beforeheading back to the lodge and a great welcoming Braai, South African forbarbeque, which turned into a birthday party for Mike.Since most of the group already knew each other we could forgo with pre-

tense and simply enjoy the good company. After the hard winter atBackroads Central all was suddenly good in the world again and the nextday we would be getting on the road.

We left at our scheduled 8am time and made our way out of Pretoria,heading west on a large toll road. This allowed us the easiest way out of thecity and soon we were riding into the Eastern Transval, now calledMpumalanga.

With clear blue skies above and thetemperature steadily rising the scenerywas vast and rolling, with the occa-sionally trees sprinkled across theland.Following Darryl’s lead we exited

the big road and carried along onsmaller, more personable pavement toour first stop - the Nan Hua Temple.We have seen and visited many

Buddhist Temple, but Nan Hua wasthe largest and most beautiful we hadever seen by far. We felt more like wewere riding in Asia and not Africa.

Removing our riding boots we toured the main temple and paid ourrespects to the three huge Buddha in the temple’s center. This temple wasmagnificent, totally unexpected and a great way to start our African journey.Continuing on we rode up through DeBerg Pass, the highest in

Mpumalanga and then through Long Tom Pass, with its massive cannon sit-ting atop the summit. The Long Tom Guns were used during the Boer War,

6 JULY 2009 • BACKROADS

SAMA HEADQUARTERS DARRYL’S FAMOUS BRAAI MIKE’S BIRTHDAY JOBURG MARKET/SQUARE WHERE WE GOING?

Day One: Pretoria - 75 km

Day Two: Pretoria to Hazyview - 400+ km

oweJL09_P028-031:2007 Paper Template 6/14/09 8:03 PM Page 1

when the Afrikan and Britishforce went at each other’sthroats back a hundred yearsago. The Long Tom still sitsatop the ridge, a reminder ofSouth Africa’s troubled past.Here the road began to get

very interesting and follow-ing Darryl into the increas-ingly interesting twisties the

fun part of the day’s ridereally began.Atop the pass the blue sky

gave way to dark clouds andlightning began to streakaway into the not distantfuture. The clouds loweredand it was obvious thatsomething big, mean andwet had just marchedthrough the mountains. Thewet pavement began to heat and give back the moisture while a deep mistran along the pavement, the bikes cutting through it and raising swirlsbehind as they did.Coming around one misty turn a large lizard, about 4 feet in length, saun-

tered across the road in front of us, causing some a bit of a fright as we hadto ride around him at speed.Now the fog really embraced us and with 4-way flashers on we gingerly

made our way over the rest of Long Tom, keeping a sharp eye peeled for treedebris on the road from the quickly vanishing tempest.We took lunch in the town of Sabie at a great motorcycle friendly place

called the Woodsman. The bar had a BMW R1200S suspended above it anda giant map told of all the best roads to ride in the area. This place even hada large board with a warning to riders of where there had been a diesel fuel

spill and to take care when riding in that part of the mountains.Very cool.The road from Sabie to Hazyview was as fun as it gets and although

everybody was on the same page skill-wise the two 1200GS had a bigadvantage when it came to horsepower.At the bottom of the road, both Darryl and I quickly dropped our helmets

and jackets and tried to act like we hadbeen waiting for 20 minutes when therest of the group pulled up a just a fewminutes later.We took rooms at a lodge just outside

of Kruger National Game Park.We would be here for the next few

days, using it as a base of operations, butbefore we could even settle in SAMAhad a nice end of day surprise for us -thus the hop on the Micro Light.What an amazing real day on the road in Africa.

This region of South Africa has an abun-dance of natural wonders and great roads toget you there.Our group was out early and rode along the

Blyde’s River Canyon, a stunning chasm byitself, and then up into the pine coveredmountains on an excellently sweeping road-way. Our first stop was to be the incrediblevista called God’s Window; but a nasty cloudhad parked itself atop the peak and there wasnothing of the view to be seen so we movedonto Bourkes Potholes. These potholes havebeen created by thousands of years of watererosion and between the potholes, the greatwaterfalls and the monkeys dashing to and


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Day Three: Hazyview Loop - 250 km


fro it was a great stop.By this time it was near lunch and we cut across the peaks and through

the valley on a well groomed gravel and clay road.

This allowed the GS’s to getat least properly dirty.We took lunch in the small

mountain town of Pilgrim’sRest. Here gold was foundyears ago and still today isbeing mined. The town itselfretains a classy British feelfrom the days when the Empirewas still an Empire.Heading back towards

Hazyview we rode in and outof a couple of storms, but here inAfrica the weather can change around eachmountain.That evening we had a chance to play with elephants and even take a ride,

so we took it. I think I learned more about these wonderful creatures in ashort hour than in my entire life. Even Mr. Happy got involved when theBull tried to take him away from Shira. He was covered in elephant snot!A sunset ride was a marvelous experience on the back of the great gray

beast. That was followed by a native dance and dinner at a local restaurant;which ended the day in true South African style.That night, Shira and I were woken by large booming. A thunderstorm of

Biblical size had moved in and the lightning and thunder were terrific.Nearly 3 inches of rain came tumbling down as the winds whipped and the

thunder crashed like a huge bass drum. I had forgotten just how powerfulstorms can be in these parts of the world. It was as humbling as it was awe-some.

