South Africa’s most unusual MTB destination — white sand dunes up to 60m high rising from a sea of blood-red Kalahari sand, famous for the Roaring Sands phenomenon. 30-40km of gravel and dune tracks through Kalahari acacia woodland and the remarkable white dune landscape, with bicycle hire at reception.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
South Africa’s diamond capital — Kimberley offers a 25km heritage cycling circuit through the Big Hole, Victorian diamond-rush architecture, the McGregor Museum and Cecil John Rhodes-era landmarks. The flattest riding in the Northern Cape, within the city that changed the course of South African history.
200km+ of park roads and 4×4 tracks through the Succulent Karoo biodiversity hotspot — the Namaqua National Park hosts the most spectacular wildflower display in the Southern Hemisphere during August-September, with over 1,000 endemic plant species. No formal MTB trails but all public roads are rideable — from the Skilpad flower loop to the epic 188km Caracal Eco-Route.
Nieuwoudtville is called the bulb capital of the world with justification — the Hantam National Botanical Garden, a 6,000-hectare protected area just outside town, contains the largest concentration of endemic geophyte bulb plants anywhere on earth: an estimated 300+ species of endemic bulbs including Lachenalia, Babiana, Sparaxis, Moraea and the extraordinary Bulbinella that turns the Bokkeveld plateau orange in August. For cyclists who time their visit to August-September, the combination of wildflower display and plateau gravel riding is one of the Northern Cape’s most rewarding multi-day experiences.
The 25km Waterfall Loop follows gravel farm roads from the Nieuwoudtville Hotel through plateau farmland and wildflower terrain to the Nieuwoudtville Falls — a seasonal cascade that runs from the escarpment edge after the winter rains, best viewed from July through September. The Bokkeveld plateau provides open, gently undulating terrain with the escarpment drop providing dramatic views toward the Olifants River valley far below. The Hantam National Botanical Garden can be explored informally on the bike — ride slowly through the garden management roads when the bulbs are in season for a cycling experience that exists nowhere else in the world.
Nieuwoudtville is on the R363, 390km from Cape Town via the N7 north and R363 east. GPS: -31.3731, 19.1166. Tourism: +27 27 218 1336.
Kuruman is the main service town of the John Taolo Gaetsewe District of the Northern Cape — the deep Kalahari, where red dunes, camel thorn acacia trees and the extraordinary Eye of Kuruman define the landscape. The Eye is one of South Africa’s most remarkable natural features: a natural limestone spring that pumps an average of 20 million litres of crystal-clear water per day from a vast underground aquifer, maintaining a constant flow even in the driest droughts. The spring has supported human settlement for thousands of years — the San people considered it sacred, and David Livingstone used it as a base for his early missionary work.
The 30km Kalahari Loop from the Eye heads north on gravel farm roads into classic Kalahari savanna terrain — red sand, camel thorn, shepherd’s tree and grey camelthorn forming the iconic landscape of the southern Kalahari. The terrain is flat to gently undulating with occasional soft sand sections that test traction. Kalahari wildlife — gemsbok, red hartebeest, springbok, bat-eared foxes — is visible from the farm roads throughout. The riding is peaceful and unhurried, on roads that carry minimal traffic.
45km south of Kuruman lies Wonderwerk Cave (see separate listing) — a UNESCO World Heritage Site with evidence of the world’s earliest controlled use of fire. The two sites make a natural pairing for a Kalahari cultural and cycling weekend, with Kuruman as the base.
Kuruman is on the N14 east of Upington (230km). GPS for Eye of Kuruman: -27.4530, 23.4333. Kuruman Tourism: +27 53 712 3200.
The Kalahari Red Dune Route is the Northern Cape at its most raw and remote — riding through the classic landscape of the southern Kalahari, where red sand dunes covered with camel thorn acacia march north toward Botswana in long parallel ridges, separated by compacted inter-dune corridors of calcrete gravel that provide riding surfaces alternating between firm hard-pack and loose, wheel-grabbing red sand.
This is not groomed trail riding — the dune tracks are informal, the distances between water points are significant (carry minimum 4 litres per hour of riding), and the terrain requires a capable mountain bike with 2.2 inch or wider tyres for the sand sections. A fat bike is the ideal tool in the dune terrain. The rewards are extraordinary: the deep red of the dunes against a cobalt Kalahari sky, gemsbok running alongside the tracks, meerkat colonies watching from burrow mounds, and the complete absence of other humans that characterises the deep Kalahari between the small villages.
Critical note: The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park itself — the adjacent cross-border national park — is NOT accessible by bicycle. Free-roaming lions, leopards and cheetahs make cycling inside the park boundary extremely dangerous, and SANParks does not permit it. The dune routes described here are on public roads and private farm land outside the park boundary — confirm the boundary before riding any route in this area.
Andriesvale and Askham are reached from Upington via Groblershoop and the R360 north (approximately 280-300km on gravel road). GPS for Andriesvale: -26.5667, 20.7833. High clearance vehicle essential — road conditions vary significantly after rain. Fuel at Andriesvale or Askham before riding.
Wonderwerk Cave is one of the most important archaeological sites in human history — a 140-metre-deep cave in the Northern Cape’s Kuruman Hills that contains the world’s oldest undisputed evidence of controlled fire use, dating to approximately 1 million years ago. Along with stone tools, burned animal bones and plant material spanning the entire record of human technological development, the cave contains 2 million years of continuous occupation deposits — making it one of the longest records of hominid presence in a single site anywhere on earth. It was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023.
The Wonderwerk Cave Nature Reserve’s gravel tracks provide a gentle but historically resonant cycling experience — riding through the Northern Cape thornveld landscape on limestone ridge terrain to a destination that contextualises the entire human story. The broader Kuruman limestone hills countryside offers additional gravel farm road riding through similar terrain for riders who want more distance after the cave visit.
The cave interior itself is cool year-round (a welcome respite from Northern Cape heat) and guided tours — led by archaeologically trained guides — bring the extraordinary depth of human occupation to life in ways that a simple walkthrough cannot. Book tours in advance through Kuruman Tourism.
Wonderwerk Cave is on the R31, 45km south of Kuruman. GPS: -27.8500, 23.5333. Kuruman Tourism: +27 53 712 3200.
A farm MTB trail in the dramatic foothills of the iconic Bainskloof Pass above Wellington — jeep tracks and farm roads through fynbos with mountain views, combined with Welvanpas farm accommodation for a classic Western Cape MTB weekend getaway.