TAKE A RIDE

Tsitsikamma on two wheels

- WORDS PIERRE STEYN

South Africa loves mountain biking, especially on the Garden Route. There are multiple stage races in this part of the world, each of which promises beautiful riding along jeep tracks and single tracks through the forests and along the coast. But these races are pricy – and you have to be fit.

What if you could ride the same routes, often on private land, with your family or friends? We’re talking leisurely pedalling here – no rushing from one water point to the next, chewing energy bars and sucking gels.

That’s the idea behind Bhejane 4x4 Adventures’ new three-day Tour de Tsitsikamma, which covers roughly 150 km from the village of Thornham in the Eastern Cape to Nature’s Valley in the Western Cape. It’s a guided mountain-bike adventure where your luggage is transported between overnight camps, all your meals are prepared and you sleep in a proper bed in a dome tent.

This is a holiday, not exercise!

Our group of cycling friends meets the Bhejane team at Firefly Falls, an eco-friendly lodge in The Crags, east of Plettenberg Bay. While bike chains are lubed and tyre pressures checked, Vermaak Senosi, Bhejane’s bush chef extraordinaire, conjures up the first of a series of tasty dinners. Tonight, it’s lamb chops, boerewors and salad, with a healthy scoop of pap and sauce

The next morning after breakfast, we get the chance to pack a lunchbox of sandwiches and fruit, then riders and bikes are transported to the start point – a farm road south of Thornham, about a half-hour drive away. From here, we’ll ride back the way we came, west in the direction of Storms River.