We rose hours before the dawn on this day and by6 am we greeted the rising sun as we rode into KrugerPark. Not on motorcycles, but in the back of a peoplecarrying truck.Motorcycles are not allowed for obvious reasons,

most likely because we would be breakfast for somehungry critter.If you have ever dreamed of seeing animals in the

wild then Kruger is a “must see” place on this planet.We had been here a decade ago, and at that time we

had seen four of the “Big Five”, missing the elusiveleopard.This day we were not in the park for more than 10

minutes before we came around a turn and almostinto a bull elephant, tearing branches off a tree.Further into Kruger, not one, but two male lions

were sauntering down the trail.It was phenomenal.By this time the sun was fully up and its strong rays

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Day Four: Exploring Kruger ParkThe Search for the Big Five!


Atop the rocks, lying in the early day’s sun was the last piece of the puz-zle; a stunning leopard. She watched us with curiosity and then stood,stretched and in a blink disappeared. I have seen so many glorious things,but this big cat took my breath away. She was so beautiful and I know shewas also so deadly. It is not unusual for a cat like this to take down a humanthat foolishly gets too close or, more likely, is taken by surprise.

I could go on for pages talking about this part. Trust us to say we sawmany, many animals - the rest of the Big Five - cape buffalo and rhino. Wesaw hundreds of impala, warthog, wild dog, ostrich, kudu, Mozambiquespitting cobra, wildebeest, giraffe and dozens of different birds. In the riverswe spotted hippos and crocodiles. We even had the great fortune of seeinga number of cheetahs, which we were told was a rare sight indeed.We were in the park, which is huge, being the size of Israel, for the entire

day and every mile brought more amazement. Kruger is one of the most

amazing places on Earth and I would park the bikes any day to be able tosee this place again.That night’s dinner was especially good. Kudo venison steaks with mush-

rooms and bone marrow - chunks of bone cut open with the marrow justlightly brazed. Scrumptious!

This day was going to be a hot one. I was already drenched with sweatbefore even getting on the bike. Thankfully our route this day would bringus to the “Mountain Kingdom” - Swaziland.Heading up into the mountains the temperatures did abate a bit, as long as

you were moving, but stopping and standing in the sun was truly for maddogs. In fact it was so hot that the button on my iPod literally melted off, asI had left it in my map case during lunch. My mistake, lesson learned.The road that would bring us into Swaziland was in the middle of conver-

sion from hard packed dirt to a paved two-laner. We alternately rode asphaltand gravel most of the morning along vistas that could only be called phe-nomenal!Crossing into Swaziland was

interesting as the guards on bothsides of the border seemed gen-uinely happy to be doing their jobsand in short notice passports werestamped and gates lifted, allowingus to enter into the small Kingdom.Swaziland is full of friendly, butpoor people and a few of the townswe rode through seemed to harkenback to the Africa of the past.


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Day Five: Hazyview to Swaziland - 350 km


The paved roads in this partof the nation felt like they hadbeen used for artillery practicebut we thoroughly enjoyed the30 kilometers of hard packedclay and gravel; and the roadthat spun high into the moun-tains and along some pristinepine forests. Once again Africawas beautiful.

We stopped atop one peak to seethe great Maguga Dam and thencrossed it and took lunch over-looking the dam that suppliespower to the Swazi Kingdom.From here on the road improved

a great deal and we began to maketime through rolling hills and longvalleys. Dozens of school children,neatly dressed in their uniformscheered and waved to us on theirway back home from day’s classes.A few braver ones even held outtheir hands for high fives as werolled by slowly from stoplights.Children and motorcycles; no matter where you go on this planet the twoseem to flow well together.Arriving a few hours earlier than usual, in a great hotel located in the

Ezulwini Valley, it seemed appropriate to enjoy an hour or so poolside witha cold beverage and then another great South African meal. Tomorrow wewould ride to the Indian Ocean and then begin our trek south to the end ofAfrica.

