Day 4 – Kaapsehoop to Home
368Km
Today we return home. While out route take in some nice roads through De Kaap valley we will ride through mining towns mostly and the chances of getting something decent to eat is slim. We decide to have breakfast before hitting the road. This will turn out to be a good decision.
We are blessed with perfect riding weather, not cold, just enough chill in the air to make it pleasant. Just outside Kaapsehoop, we drop into De Kaap Valley on the road to Barberton. This gravel road crosses several conservation areas and the Glenthorpe Forest Reserve so this makes the scenery very interesting. One minute you are riding through the bushveld and the next you are in the middle of a forest. About 2km before joining the R38 at Bothas Nek the road becomes overgrown and narrow with granny gear inclines and 90-degree bends.
Once on the R38, we are on familiar roads since we rode this route to Carolina, in reverse, during our Border Patrol 2021 trip. From Carolina all the towns we will be riding through, or past, are all mining towns and this last 170km reminded me again why I should always avoid them at all costs. I figured that since it was a Sunday we should be OK but I could not have been more wrong. Mining towns are dirty, they shit on mother earth and they destroy any infrastructure for miles around them.
The roads connecting these towns are regional roads meant to carry a significant amount of traffic but between Hendrina, Komati, and Ogies they are virtually none existent. Yet they still serve as the main road for large mining trucks. Just when you think you’ve seen the worse road you find this. You find yourself on a piece of tarmac in fair condition and then BAM out of nowhere it just disappears. No signage but if you are lucky there could be a huge mound of dirt where you are supposed to go. This means that the road now goes either left or right into the bush. The sad thing is that this part of the country leaves you with very few options to stay off tarmac (or what is supposed to be) roads.
But eventually, with 50km to go, we find proper gravel through farmland and this helps to wash the bitterness from our mouths. We arrive home after a very nice 4-day trip without any issues. Putin ticked over like a champ (unlike his namesake) and will be ready for the next one after a well-deserved wash and blow.
The only ‘new’ piece of equipment I used on this short trip is the adventure foot pegs I made. It provided much more grip and space compared to the horrible stock rubber pegs.
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