Author: MtbApp

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    Orange River 20km Gorge Ride

    ByMtbApp

    Augrabies Falls is one of the most underrated national parks in South Africa — a 56-metre main falls dropping into an 18km gorge carved by the Orange River through ancient Precambrian granite, surrounded by quiver trees, Kalahari scrub and game that includes klipspringer, gemsbok, ground squirrel and baboon. The main falls is the sixth-largest waterfall on earth by volume during peak flood events. Despite this, Augrabies receives a fraction of the visitors that the better-known Kruger and Cape parks attract.

    The 20km Gorge Loop

    The park’s gravel road and jeep track network provides approximately 20km of cycling from the main gate to the various gorge viewpoints — Moon Rock, Ararat, Oranjekom — that reveal the full scale of the Orange River gorge from above. The standard visitor road (sealed and gravel mixed) covers most viewpoints and is suitable for any fit cyclist. The 480km of gorge accessible from the park provides a dramatic backdrop that increases in drama as you move further from the main falls.

    Khamkirri River Camp

    Khamkirri River Camp (23km northwest of the park gate) provides the most mountain-bike-focused experience: 7km of riverside loop, MTB hire, guided rides to the park and a stunning riverside setting with the Orange River flowing through the camp. The 100km guided return route to Riemvasmaak and back can be added for an epic multi-day adventure.

    Getting There

    Augrabies Falls NP is 25km from Kakamas on the N14. GPS: -28.5922, 20.3386. Tel: +27 54 452 9200. From Upington: N14 west 120km to Kakamas then park turn-off.

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    |Ai-|Ais Richtersveld Transfrontier Gravel Loop

    ByMtbApp

    The |Ai-|Ais Richtersveld Transfrontier Park is the most extreme cycling environment in South Africa — a UNESCO World Heritage Site desert mountain wilderness where the Orange River has carved a series of epic gorges through a landscape of ancient Namaqua metamorphic rock, and where the flora represents a botanical spectacle found nowhere else on earth. The Richtersveld’s half-mens (Pachypodium namaquanum — a succulent tree that faces north like a person searching the horizon), quiver tree forests, kokerboom colonies and endemic succulent species make it simultaneously one of the harshest and most botanically rich environments in Africa.

    Cycling in the Richtersveld

    All cycling in the Richtersveld is on 4×4 tracks and gravel roads — there are no purpose-built MTB trails. The terrain requires technical competence and, above all, total self-sufficiency: the park has no fuel, no mobile signal in most areas and no services between the rest camps. The SANParks rest camps (Sendelingsdrift, Die Koei, Potjiespram, Tatasberg) provide self-catering accommodation and water — route all night stops at rest camps and plan water carefully. The 50km interior loop from Sendelingsdrift accesses the Hellskloof and Tatasberg areas through the park’s most dramatic geology.

    The |Ai-|Ais Connection

    The Sendelingsdrift pontoon ferry crosses the Orange River to the Namibian side of the park — the |Ai-|Ais Hot Springs Resort, where natural hot springs in the Fish River canyon system provide an extraordinary recovery experience after a day of Richtersveld riding. The full transfrontier loop combining South African and Namibian riding is a multi-day expedition for experienced bikepacking riders only.

    Getting There

    Sendelingsdrift Gate is accessed via Alexander Bay (80km north) on the R382. GPS: -28.3000, 17.1667. Tel: +27 27 831 1506. The approach road requires a 4×4 vehicle. Book accommodation months ahead for peak season (August-September).

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    Steinkopf Rocky Descent

    ByMtbApp

    Steinkopf (Stone Head, named for a prominent granite dome visible from the town) is a Nama Khoi community town 50km north of Springbok on the R382 — a quiet Namaqualand settlement that serves primarily as the gateway to the Spektakel Pass and Port Nolloth coast to the west. The immediate surroundings are dramatic: granite koppie terrain on all sides, with the characteristic Namaqualand combination of rocky slopes, quiver trees and Namaqua succulent shrubland covering every surface that is not bare granite.