If the previous day seemed a bit warm this day would be a scorcher!We all knew it would be quite warm so the previous

night we went light on the wine and heavy on thewater; in an attempt to keep hydrated.Before heading to the border we made a quick stop

at the Swazi Candle Shop, where some of the finestfigurine candles are created. It was interesting towatch the craftsmen create them and we bought abunch for presents back home.Once again the poverty of Swaziland was so appar-

ent and it seems that while his nation has 40% unem-ployment and nearly 70% of them live on less than adollar a day, the King, Maswati III, has 14 wives andtwice that many estates and palaces; and we thoughtour politicians take advantage.We lucked out at the border crossing, beating a tour

bus by just min-utes and we were through both crossingsin minutes, not the hour we expected.We then rode a long straight and evil,

but necessary road into South Africa’sZulu Kingdom.I guess it is a sign of the times but, at

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Day 6: Swaziland to Saint Lucia, KwaZulu-Natal 330km

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The news, huh? Great, so much forlow key touring.Heading east towards the coast the

temperatures soared and the thermome-ter on board the 1200GS read 44C,nearly 112 degrees in our part of theworld. It was so hot that Shira thoughther contacts were melting and we couldnot drink enough water.Thankfully, as we approached the St.

Lucia region the ocean winds picked upand the temperature dropped down to a more survivable 32C.We had visited this region before and that evening, while the rest of the

team went for a sunset cruise looking for hippo and croc, Shira and I wentcarousing in town. St. Lucia has a fairly happening nightlife and we madethe best of it, as the next day we’d be off the bikes.The really cool part of St. Lucia is that when the sun goes down the hip-

pos come out and it is not unusual to find a family of hippo taking a strolldown the middle of the street. It’s best to give them plenty of space.

With a free day off the bikes we opted to join Darryl and rode in the truckto the iSimangaliso Wetland Park. This word means “miracle and wonder”and the name befits this place. Along the drive in we spotted zebra, wilde-beest, kudu and rhino. This place is the largest estuary in Africa and is aUNESCO World Heritage Site as well. Here the coastruns rugged, north into Mozambique with a simplymagnificent beach.

We spent a few hoursbody surfing in the hardwaves of the Indian Ocean,at Cape Vidal, and then hada small braai for lunch.That’s when the fun

started. You see at thisplace you are constantlybeing watched, almosthunted and stalked; and themoment you let your guarddown they will strike.No sooner had Darryl

put down the rolls for thesausage did the first mon-key jump down from aboveand steal the bag.We ran after him, only to

see him actually throwingrolls to his monkey friends.A few seconds later Ilooked over to see a mon-key’s ass sticking out of thecooler; we let out a yell buthe got away with a juice.These monkeys seemed tobe organized!By this time there were

dozens of these critterswalking around and they

would grab anything that they thought they could takea bite of.One good-sized male sat in a tree, right over my

head and even went for my camera when I went to takehis picture. God, they were tenacious and after a whilewe considered it dinner and a show.Enjoying a well-deserved day off we spent the rest of

the afternoon relaxing by the pool and then walkinginto town to shop a bit and enjoy one of the bestseafood dinners I’ve ever had.On the stroll home we ran into three huge hippos

enjoying an evening meal of some lodges lawn. We didnot venture too close.

For most of this day we rode along the smaller roads, African backroads,that would bring us south. SAMA, like us, tries to stay off the bigger high-ways if possible and this always allows for a better feel for the real lay ofthe land. The Elephant Coast, as it is called, follows the Indian Ocean southand we did too.


Day 7: Free Day in St. Lucia • The Great Monkey Caper

Day 8: St. Lucia to Oribi Gorge


This day was also a hot one and westopped a number of times just to grabsome water and the occasional sportsdrink at a petrol station.The terrain flowed over bright

green hills, mostly filled with sugarcane and the Indian Ocean, just overthe rise, showed her face every nowand again.We took the toll road highway to

scoot around the Port City of Durban.This was as far as Shira and I had

ridden the last time around so we were now in uncharted territory for us.Once past the port we swung back off the big road and onto a small coastaltwo-laner that spiraled towards the coastline and the town of Scottburgh,where we found a local restaurant overlooking the swimmers, surfers andfishermen playing with the sea just below.Heading back out our planned

route was blocked by a huge sandwash. The sign said, in Afrikanand English, that the road wasclosed. Maybe.We rode through and around the

first and the second, slipping andsliding in some deeper sand, butthe third wash was insurmount-able as it was backed by a steelguard rail.I guess they really meant ‘road closed’.We backtracked a bit and Darryl spied a small trail that led through the

brush and trees and over a tiny hill. This was doable. One by one we rodethe bikes over the hump and down the steep far side onto good solid pave-ment - we were nothing if not determined.

A short time later we rode up into the mountains that flank the ocean ona very twistalicious piece of pavement and made our way to the OribiGorge.Some 365 million years in the making the 24 kilometer long gorge,

carved out of the sandstone cliffs by the Umzimkulwana river, is quite stun-ning When we arrived at the hotel, the best place we had stayed at yet, mostof our group chose to head straight to the cooling waters of the pool with acold South African beer. Their plan was to take the van the short dirt ride tothe gorge later for sunset.Mike Mosca and I thought, since we were already drenched in sweat and

had all our gear on, we would spin up the gorge first, take in the sights andstill make it back for the pool and said South African beer with time tospare. Besides, we had ridden all day on the bikes to get to this place, whowould want to have their first visit to the famed gorge in a van when thebikes were still running? Right.Our plan was brilliant.Later that evening we headed back up to the gorge and to Leopard Rock,

a precipice that literally juts out over the deep gorge.Once againAfrica easily reached out and touched us - such a stunning and

breathtaking place.

