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Maak jou litte los vir ’n propvol program by Mustangs

Groot opwinding wag hierdie maand by Mustangs: The Dancing Place.

Gedurende Desember kan Laevelders uitsien na die volgende:

Op 18 Desember tree Bernice West en Danny Smoke op, en op 19 Desember Leah en Snotkop. Daar sal tydens die musiekfees kosstalletjies wees om van te kies en te keur. Kaartjies vir die optredes kos R180.

Die hekke maak om 17:00 oop en die vertonings begin om 19:00. En ten laaste, die Oujaarsaand-partytjie met ‘n Hawaiise tema. Daar is pryse vir die beste geklede persoon.

Toegang is R50 per persoon en hierdie is jou enigste geleentheid om plakkies by dié venue te kan dra.

Maak seker jy loop dit nie mis nie. Sien jou daar!

Try out this scenic route next time

Motorcycling is definitely not a boring pastime, but it does get a little challenging to come up with short routes for a morning trip such as a breakfast run. While groups such as clubs have people looking after those arrangements, many motorcyclists – and their pillions – may prefer to either ride on their own, or with just a few friends and not a big group.

Speaking from experience, Lowvelders tend to get used to the incredible scenery of their surrounds and I hope that I may give a slightly fresher view of a very nice circle route from Nelspruit that could take care of a lazy day.

It is no secret that there are quite a number of routes to choose from in the greater Lowveld area: the R40 to Hazyview; the R37 towards Long Tom Pass and Sabie; the “22” on the R536 from Sabie to Hazyview; or the 99km loop from Sabie to Hazyview, Graskop and back to Sabie.

Most bikers know these routes, but very few of the out-of-towners know the route I want to suggest. It is a loop from Nelspruit to Barberton via Boulders Pass, to the Josefsdal border post and back to Nelspruit.

From Nelspruit you take the R104 eastwards towards Malelane. The R104 joins the N4 and 10km from there, you turn left towards Mara. A short way in you will get to the entrance to the Krokodilpoort Nature Reserve. Yes, the route goes through a nature reserve. As a matter of fact, the Boulders Pass runs through the reserve.

Because it is a reserve, the speed limit is 60km/h. But to be perfectly honest, you don’t have to go fast to enjoy the route. It meanders over the mountain and after 23km reaches the R38, the road to Barberton.

The next about 50km takes you through the Crocodile River Gorge and Lows Creek. The route again does not encourage high speed, but the scenery certainly makes up for that.

Where the R38 reaches Barberton, it crosses the R40. If you turn left onto the R40, you will head towards the eSwatini border. On the South African side, it is the Josefsdal border post – Bulembu on the eSwatini side.

The route runs up the Makhonjwa Mountains, possibly the oldest mountain range in the world, to the escarpment of the De Kaap Valley and through the Barberton Nature Reserve and the Songimvelo Game Reserve. There are a number of viewing points on the pass that offer truly spectacular views.

One of the viewing points is of tidal sandstone – formed from beach sand that experienced vast pressure and heat in prehistoric times.

The road to Josefsdal used to be a dirt road – as the road from Bulembu to Piggs Peak in eSwatini still is. But it has since been tarred, opening up viewing possibilities to tourists in cars – and on road bikes.

After turning back from Josefsdal, I propose a lunch stop after the 50km ride to Barberton. There are museums to visit and a number of pleasant eateries in the immediate vicinity. You might even consider an ice-cold malt beverage – although we want to urge you to consider safety first!
Barberton lies in the De Kaap Valley. This is the largest enclosed valley on earth – a prehistoric volcano crater, actually.
The 45km ride back to Nelspruit crosses the Queen River – on a bridge built in 1939! The route follows another mountain pass with spectacular views right up to Hilltop. Spare a thought for the regular users of this road thirty or so years ago. It was much more treacherous and twisty and a ride undertaken with great care after sunset…

Keen for a lovely day out and about in Mpumalanga?

Swadini boat trip

Swadini, a Forever Resort located in Hoedspruit, is situated in the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve on the banks of the Blyde River. The 26km-long Blyde River Canyon is the third-largest canyon on Earth, behind the Grand Canyon and the Fish River Canyon. It is the largest green canyon in the world.

The Canyon passes a rock formation known as the “Three Rondavels” and is part of the Panorama Route that starts in Graskop and includes God’s Window, the Pinnacle and Bourke’s Luck Potholes.

Visitors can enjoy exclusive boat trips on the Blyde Dam, which is 6km away from Swadini, and will be able to spot hippo and crocodile and visit the tufa waterfall, which is formed when water runs over dolomite rock absorbs calcium, and deposits rock formations more rapidly than they erode the surrounding rock.

Graskop gorge lift

Situated just outside of Graskop on the R533 towards Hazyview (on the opposite side of the gorge to the Big Swing), it promises a wonderful outing for the whole family. The main attraction is the viewing lift that takes visitors 51 metres down the face of the gorge and into the forest below, where a wooden walkway, rising, falling, and crossing suspension bridges, will take visitors along a 500-metre interpretation trail through the indigenous forest. Privately developed by three locals with a passion for conscientiously sharing the beauty of the Panorama Route, the gorge development includes a restaurant and bar with spectacular views, shops and curios.