    Rocky Koppie MTB

    The informal 30km koppie loop around Steinkopf is built on the loose granite rocky terrain that defines the town’s surroundings — jeep tracks and community paths thread through the boulders and koppie flanks, providing technical riding of genuine difficulty on the descents. The rocky descent sections on the steeper koppie faces are among the most challenging informal MTB terrain in Namaqualand. Views from the upper koppie sections extend across the Namaqualand valleys and, on clear days, to the distant glint of the Atlantic at Port Nolloth 90km west.

    Spektakel Pass

    The R382 west from Steinkopf is the access road to the Spektakel Pass — the mountain descent that connects the Namaqualand copper plateau to the Atlantic coast. The sealed road drops from approximately 800m at Steinkopf to sea level at Port Nolloth over 30km of dramatic pass road — for cyclists riding the Namaqualand coast-to-mountains bikepacking loop, this is the signature descent. The climb in reverse is equally demanding for fit riders wanting the full mountain-pass experience.

    Getting There

    Steinkopf is on the R382, 50km north of Springbok. GPS: -29.2667, 17.7500. From Springbok: R382 north (50km). From Port Nolloth: R382 east, Spektakel Pass climb (90km).

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    Kakamas Vineyard Ride

    ByMtbApp

    Kakamas is the last town before the Augrabies Falls National Park on the N14 — a small Green Kalahari service town built on the Orange River irrigation scheme that transformed this desert stretch of the river into productive vineyard and date palm agricultural land in the late 1800s. The irrigation channels that radiate from the Orange River create a network of quiet farm roads that are ideal for flat, accessible gravel riding through some of the most unusual agricultural landscapes in South Africa.

    The Ride

    The 25km Kakamas loop follows irrigation channel roads through vineyards, date groves and orchards along the riverbank — flat, low-traffic riding in a landscape that oscillates between lush cultivated green and the ochre-red Kalahari desert. The Griqua cultural history of the area adds a layer of historical significance — Kakamas was established in 1898 as a labour settlement for destitute Griqua people under the Dutch Reformed Church, and many of the original settlement buildings remain. A northern extension toward the Griqua heritage landscape provides longer gravel riding on desert farm roads for riders wanting more distance.

    Getting There

    Kakamas is on the N14, 20km east of Augrabies Falls and 90km west of Upington. GPS: -28.7739, 20.6281. Kakamas Tourism: +27 54 431 0838.

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    Keimoes Riverbank Trail

    ByMtbApp

    Keimoes is one of the Northern Cape’s most unexpectedly beautiful destinations — a small Orange River town where the river fragments into dozens of channels around tree-covered islands, creating a labyrinth of date palm plantations, riverine forest and quiet water that bears no resemblance to the surrounding Kalahari desert. The 20km island and riverbank loop winds through this extraordinary landscape on flat gravel and earth paths, crossing the river channels via small causeways and bridges, past date groves and the famous island chapel of the Keimoes Mission.

    What to Expect

    This is gentle, accessible cycling — no technical skill required, almost no elevation gain. The terrain is flat throughout and the paths are well-defined. What makes Keimoes remarkable is purely the setting: riding slowly through the date palm groves with the river channels shimmering between the trees, and the knowledge that 5km in any direction beyond the river, the Kalahari reasserts itself completely. The Orange River Cellars cooperative cellar near town offers wine tasting — the Kalahari wine produced in this extreme heat and alkaline desert soil has a distinct character worth experiencing.

    Getting There

    Keimoes is on the N14 between Upington (50km east) and Augrabies Falls (70km west). GPS: -28.6847, 20.9731. Keimoes Tourism: +27 54 461 1030.

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    Upington Kalahari Gateway Gravel Ride

    ByMtbApp

    Upington is the urban hub of the Green Kalahari — a prosperous river town of 100,000 people built entirely on the improbable fertility of the Orange River in the Northern Cape desert. The N14 between Upington and Augrabies follows the river through the most productive date palm and grape region in South Africa, and the 50km gravel and tar road ride from Upington to Keimoes is a revelation: flat, scenic, and lined with river islands (the Orange River here divides around dozens of tree-covered sand islands), date palm plantations, vineyards and the constant presence of the river itself.