The previous night’s heat finally came to a boiling point and the skiesopened up with another show of power. On the back end of this came farcooler temperatures under cloudy skies. After the last 1,000 or so kilome-ters of riding in the sun we’d gladly trade it off.Although many riders feel that they have no need for a good tour compa-

ny, it always helps to have others with you who know the little ins and outsof the region. Thus, at SAMA’s suggestion, we followed our intrepid leaderalong a tiny one lane tar roadway that rode through deep jungle and down awinding path to the bottom of Oribi Gorge. What was stunning from the topwas impressive from the bottom as well.This was just the beginning of the best day’s ride, if not the weirdest

weather-wise. Heading east from Oribi we found another tiny coastal road


Day 9: Oribi Gorge to Coffee Bay - 450 km


and headed south. Unfortunately our planned fuel stop and the surroundingarea had suffered a power outage from the previous night’s storms and nowour need for gas was beginning to mount.With nothing else to do but continue on we followed the road, which

headed back up the peaks and along the most fascinating terrain.South African’s call this the Wild Coast and with good reason. This part

of the country still follows tribal rule and the Pondi, as the locals are called,still live much like they have for centuries, although modern Planet Earth isslowly enveloping them. There are no real streets or any addresses I couldsee, but the locals have their homes, round rondevals, and farms spread outfor miles on the incredible rolling hills and mountains that so govern theregion.Along the way south, strong rivers have cut deep gorges and many little

port and fishing villages can be found where the rivers meet the sea.We finally found a fuel station with power in the little town of Bizana,

where we filled each bike to the brim.Bizana is like many of the towns here in this part of SouthAfrica.You will

be rolling along for an hour with nothing but hills, rivers and rondevals andthen turn a corner and ride into a crappy little 4th world wild west Mainstreet that looks like the set from Black Hawk Down.Interesting, but there were little jewels as well; like Port St. Johns where

we stopped for lunch. As we headed towards the coast the clouds came in

and a light rain as well, then the temperatures began to drop with the winds.Where the previous day was 110+, today we found ourselves in 50

degrees and chilly rain. Africa is a fickle woman, I tell ya!At lunch we raided the chase van for extra layers.It was Sunday and from the porch of the restaurant I could hear singing

in the small church across the road. I strolled over and poked my head insideto see where all this glorious singing was coming from. A woman spottedme and the congregation all turned to see this strange white man in strangerriding garb peering into their service. At once the Priest and people askedme in and I humbly entered the church and listen for a while; totally awe-

some and real music to my ears.So far this day’s ride had been

the best yet. Great terrain, awe-some roads, but the route fromPort St. Johns to Coffee Bay waseven better.At one view we stopped to

regroup and a bunch of youngchildren appeared out ofnowhere. It amazes me how thishappens around the globe.



They posed for pictures withus, got a big chuckle when Ipulled out Mr. Happy (The pup-pet - get your mind outta the gut-ter!) and got a huge jolt when Ihad them start my bike when wewere leaving.

Riding through one crowdedtown a slightly inebriatedwoman thought Mike was hernew man and ran over to give

him a kiss, pushing into hisraised Nolan helmet and tug-ging at his arms. Mike was notamused. Neither would youhave been if you had seen her;but Mike took the ribbing hegot all night as we blew kissesto him from across the dinnertable.

The final road to Coffee Bay

was another bombed out piece ofpavement, but the potholes wereworth the view and the ride. Werode the last 50 kilometers on thepegs slipping in and out andbetween huge holes in the road.Wouldn’t you know it but ourfinal 20 minutes was ridden in asolid downpour and we allarrived at our hotel, right on theIndian Ocean as wet as if we hadridden out of the sea.

We would be here for two nights, sowe hoped for some sun the next day.

Our hotel room and balcony lookedover Coffee Bay and walking down tothe rocks and along the beach was agreat way to start the day. Althoughthe sun didn’t come and the occasion-al mist came floating by it was still afine day.

The rest of our group had decided totake the van to the Hole in the Wall, afamed natural landmark where theocean ate away at the rocks; creatingthe hole. After hanging around thehotel and the pool Shira, Mike and Idecided to head out for a little ride andfollowed the road towards the Hole.

Shira decided to double up on myR1200GS for the day, and that neverhas posed a problem. I like havingher along for the ride.

The road quickly turned to whiteclay, which this region is known forand before long we were watercrossing a river estuary that pouredinto the Indian Ocean.

Along this road the superb viewsand the rolling hills, plummeting


Day 10: Free Day at Coffee BayThe Ass and The Hole in the Wall - apologies to Mac Macanally

023JL09_P036039:2007 Paper Template 6/14/09 8:21 PM Page 1

down to the ocean, were stunning. Tribal rondevals were scattered about thehills and little children and old women all laughed and waved as we rode by.

