Jimny 20 Passes Challenge: Road Trip 2

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The Jimny 20 Passes Challenge started on the 22nd of March 2024. After completing our first trip, which included the Franschhoek Pass, Burger's Pass, Gydo's Pass, and Mitchell's Pass, we decided to focus our second trip on the Klein Karoo area. We planned to drive through The 7 Passes Road, Prince Alfred's Pass, Rooiberg Pass, Huisrivier Pass and Swartberg Pass. SEE MAP HERE

Road Trip 2 - Day 1

DEPARTURE

On the 27th of April 2024, we left around 8:00 in the morning from Cape Town and made our way directly on the N2. Because we were excited like at every beginning of a road trip, our first stop was already at the Peregrine Farm Stall in Grabouw where, of course, we had one of their famous pies! We made a point that we should not forget to mention in this article that Pies are actually the worst road trip food you can get if you are planning to eat while driving!

We had quite a drive ahead of us so we tried to stop as little as possible but of course, we still stopped at a few other padstals along the way.

Road Trip 2 - Day 1

THE 7 PASSES ROAD

We arrived in George and stopped to receive our Goodie Bags at Suzuki George.

We then made our way to the Homtini Pass on the 7 Passes Road. It's actually 7 different passes that have been joined together, so we therefore drove between small villages, agricultural lands, and beautiful valleys.

We stopped at a fun place called African Bush Café on the way where we had a little snack. They have such interesting decor, everything is upcycled, instruments for anyone to play, and a cute African craft shop.

After our stop, we drove through quite a few forests which were very magical. Just before arriving at our accommodation, we spotted a caracal on the side of the road.

We stayed at a vegan lodge called Peace of Eden in Rheenendal. The place is absolutely stunning; we booked the forest tent. The tent was very well-equipped, super magical with all the fairy lights, and super comfortable. We made our way to the communal kitchen, which is a wooden cabin in the forest, cooked up some charred leeks with vinaigrette, as well as crispy polenta and marinated aubergine. After dinner, we went on a little scorpion hunt with our scorpion light and actually found quite a few dead scorpions under our tent!

Road Trip 2 - Day 2

PRINCE ALFRED'S PASS

We woke up super rested after sleeping in our cute tent at Peace of Eden and from there, we continued our route towards Prince Alfred's Pass. The beginning of the pass is very much in the forests, the gravel road was in decent condition except for some parts that were a bit more slippery (there was quite a bit of rain before the weekend). At one point, we ended up on beautiful twisted roads going up and down the mountains, the views were absolutely incredible, the vegetation was changing constantly, and we were completely mesmerised by the beauty of this pass.

There is one place you have to stop by on this pass called Angie's G-spot. One can just relax between the mountains by the river, the air is pure, and the vibe is fun and relaxed. We had some nice chats with Harold who told us about his motorbike adventures in South Africa and then decided to hit the road because we still had quite a drive. We then kept driving, enjoying the views, only to realize when we arrived in Uniondale that we forgot to take our challenge picture. So, we drove back up to the closest significant sign we could find of the pass. Only one of us is blond...

Road Trip 1 - Day 2

ROOIBERG PASS

After sorting out our pictures for Prince Alfred's Pass, we joined the R341 and drove all the way to Oudtshoorn via De Rust, where we stopped to stretch our legs a little and made our way to the Rooiberg Pass. There was thunder and rain on the way, and not really knowing what the road conditions would be like, we started considering other options. However, as we arrived closer to the pass, the weather cleared up and we embarked on that beautiful road.

We could smell the fynbos so intensely, the drive was so relaxed and beautiful. While driving this pass, one would definitely understand where it gets its name from. We also drove through stunning aloe forests and finished our drive around sunset.

Road Trip 2 - Day 2

HUISRIVIER PASS

Because we once again took our time on the Rooiberg Pass, we drove through Van Wyksdorp as night fell, and our accommodation was in Calitzdorp. We tried to drive a bit faster from there to avoid arriving too late at our cottage, and we also had to consider that we still needed to get some meat and petrol. We stopped in Ladismith at the petrol station, and luckily, the shop was well-stocked, and we got what we needed!

