Closest Town: Grabouw
Grading: Easy
Duration: Up to an hour
Location (Area/Province): Overberg & Southern Cape and Western Cape
Configuration: Circular
Start Point: The route starts at the parking area near the reserve office
Access: Fee payable at Hottentots Holland Reserve (+27 (0)28 841 4301/02)
Beware of: No fires, no picking of flowers. Hikers.
Facilities: There is a car park, toilets and changing facilities. The small interpretation centre will help to orientate the first-time visitor.
Cell Reception: Intermittent
The Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve lies in the Hottentots Holland mountains, some 90km southeast of Cape Town. The 70 000ha reserve stretches from Elgin in the south to beyond Villiersdorp in the north, and from the Stellenbosch mountains in the west, eastwards to the Groenland mountains. The entrance to the reserve is at Nuweberg, high in Viljoen’s Pass between Grabouw and Villiersdorp.
On your bike
This easy route is ideal for the whole family. It starts and ends at the parking area near the reserve office, traversing sections of plantation and fynbos areas along the way. The road surface is generally good although it might be sandy in places and with a river crossing or two thrown in as part of the adventure. The trail affords picturesque views of the farmlands surrounding the towns of Villiersdorp and Vyeboom.
Off the bike
The mountain fynbos, gorges, rivers and rock pools of The Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve provide endless opportunities for exploring on foot or by 4×4. There’s a 20 km long 4×4 route that ends at the reserve’s main entrance at Nuweberg, base camp for hikers, kloofers and, of course, bikers. Adventure-seekers can combine hiking with kloofing, a simple but effective method of navigating riverine terrain by jumping or sliding into icy mountain pools. The kloofing routes are open after the winter rains from October to April. Permits are needed for both kloofing and hiking and there’s even a short 6 km hiking trail for the visually impaired.
GPS: S34°02.72′, E19°01.99′
Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve on Trailforks.com