Right about then the rains came back.From there the road got rougher and far slicker. The white clay began to

liquefy and quickly became almost unrideable. By the time we rode up thefinal hill to view the Hole in the Wall, it was apparent that we had gottenourselves into a pickle. Still, as we found out later, we got closer to the Holethan anybody else that day as the vans and jeeps couldn’t deal with the slip-pery clay.

Coming off the hill was an event in itself, but we managed without creat-ing a gravity storm and as the rains floated away theground quickly began to dry. By the time we reachedthe village to stop for sports drinks and meat pies it wasalmost back to normal - which is bad at the best oftimes; still there were times that Shira had to get offand walk a bit as I muscled the 1200 up and over someboulders or arroyo.

Now this was a bit of adventure riding.High tide had come into the small lagoon and cross-

ing back through it was about twice as deep as before- still the bikes needed a washing.

After the morning’s riding adventure we washed thebikes back at the hotel and spent the rest of the dayenjoying the magnificent views of Coffee Bay.

We were sharing the hotel with other guests whowere on a “Bus Tour,” and you know how we lovethese people; still it was one woman’s birthday and, notunlike Denny’s, the staff came out to sing. Much unlike

Denny’s, the women inCoffee Bay sang likeangels and “HappyBirthday” will neversound so sweet again.But, once started theyforged on undaunted,and sang a number ofbrilliant South Africansongs, finishing withthe National anthem.

It was an outstandingend to another out-standing African day.

We were promised sunshine and blue skies this day and the Weather Godscame through. With moderate temperatures and puffy white clouds weheaded back up the road that we had come down in the deluge a few dayspast.

This time the ride and views were far more pleasurable and I was stillamazed at how the locals live, yet that the children were all dressed so prop-erly in their school uniforms walking on the side of the road in, whatseemed, the middle of nowhere.


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Day 11: Coffee Bay to Port Alfred - 450 km


This day our pace was abit faster and the first 30kilometers was spentdodging potholes. I feltlike Han Solo flying theMillennium Falcon dodg-ing asteroids. We pickedup the N2 route headingsouth, which almostseemed like an interstate,except for the constantgoats and cattle runningabout.

Riding between andalong the rondeval-scat-

tered hills we made great time and the road at the Grand Kei River Gorgewas magnificent, with wide sweepers and a wonderful pace.

We had planned to take lunch in the city of East London, but sidetrackedaway from the wharf area to find the East London Museum, the home of thefirst caught Coelacanth. Brought up from the deep in 1938 the fish was spot-ted by a local scientist, who knew it to be different and special. It turned outto be a living fossil, that was supposedly extinct for 780 million years - giveor take.

A very strange creature and thesedays more have been found and evenvideotaped alive in the depths. It makesyou wonder what else could be outthere, but I’ll let O’Life tell the wholetale.

We had a spectacular lunch at themuseum and then found a small roadthat spun along the coast. Every fewkilometers the mighty dunes, some 60feet high would give way to a riverpouring in from the mountains to thewest and the estuary would open up astunning view of the Indian Ocean.

Rushing down from those mountainsas well was one heck of a lightningstorm so we turned it up a bit and did a

great job of beating MotherNature by getting to our hotel inPort Alfred before the rains -which for whatever reason heldoff their appearance till dinnerduring the sunset at the wharf,where a lightning storm acrossthe Indian Ocean gave us ashow.

Port Alfred was about the nicest and most modern community we hadfound in Africa so far. With a very cool and colorfully lit bridge crossing theKowie River, which bisects the town, well-kept vacation homes and a per-fect climate, you can see why this is such a popular destinations with manySouth Africans.

After we checked in I took the GS down to the beach. I had heard that this



would be spectacular and as an avid beach bum I felt the need to ride downand show some respect.

Magnificent, superb, incredible - I have seen many a beach but nothinglike the beach at Port Alfred. The dunes that had been riding on our left insuch a grand manner were forested on the western side, but on the east,where the Indian Ocean had its way with them they looked like the “urgs”of the Sahara. To the north as far as the eye could see the dunes rolled on,some taller than 6-story apartment buildings. I just drank it all in. This wasa part of Africa I had never even dreamed of.

I told the Creator that he, she or it kicked some ass here.

This day would be a straight day down, or actually around, as we nowwould be swinging around the coast of the dark continent and riding morewest than south. We stopped for lunch in Jeffries Bay, across from wheredolphins enjoy their day, and while there I stocked up on some biltong,South African jerky, for the rest of the day.

Leaving Jeffries Bay we rode past some of the most beautiful homes wehad seen to date on this tour, but just around the corner we ran into anotherTownship.

