Bicycle Tour: Day 8 - Swartberg and Die Hel
And so starts the second half of our journey on the Freedom Trail. Today’s ride will take us through the Swartberg Pass and down into Die Hel. From knowledge and word of mouth, it’s a hellish trip especially if you are doing it in the reverse of what we are doing. Today was to be a challenging day with nothing anyone said being as they say. The Swartberg Pass has its own beauty with vast open spaces and very steep long climbs. After reaching Teeberg we split off to the right and followed the valley through some long climbs and downhills. After quite some climbing we came to the top and had a strong and steep downhill, just the kind of downhill to test your breaks abilities as you wind down the switch-backs. At the bottom you get to pass through a part of the Gamkaskloof which is absolutely breath-taking. We stayed in Die Meestershuis, a historic dwelling in which the teachers would reside during their stay as the local valley teacher. The narrative says to wait for an SMS concerning your accommodation in Gamkaskloof. DO NOT wait for this, call them and ensure you have it before moving otherwise I fear you won’t get it. Previously the organisers of the Freedom Trail / Challenge had an arrangement with the only local restaurant to provide meals. This is no longer the case so ensure you find out about your meals and lunch pack. Despite all the highs and lows, this is a spectacular day.
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Ascent Today
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Traveled Today
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Ascent: 1544m
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Time Traveled: 6hrs36min
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Overall Trail
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Legend:
Yellow is today’s route Black is the overall route |
| Distance Traveled: 61.9km |
