The Garden Route is famous for mountain bike trails and gravel riding.

| Words and images by Jacques Marais & MTBroutes |

This article gives you and overview of the trail network starting at the Saasveld Campus, in George. Our route centres around the ‘Garden Route Dam’ and encompass a number of segments built by the ‘Hillbillies MTB Club’, connecting the Groeneweide, Saasveld and ‘Pepsi Pools’ networks.

Let’s kick it off by explaining how to get there. Head from the city centre towards said mountains, either along Madiba Drive (Saasveld Rd) or one of the streets connecting via the Eden suburb to the new Garden Route Dam (many locals still call it George Dam, even though that dam is right up in the mountains).

Meyer or Stander Street will get you onto the gravel road to the dam, where you will need to sign in at the boom during office hours. About half a kay of dirt cranking will get you to the dam parking lot, but you just keep going across the dam wall. You’ll see a sign depicting a moose up in the plantation ahead; this is good news, as you are in for a ‘Moose-A-Nice’ ride on the edge of the Garden Route Dam. This is a little bit like Forest Gump’s ‘box of chocolates, with half a dozen permutations awaiting you along the route network.

Keep it flat and fast along ‘Dam View’ jeep track, then power into a quick ascent up ‘Dam Drop’ and onto the meandering ‘Ridge Trail’ section. You will see signs to ‘Die Hark’ and ‘Bosvarkland’, popping you into the ‘Valley’. Keep in mind that there is no set route, so you can mix and match to suit your fitness and your mood on the day. Life is not always downhill, though, so gear down and get ready to hit ‘Damn Climb’ all the way back up and over to the ‘Dam View’ jeep track again. From here, you could head back to the start to bomb the ‘Graveyard’ and ‘Moose-a-Nice’ sections to finish off your ride (it comes to around 12km in total from the gate).

Bump up your stoke by linking from here onto the SAASVELD Trail Network, just across the wooded valley to the east. ‘Root Farm’ and ‘Forest Buzzard’ connect off ‘Bosvark’ to the ‘Parking Trail’, with loops tripping along the Saasveld Entrance Road. Gooi mielies on ‘Yster Martiens’, ‘Drongos’, ‘Jelly Tot’ and the ‘Rooikat Run’, to name but a few (you can add at least 8km to your ride here). Take a breather along the Saasveld Entrance Road to the scenic PEPSI POOLS, just off the ‘Dam View’ track. The trails to the north here link you into even more mountain bike magic, with ‘Lazy Horse’, ‘Elephant Bath’, ‘Short Kat’ and other singletrack segments all along the Top Contour and Railway Service Road.

In short, the Garden Route Dam and Saasveld Trail Networks are mostly on MTO Forestry land, with service roads and jeep tracks accessing the constantly evolving singletrack systems. Signage is limited outside Hillbillies territory, so best you download those GPX route files before you saddle up. Trails are Easy to Intermediate, spanning everything from family outrides to solo MTB missions.

Good Mapping Apps (both AllTrails and TrailForks will do the trick) to add to your riding pleasure, or you can just plug into georgetrails.org for directions. NOTE: Most tracks in George are free-to-ride, but out-of-town mountain bikers should donate on-line or buy a Hillbillies Pass to support trail builders.

Getting there | Turn off the N2 highway into George along the N12 to Madiba Drive (Saasveld Road) before turning right to the NMU Campus Entrance. You can also follow Meyer or Stander Streets through the Eden Suburb and on to the Garden Route Dam dirt access road.

Best Time to Visit | Generally, summers are warm and pleasant, especially in the forests, while winter may come packaged with snow or extreme cold, with the brunt of the elements high up near the rugged peaks. //

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