In many of the more urban areas of SouthAfrica one will still find a town-ship, usually consisting of hundreds of small shanty shacks built of wood orcorrugated steel panels, with fences lined with outhouses and only the basicof services. The contrast of these two life styles, so close to each other, ismore than a bit striking and shows that although SouthAfrica is growing and evolving that many blacks havea long way to go to reach parity with some whites.Still, with some regions the native Africans prefer theold ways, but it is many of the younger ones who wantmore; and they should get it.

At this point in Africa, where many Europeans spot-ted this coast for the first time, the TsitsikammaMountains run close to the coast, the rough peaks sim-ply adding to the flavor of this part of the world. Themountains, and the abundant rainfall have created anumber of enormous gorges and every few kilometerswe would ride over another one that would steal ourbreath away.

At the Bloukrans Pass, underneath Africa’s largestbridge, folks were tossing themselves off on theworld’s highest bungee jump, some 216 meters high.We stopped to watch the daredevils and when wereturned to the bikes we ran into the biggest baboon Ihave ever seen. At least 175 pounds of simian muscleand teeth, he stopped, looked at us, and kept on hiswalkabout. He was Kong, eighth wonder of the world.

From Blourkans Pass it was a short ride to Knysna (pronounced Ny-sner),a neat seaside town at the bottom of Africa. We would be here for a coupleof days, so we made ourselves comfortable and took in the local sights andgreat Knysna oysters, which could very well be the best we have ever had.

After a late night we had a later start and took the R1200GS, two up, tothe famed Knysna Heads, huge facing rock formations where the rivermeets the sea. The rest of the group went their own way as well; Mike going‘zip-lining’ through the jungle, Dave and Ellen doing an Eco-Tour and theguides taking a day off.


Eat better…Sleep better… Ride way better!

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• Arrive on your bike check-in withyour coupon; you’ll be entered intothe free weekend drawing.

• Have a drink by the creek, walkto the Natural Bridge and falls, eatlots of good food, pass out, get up,eat, and ride some more!

Plan a Rally or Club Eventwith a New Twist

• 155 guest rooms, huge outdoor gatheringspots, indoor meeting space for up to 500guests, and catering, too, for groups of allsizes. Contact [email protected];540-458-3757.

• Learn Cornering Techniques; “VisualStrategies,” and Safety Tips: schedulea Stayin’ Safe Motorcycle Trainingteam member to speak at your event.Offer half-day “Skills Tune-ups” onnearby mountain roads, a modified version ofthe popular on-road training tours(www.stayinsafe.com)

Take Off in Any Directionfor a Great Ride!

We’re surrounded by National Forests,far from major metro-areas and touristcenters, so you’ll find miles of scenic,lightly trafficked roads:• winding valley roads flanked bymountain vistas• technical serpentine roads thatclimb up and down the mountains• the Blue Ridge Parkway,practically traffic-free!• dirt roads and trails in theNational Forests.Download route maps atwww.NaturalBridgeVA.com/cycle.html.and all you have to do when you cometo Natural Bridge is go out and ride!

To Plan Your Trip call 800-533-1410; visit www.NaturalBridgeVA.com/cycle.html todownload your “Two Wheels Steal” coupon & route maps, and learn more aboutNatural Bridge.To Plan Your Group’s Trip or Event: Group Sales, [email protected]; 540-458-3757; www.NaturalBridgeVA.com/cycle.html

Location: Distance from Washington, DC–190 m; Richmond, VA–135m; Norfolk, VA–195m; Pittsburgh, PA–300m;Philadelphia, PA–330m; We’re on Route 11 at VA 130; off I-81, exits 175 or 180; just south of I-64; fromthe Blue Ridge Parkway, your choice of two fun roads at mp 45.6, US 60, or mp 61.6, VA 130.

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NATURAL WONDER & HISTORIC LANDMARK

Day 12: Port Alfred to Knysna - 450km

Day 13: Free Day in Kynsna


That afternoon we met our friends Buks and Corne, whom we had riddenwith in Africa 10 years back. There was much fun that afternoon with plen-ty of Castle beer, local wines and lots of great food and greater smiles.It’s a shame that such good friends live so far away - we certainly could

do this often.

We started out this day in a light mist, some of that in my head after myday with Buks, but that burned off as we rode away from the sea on aninland trek. Darryl had planned a superb ride into and around the mountainson low lying passes that ran along the rivers and mountain jungles that canbe found not far from the coast.

With names like Phantom Pass andHomtini Pass, they were all hard packedclay and made for a great early morningjaunt.Swinging back down to the Indian

Ocean again, in the town of George, westopped by the local BMW dealer forsome odds and ends and to see some ofthe newer bikes. Great folks at this shopand they helped us out with a few minorglitches that needed attention.Our destination that evening was the

town of Oudtshoorn, high in the karoo, the arid lands above theOuteniekwaberge Mountains.The Outeniqua Pass was as

stunning and beautiful to rideas any I have ever seen and itwas a hard choice to makebetween blasting this thing orjust cruising it and taking inthe stunning mountains,clouds and vista. Shira, Mikeand Darryl went fast. I took inthe scenery this morning.

