The Huisrivier Pass

January 12, 2021

Ladismith to Calitzdorp

Today's route would take us on a road that we had traveled many times before by car so we knew that we were in for some big climbs. We didn't have far to go, just fifty kilometers, but we would climb more than a thousand meters. The payback would be some good views along the way.

It was cloudy day to start off with a south-easterly wind, just strong enough to slow us down a bit, blowing into our faces. Despite being a nuisance, the wind did help to keep us cool as the day warmed up.

The first climbs out of Ladismith were short but sharp.

The Swartberg mountains, hidden in the clouds, loomed over us from the north for the whole ride.

Zoar and Amalienstein are two villages just over twenty kilometers east of Ladismith. They were originally one viilage, established as a South African Missionary Society project in 1817, although the project was run by the Berlin Mission Society. The locals proselytized by the missionaries were from the Attequa tribe, the same as those at Suurbraak through which we passed before climbing up the Tradouw Pass a few days ago. Zoar was the name of the city to which Lot escaped from Sodom while Baroness Amalie von Stein was a major benefactor to the project. The story with which I had grown up was that at some point the community had a bit of a disagreement and the one group move a few kilometers away and established Amalienstein. I'm not too sure how much water that story holds. Nowadays they are usually referred to in one breath as "Zoar en Amalienstein".

Looking westwards with Amalienstein in the middle-left with Zoar just behind it to the right.

Seweweekspoort, the turnoff to which lies between Zoar and Amalienstein, is another one of Thomas Bain's engineering masterpieces. It is a pass through the Swartberg to the Great Karoo in the north and is a beautiful road to drive, crossing the Seweweekspoort River 23 times.

Seweweekspoortpiek at 2325 meters is the highest peak in the Swartberge and the Western Cape as a whole. Unfortunately, its hidden in the clouds in this picture.

After that is was a hard climb up to the top of the Huisrivier Pass (House River Pass). The pass is slightly different in that, instead of climbing over a mountain, one drops into a canyon and climbs out the other side.

Part of the climb to the western entrance of the Huisrivier Pass.

This is not an idle warning ! The sign reads "High risk area for 12 Km". Large parts of the pass are protected from falling rocks by walls and nets.

Looking back down the climb to the entrance of the pass.

The twelve kilometer drop down into the pass was magnificent. It was a balancing act of enjoying the downhill or stopping to appreciate the views. The pass was also the only section of today's route that had a shoulder so that was also appreciated.

After crossing the Huis River (twice), the road crosses the Gamka River. This has its source in Gamkaskloof, a small community often referred to as "Die Hell" (the hell). This is a narrow, isolated valley which was populated by Boer farmers in the nineteenth century apparently seeking to live in isolation from the British colonial rule and the resultant pesky tax collector. The original access was via a steep, narrow path known as "Die Leer" (the ladder), only accessible by foot and with donkeys. Today there is a rough, steep and windy road from the top of the Swartberg Pass north of Oudtshoorn that drops down into the valley. This, and the Seweweekspoort Pass mentioned earlier, are two of the most dramatic passes we have enjoyed driving with our Landrover in the Little Karoo.

Looking northwards towards where Gamkaskloof hides in the mountains.

The climb out of the Huisrivier Pass was really hard work but we were rewarded with a lovely downhill for the last few kilometers. We headed for the local supermarket to stock up on groceries and then headed out to our digs for the night at "365 on St Helena", on a dirt road a kilometer or so of town.

It seems that our hosts were expecting us.

We have a lovely farm cottage where we can put our feet up to relax and recuperate. We're a bit tired after the hills and the wind but tomorrow's ride to Oudtshoorn should be a bit easier than today's.

Today's ride: 51 km (32 miles)
Total: 1,826 km (1,134 miles)

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