    Keimoes

    Keimoes is the midpoint destination — a small town famous for its date palm plantations, the island chapel of the Keimoes Mission (accessible by a small footbridge to a river island in the Orange), and the extraordinary contrast between the lush riverine vegetation and the bare Kalahari dunes visible on the horizon. The Orange River Cellars near Keimoes is one of the largest wine cooperatives in the world and an interesting mid-ride stop.

    Spitskop Nature Reserve

    The Spitskop Nature Reserve just outside Upington provides a different kind of riding — a 12km circuit through a small game reserve around the dramatic granite koppie that gives it its name, with gemsbok, kudu and springbok visible from the gravel reserve roads. Good birdwatching throughout. An ideal warm-up or cool-down ride before or after the longer river journey.

    Getting There

    Upington is accessible by domestic flight (from Johannesburg, 1h20) or by N14 from Cape Town (860km) or N12/N14 from Johannesburg (800km). GPS: -28.4478, 21.2561. Upington Tourism: +27 54 332 6064.

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    Upington 15km Orange River Loop

    ByMtbApp

    Upington sits on the banks of the Orange River in the Green Kalahari — the stretch of riverine land along the Orange that is improbably lush against the surrounding desert, supporting vineyards, date palms, fig trees and a riverside culture entirely at odds with the extreme Kalahari landscape just kilometres away. The 15km Orange River Loop is an accessible, flat introduction to the area — a gentle riverside ride through Upington’s leafy waterfront, past the famous Kalahari-Oranje Wine Cooperative and the sprawling Orange River Cellars, before returning to town along the opposite bank.

    What to Expect

    This is easy, family-friendly riding on riverside paths and low-traffic roads — no technical skill required, minimal elevation change, plenty of shade from the riverside trees. The Orange River riparian belt is extraordinarily rich in birdlife, and the contrast between the lush green riverbanks and the red Kalahari sand beyond them creates a visual distinctiveness that is uniquely Northern Cape.

    The Kalahari-Oranje Wine Estate produces some of South Africa’s most unique wines — the extreme heat and alkaline desert soils produce wines with a character found nowhere else. A post-ride tasting is an essential part of the Upington cycling experience. Le Must Restaurant on the riverbank is consistently rated as one of the finest dining experiences in the Northern Cape.

    Getting There

    Upington is 120km east of Augrabies Falls on the N14, and the base city for all Green Kalahari cycling. GPS for waterfront start: -28.4478, 21.2561. Upington Tourism: +27 54 332 6064.

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    Kimberley Diamond Fields Gravel Loop

    ByMtbApp

    The Diamond Fields Gravel Loop extends the Kimberley riding experience from the city’s heritage streets into the broader Karoo landscape that surrounds it — flat, accessible gravel road cycling through terrain that carries an extraordinary density of historical significance for a landscape that appears, on the surface, to be simply empty plains.

    The Route

    The 60km loop heads south and west from Kimberley on low-traffic gravel farm roads, passing the Magersfontein Battlefield — where on the night of 10-11 December 1899, General Methuen’s British column marching to relieve the Siege of Kimberley was ambushed by Koos de la Rey’s Boer commandos in one of the costliest British defeats of the Anglo-Boer War. The battlefield is a sobering and atmospheric stop on a gravel ride through this landscape. From Magersfontein, the loop continues toward the Modder River and back north, passing the remarkable Kamfers Dam on the return — a shallow pan just north of Kimberley that is home to one of the largest inland flamingo breeding colonies in Africa, with tens of thousands of lesser and greater flamingoes resident throughout the year.

    Getting There

    Start from Kimberley CBD — GPS: -28.7281, 24.7499. Download a Wikiloc or Komoot GPX track for the route before departing. Kimberley Tourism: +27 53 830 4117.