We took lunch at the Cango Caves, a giant cavern found high in theragged peaks and then a few of us did something that has never crossed mymind.

They went riding ostriches.At the Cango Ostrich Farm,where the birds are raised fortheir meat, feathers and eggs,they also have tours which fin-ish with allowing those under75 kilograms a chance to ridethese big birds.

Years ago, in Australia, Shirahad a run-in with one of thesebirds and has not been a big fansince. Overcoming her fear shevolunteered for the first ride anddid fairly well before beingtossed into the dirt. Mike did finetoo, but Ellen, who barrel-races horses, simply dominated the ostrich.By early evening we rode into Oudtshoorn proper and made ourselves

comfortable in a fine B & B inn. Unlike the past few nights where we tend-ed to get a bit feral, this night was an early one as we had a date with somecrocs first thing in the morning and then we would ride to CapeAgulhas, thesouthernmost point in Africa and the reason I came this way.

This was the day. We’d ride from the Klein Karoo (little desert) to thesouthernmost point on the continent of Africa. No matter how you looked atit, it would be an exciting day.But, before heading to Agulhas we had a date with some crocs at the

Cango Wildlife Ranch, but little did we know others would have an even


Day 14: Kynsna to Oudtshoorn - 250km

Day 15 - Outshorn to Cape AgulhasThe Southernmost Tip of Africa - 400 km


more exciting morning. Shira and I had broughtour bright yellow friend Mr. Happy, but fewknow that Shira’s totem is the sea turtle and shehas a little fella we picked up on a ferry crossingLake Champlain. He is a turtle we call Spitfiire.Spitfire and Mr. Happy are old buddies now

from Monkey With A Gun, and he wanted in onthis trip to Africa, so he was riding with Shiraand Mr. Happy with me.Mr. Happy wanted to hang with us and the

crocs, but when taking a quick tour of the ranchShira went to take a picture of Spitfire with aMarabou Stork, called the Undertaker Bird.These guys are the last of the scavengers, evenpicking at carcasses after the vultures have beenlong gone. Shira set up her shot and, in a blink,the Marabou had snatched the turtle and took offwith Shira’s buddy. He tried a few times to eatSpitfire, but polyester was not to his liking so hesimply started to beat the snot out of the littleguy. The group of families with us started shout-ing and calling for help and finally a managercame to the stuffed turtle’s rescue. Disheveled,disgusting and distraught Spitfire was returnedand Mr. Happy was glad his buddy would returnto the relative safety of MWAG.But, we had come here for something that

some might consider a bit wacky, but what the

hell - cage diving with crocodiles.I tell you they are scary enough to simply look

at, but diving alongside them in their natural ele-ment was phenomenal. Mike, Shira and I werethe only ones game for the dive (bad choice ofwords), while the others played with tiger cubs -also very cool.Mission accomplished we carried on to the

end of the world along South Africa’s famedRoute 62, which ran straight and true before ris-ing into the Rooiberb mountains with some greatriding to be had.We made the obligatory stop at Ronnie’s Sex

Shop, a South African biker bar in the middle ofnowhere, and took lunch.To get down to the coast again we followed a

most stunning mountain pass called theTradouws. I can see why this road is a favoritewith riders from Cape Town.Soon we were on the road dead south, along

sparse grasslands, with cattle and sheep. Herethe winds picked up terribly, and like our trip toUshuaia, another “End of the World”, we wouldget to Cape Agulhas riding along some seriouslystiff breezes.The little town of L’Agulhas was pleasant

enough and we would be overnighting there, butwe rode right through and then down a gravel



road that ended at a path. Not to be shortchanged Darryl, Mike and I let theothers park and walk down, while we rode the path to where the IndianOcean and the Atlantic meet.Cape Agulhas, the southernmost point in Africa. The End of the World

and another, the fourth of the “Big Five,” now bagged and on the resume.Only Capo Nord in Norway remains.Ellen, Dave and I had done Prudhoe Bay in Alaska and Shira had joined

us in Ushuaia, Chile, while Bluff, New Zealand had been visited a few yearsback - but Cape Agulhas was a big one for us and it was a bit emotional aswe all congratulated each other and posed for memories.Now it was time to ride back to town and have a few cold ones and think

about the next few days to Cape Town.