We then made our way to the Huisrivier Pass at night, surrounded by beautiful lightning behind the Swartberg Mountains. It was mesmerizing.

Finally, we arrived at our cottage at Die Bosvarkie, which was very cute. We were warmly welcomed by the owners, unpacked, and started our meal of the night. We tried our hand at making a black and blue steak (grilled straight on the coals), and it was a semi-success, not so blue inside but delicious anyway. After dinner, we went on a little frog hunt and spotted so many!

Road Trip 2 - Day 3

GROENFONTEIN

The next morning, we made our way early to the Swartberg Pass. From the R62, we turned left in the direction of Kruisrivier. We started driving along that beautiful road, passing some cute cottages and beautiful private reserves. We were so captivated by the views, the wildlife, the smells, and the perfect temperature of the moment that we forgot to turn in the direction of Swartberg. We ended up continuing on a small path and went through an incredible aloe forest, crossing some small river beds until we saw the Gallery of Peter Coe where we decided to stop. He invited us in, offered us coffee together with salticrax and apricot jam. We had a nice conversation and even bought his book. Very soon after leaving his property, we came across a beautiful place by the lake called Fish Eagle Eco Resort where one can rent a caravan or small cottages. The owner creates all sorts of South African plants with steel; they looked so real and pretty. After strolling around, we said goodbye to the owner and asked him how long it would take to reach the pass because we started feeling that we might not have been heading in the right direction. He directed us back the way we came from. Okay, fine. We then had a good laugh when we realized that the loop was actually taking us back to Calitzdorp, and at that point, we were only 15 minutes away from the starting point... 1 hour and 30 minutes later! We turned around and had no problem seeing the dam, the aloe forest, and the stunning scenery of that path again.

Road Trip 2 - Day 3

SWARTBERG PASS

When we finally got to the proper direction again we realised that it actually made more sense, we drove past the Swartberg Game Reserve (where they do Giraffe walks by the way), The Swartberg Country Manor and turned left on the R328 and and then… A PADSTAL! Yes, through our blog you should know by now.. We love padstals. We stopped at Kobus se Gat to get some snacks and stroll around the shop. They have huge dining room with a giant braai and great views, sounds like a vibe, they also rent out electric bikes to go on the pass. 

And finally, we were on the pass.. 

Because of the rain in the past few days, the road was not in the greatest conditions but it made it fun and Jimny loved it, we took a slow drive up the steep path and made it to 'die top' which offers a stunning view. We then went down a little and stopped by a ruin to have a lovely picnic on the rooftop of the jimny.. with a view.

The way down was full of proteas, the rock formations are just spectacular and we crossed a few river beds witch made it super fun!

Road Trip 2 - Day 3

THE WAY BACK HOME

After the Swartberg Pass, we made our way in the direction of Prince Albert where we got petrol and then took the beautiful R407 to join the N1. We stopped in Laingsburg for some delicious biltong and then stopped at the Karoo 1 village for a drink and a quick jump on their trampoline (great way to stretch legs when driving a lot). After that we made it back home.

Road Trip 2

CONCLUSION

We were lucky to have 2 nights away for once, and it made it possible for us to actually stop more on the way and chat with some interesting people and also time for us to get to our classic and fantastic sense of Distraction/Orientation or maybe Distrientation. Yes.. We got distriented a few times. But all those moments happen always for the best!

It is very hard to choose a favourite pass out of those, they were all beautiful in their own way. We loved the variety of landscapes and vegetation on Prince Alfred's Pass, loved the unique colours and smells on Rooiberg and loved the grandeur and magnificant mountains of the Swartberg Pass. Unfortunately we did Huisrivier un the dark but the lightnings while driving there made it so special for us.

Want to read about all of our Jimny 20 Passes Challenge road trips?

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