September 2023

The day the 8-year drought in the Eastern Cape region was broken

We woke up to rain falling over Uitspan Guest Farm. If we wanted to drive through the Baviaanskloof it would take us quite a few hours and we weren’t sure how full the rivers would be.

After careful consideration we decided not to take the chance and instead drove back to Willowmore. This meant that we still had to drive 40km (24 miles) on a dirt road – a very wet and slippery road.

Leaving Uitspan Guest Farm

Potholes have already formed in the road as well as small rivers along the road. It made us realise that we had made the right decision to turn back.

A wet dirt road

The rock formations were still beautiful in the rain

On our arrival at Willowmore, we went to a garage to re-inflate our ‘bakkies’ tyres. Berto took one look at his new bakkie and said he needed a proper breakfast to get over the shock of how it looked.

Evidence of a wet dirt road

Fortunately, Alta, the owner at Uitspan Guest Farm, recommended a lovely place in Willowmore where we could enjoy breakfast.

Kapoet Restaurant:

Kapoet is an absolute gem of a place in Willowmore. We walked in there cold and wet and received the warmest welcome one could only dream of. The fireplace was burning and the owner immediately took us to a table next to the fire. It wasn’t long before we were served hot drinks and big plates of breakfast.

Hot drinks next to the fireplace

Omelet for me and a farm breakfast for Berto

Kapoet is not just a restaurant. It is a farm stall with shelves full of various delicacies. There were rusks, cookies, wine, tea, coffee and many homemade products such as jams, marinades and even soap.

So many goodies on the shelves and even a cake table

Kapoet’s shelves full of yumminess

Homemade soap

We were a little disappointed that we couldn’t drive through the lovely Baviaanskloof. It was then that Eugene suggested we drive the Prince Alfred’s Pass to Knysna where we would then join the N2 (main highway). After finishing our delicious breakfast, we drove to this pass, about 95km (59 miles) from Willowmore – and we hoped that we would stay in front of the cold front (and rain). Spoiler alert: We haven’t!

Prince Alfred’s Pass:

When you read what people say about Prince Alfred’s Pass on the internet, it goes something like this:

“The road is corrugated with pot holes. A high ground clearance 4×4 vehicle is recommended or at minimum a vehicle with high ground clearance. The pass is full of hairpin bends, and for hair raising moments, it narrows to a single lane in places.”

Sounds like fun … but not really when it rains so much! We started the pass in not too bad conditions, but the further we drove, the more it rained and the more challenging the ride became.

Start of Prince Alfred’s Pass

The road began to turn into small streams

The pass was named after Queen Victoria’s second son, Prince Alfred. At 68.5km (42.5 miles), this is the longest (publicly accessible) mountain pass in South Africa, as well as the second oldest unaltered pass. It is considered to be probably Thomas Bain’s greatest work.

Prince Alfred’s Pass

Treacherous road conditions

Many of the parts of this pass have been declared a national monument and on a clear and sunny day it must be amazing to drive through this beautiful scenery.

Stunning scenery with lush vegetation

Is that a river in the road?

We came to some sharp corners and the road wound through rugged and spectacular scenery. Berto carefully drove through this section and said it must be great to walk here (well, just not today).

Beautiful rock formations

When we arrived in the small settlement of De Vlugt, we had to cross the Keurbooms River via a low-level concrete causeway. The river was already flowing over the road and we could only imagine how impassable this road would be in a few hours.

River flowing over the causeway at De Vlugt

It is here that Thomas Bain built a house for his family for the duration of the four years that the pass was built. The house is still intact, but it rained too much for us to go looking for it. What we did see was the sign to Angie’s G Spot, a laid-back country bar. Apparently, this bar is a favourite among the bikers.

Anyone for a … drink?

The rain began to fall harder as the road became steep again. There are some drop offs that are unguarded. The road here is also very narrow, which made the last section of Prince Alfred Pass very difficult to drive in the pouring rain.

We are now inside the storm

Almost at the second highest point of the northern half of the pass

Even the animals sought shelter from the rain

This part of the road is used by heavy vehicles for logging and as a result we drove through one muddy pothole after another. In the rain it was hard to see the potholes and I put the camera away to help Berto look out for all the potholes.

The last part of the pass we drove through an indigenous forest called ‘The Valley of Ferns’. I so wished we could have stopped here to take photos of the amazing trees and ferns, but it was raining really hard now and we just wanted to get to Knysna (and on a tarred road).

Muddy road through ‘The Valley of Ferns’

When we arrived in Knysna, we stopped at a cafe to have something to eat and drink. We were a bit shell shocked and speechless after this ride. And we had to drive another 190km (118 miles) to Jeffreys Bay where our friends’ house is.

There was one place where we still wanted to stop, namely The Big Tree Tsitsikamma. Fortunately, the hard rain changed to a light drizzle when we got there. We grabbed our rain jackets and camera and spent 20 minutes at the sight.

The Big Tree Tsitsikamma:

The Big Tree is in the heart of the forest and an 800-year old Yellowwood. It stands 36+m high, with a trunk circumference of 9m – they say it’s a giant among giants.

Slippery boardwalks lead to The Big Tree

The Big Tree

The Big Tree

The Big Tree

The Big Tree

Budding fern

Boardwalk back to the parking area

I’m glad we made time to stop here because it’s such an amazing sight. The trees we have seen in the Eastern Cape over the last few months are truly spectacular – even on rainy days.

The last 100km on the tarred road was very stressful. Besides raining very hard, the wind was extremely strong. There were fallen trees across the road and we were stopped a few times by traffic officers who were regulating the traffic.

What a way to end our trip to the Baviaanskloof

A few days after we were back home, we heard on the news that the Kouga Dam in the Baviaanskloof area had overflowed for the first time since 2015. They had a heck of a lot of rain, that’s for sure!

Our weekend in the Baviaanskloof can definitely be categorised as adventurous. As for Berto’s new ‘bakkie’ … it has been thoroughly tested!