This was to be a relatively easy day, so the previousevening we went over maps with the owner, Derrick, fromthe Tip of Africa Lodge. He and his wife were great andtrue Afrikaners. He told wonderful stories and they evenhad a guitar lying about that just added to the fun.He pointed out some gravel roads that would bring us

through some great scenery and so we detoured that way.The road to the town of Elim was 40 kilometers of superb

4th and 5th gear, up on the pegs riding and the downhill runto the ocean was nothing short of spectacular. This wouldbe our last bit of unpaved riding so we milked it for what itwas worth and sullenly rode back onto the tar road.Elim was as cute as a small African village comes, with

a small historical section and the oldest water wheel in

South Africa, built in 1828. Really charming, one of those places where youcould buy a little hideaway.The coast road around to Hermanus was pleasantly cool this day. For the

past few weeks the ocean that had paced us was the Indian, but today,rounding the tip of Africa we now were riding alongside the Atlantic- Icould almost see the Statue of Liberty some 6,000 miles thataway.From Hermanus, where we lunched on snails and fish pate in a restaurant

built into a sea cave, with waves crashing below us, we continued on thecoast road that rose high along the Overburg Mountains that tightly hug thesea at this part of the continent.The views were stunning, the road well paved and the speeds welcome as

the temperature had begun to creep up a bit. By the time we turned northand inland to Franschoek we were well into the 40s.SAMA once again chose a charming lodge in the center of town and after

showers we went to explore the tiny hamlet that is the center of the SouthAfrican Wine region.We were able to find a few bottles that night.

All good things must come to an end, and suchit was with this phenomenal tour of South Africa.But, before we handed the keys back to SAMAwe had one last jaunt, this time to the Cape ofGood Hope.The first pass that day, leaving Franschoek, was

another rocky stunner, with the occasionalbaboon family charging across the roadway.Dodging apes at speed makes a great sport.Riding down to the coast road we were told that

we would be stopping by to pay respects to thegrave of a Danish Naval Officer named JustNuisance, who was famous of sorts, and we rodeup the mountain road in search of the same. Itturns of Just Nuisance was a Great Dane, a dog,who found his way into the South African Navyand when he passed he was given full MilitaryHonors. Excellent. We looped around through


Day 16: Cape Agulhas to Franschoek - 250 km

Day 17: Franschoek to Cape of Good Hope - 200 km


Simon’s Town, which I found to be full of delightful English flair and theFish & Chips were perfect.

With bikes and bellys full we rode to Cape Point, also called the Cape ofGood Hope. We took the funicular to the top of the point and battled the buspeople for a group shot at the cape.

Riding back around towards Hout Bay, through Table Mountain NationalPark, the road was once again outstanding, with broad mountains runningright along the ocean and the road simply laced around the rocky peaks.Once again baboons kept our attention and I couldn’t help but sadly sighwhen I realized we only had a few more kilometers before we followedDarryl to our final lodge of the tour.

The Dream House was the most spectacular of the places we stayed, nes-tled high in the mountains looking down into the verdant valley, it lived upto its name.

We had one final meal together as a group and the next day, as Jonathonrode one bike home, Darryl stopped by for one more hug and a barrage ofthanks for such an incredible journey he had shown us.

That day we shuttled into Cape Town proper where we’d spend the nextfew days enjoying what this fantastic city had to offer. Table Mountain, TheA & V Waterfront, museums, street shops and one very cool le’naturalbeach we discovered off the beaten path.

As Ben Onono sings in Blink, “In the flash and a blink of an eye, it canall change overnight.”

That is what happens when you wake up from a catnap in the middle ofthe Atlantic Ocean after flying off the African continent from Dakar,Senegal.

I looked out my window and I could see the Southern Cross burning bigand bright, but steadily lowering in the southern horizon. A half hour later Isaw her again and then she was gone as the jet rushed into the northernhemisphere.

Africa was gone - in the blink of an eye.

This part of the world, onceagain, has touched me as a placeof raw beauty, natural wonderand, sadly, the tricky combina-tion of humankind - both goodand bad.

Flourishing or surviving.I like to dwell on the good.South African Motorcycle

Adventures has put together theultimate two-wheeled adven-ture to those brave enough tograb it, with their Best South African Road Trip Ever Tour!

Some of you roll your eyes when you hear of tours in such exotic places,but you must not wear blinders. We never once felt threatened or in danger,well maybe Shira’s puppet with the Marabou Stork, and each day brought adifferent experience, many of which will become life memories.

South Africa is not the battlefield nation it has been made out to be, it isfull of strong, vibrant and helpful people who are just getting into theirstride as a nation.

Add to that, that South Africa is a deal, with the Rand exchanging withthe Dollar some 10 to 1. Throw in that food, drinks and gas are very cheapand it makes perfect sense to visit and tour this nation - it’s far less expen-sive then Europe and Americans are still happily welcome, as most Africansknow how much we have helped their continent.

These tours start at just $2,600 and now South African Airways has beenoffering very good deals on airfare, and occasionally two for one.

If you want a true motorcycling adventure that you will never forget thencheck SAMA out at www.samatours.com.

The words go “When you see the Southern Cross for the first time, you’llunderstand why you came this way.” Maybe it should go, “When you seethe Southern Cross for the last time. You’ll know deep inside why you’llreturn one day.”View our South Africa video: www.youtube.com/user/BACKROADSMAG


Final thoughts on SAMAs Best South African Road Trip Ever Tour!


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