Clarence Drive Coastal Sweep

A 264 km loop

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Why this ride

A rider’s loop: clean exit, memorable middle, calm return. Out of Kraaifontein and back again: 264 km, roughly 4 h 48 in the saddle. On the way it passes Cape Town / Western Cape, Atlantis and Constantia. Retreat is the high point.

Roadbook

1. Fuel stop near Kraaifontein fuel

   Kraaifontein lies on Cape Town's northern edge, where the suburbs give way to wheat fields, vineyards and the first ranges of the Boland. Its name means crow's fountain, a reminder of a time when this was a farm with a spring rather than a busy suburb on the N1. For riders, it is the threshold between the city and the Winelands.

   From here, a short ride takes you into some of the most celebrated countryside in South Africa. Durbanville's wine valley is just to the west, with cellars on rolling hills. To the east, the R304 and other roads lead towards Stellenbosch and Paarl, with the great granite dome of Paarl Mountain standing over the vineyards. Beyond lies Franschhoek, founded by French Huguenot refugees in the late seventeenth century, and the Franschhoek Pass, which climbs in sweeping bends over the mountains with views back over the valley.

   Roads around Kraaifontein are generally good, but traffic is heavy in the urban belt and minibus taxis stop unpredictably. Keep alert at intersections and traffic lights, keep valuables out of sight and avoid stopping in isolated places after dark, as you would anywhere in a big city. The wind deserves respect too: the south-easter, known locally as the Cape Doctor, can blow ferociously in summer, especially on exposed stretches and passes.

   Fuel stations are plentiful along the main roads, usually attended, and it is customary to tip the attendant. Malls and coffee shops abound. In the Winelands, farm stalls sell biltong, fresh bread and fruit, and many wine estates have restaurants. From Kraaifontein the scenery only improves, so fill the tank, grab a coffee and head for the mountains.

2. Cape Town / Western Cape return swim

   The name Swartland means black land, from the dark renosterbos scrub that once covered the hills, and the landscape is rolling farmland, with wheat fields that turn from green to gold and then to stubble as the year goes on. In spring, particularly in August and September, the roadside verges and fallow fields explode into yellow and orange with daisies and other annuals, and the little town holds a wildflower show to celebrate it.

   The coast lies about twenty kilometres west, at Yzerfontein, where the cold Atlantic washes onto long beaches and small rocky coves, so a swim is possible but bracing. Water along this coast comes from the Benguela current and is rarely above fifteen degrees Celsius, so do not expect warmth even in January. Inland, the ground rises to a ridge of granite hills, and the farm roads are mostly gravel or tarmac patched by the heat, with light traffic and long clear views.

   Darling has a small claim to cultural fame. A satirical performer here, who made his name mocking apartheid-era politicians in drag, runs a theatre and cafe at the old railway station, and the town also has its own craft brewery and small wine farms on the hills above. The pace is slow and the people are friendly, which makes it a good place to stop for breakfast.

   On a motorbike the roads are open and mostly straight, with gentle undulations and wind that can build in the afternoon. Surfaces are fair, though some farm roads are gravel and corrugated. Fuel is available in Darling and Malmesbury, which is the larger town about thirty-five kilometres east. The nearest city of any size is Atlantis, about thirty kilometres away. Carry water, since shade is rare, and expect cool mornings and hot afternoons even in the middle of winter.

3. Atlantis food

   Atlantis is not a postcard town, and nobody here pretends it is. It was built from scratch in the 1970s on the sandy plains north of Cape Town, part of the apartheid government's plan to move coloured families out of the city and to create an industrial centre far from the suburbs. The result was a planned town of factories, schools and housing estates, some forty-five kilometres from the city, which still struggles with unemployment and crime. It is worth understanding that history as you ride through.

   What the area offers is landscape. Around the town lie the Atlantis dunes, a great sea of white sand that has been used for sandboarding, quad biking and, of course, filming. The flat sandveld here is covered in tough, low scrub, part of the fynbos and strandveld vegetation of the West Coast, and in late winter and spring, roughly August and September, the plains burst into colour as wild flowers bloom after the rain.

   Just north of Atlantis lies Mamre, an old Moravian mission village founded in the early nineteenth century, with whitewashed thatched cottages, a church and a mill, one of the most charming places on this coast. To the west lies the coast itself, with Silwerstroomstrand and other beaches where the Atlantic is cold, clear and sometimes rough, fed by the Benguela Current from the Antarctic. The Koeberg nuclear power station, the only one in Africa, stands on the coast to the south.

   The rides from here are straight and open rather than curvy. The R27, the West Coast road, runs north toward Langebaan and the West Coast National Park with long straight stretches, while the R307 heads inland toward Darling and Malmesbury, through wheat fields and vineyards. Wind is the main challenge, especially in summer when the southeaster blows hard and the sand can drift onto the road. For the Clarence Drive and Bainskloof rides, the route leads back south and east, past Cape Town toward the mountains.

   Atlantis has fuel, supermarkets and fast food, and it is a sensible place to fill up before heading north or into the hills. Stick to the main roads and busy places, keep your bike in sight, and avoid wandering into residential areas. For a calmer stop, ride to Mamre or the coast, where a picnic with a view of the ocean is a better reward.

4. Constantia photo

   Constantia is where wine began in South Africa, and it still has the air of a place that knows it. The valley lies on the eastern side of the Table Mountain chain, sheltered from the Atlantic, with old oak avenues, whitewashed Cape Dutch farmhouses and vineyards climbing toward the steep slopes of the Constantiaberg. It is one of Cape Town's leafiest and wealthiest suburbs, but the farms are open to visitors and the roads around it are some of the most beautiful in the city.

   The story starts with Simon van der Stel, the Dutch East India Company governor, who was granted the land in 1685 and built Groot Constantia, whose gabled manor house is now a museum. A century later the farm's sweet wine, Vin de Constance, was famous across Europe: Napoleon had it shipped to him in exile on St Helena, and Jane Austen mentions Constantia wine in Sense and Sensibility as a cure for a broken heart. The style was revived in modern times and you can taste it today, along with the region's sauvignon blanc, which loves the cool breezes from False Bay.

   For riders, the best road begins at the top of the valley. Constantia Nek is the saddle between the mountains, and the road drops from it through forest and down to Hout Bay, which leads to Chapman's Peak Drive, the toll road cut into the cliffs above the Atlantic. Rhodes Drive runs the other way, under trees along the slope past Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden to Newlands. Both are twisty, shaded and slow enough to keep you honest, with cyclists and walkers on weekends. For the longer rides east, to Clarence Drive, the winelands or the passes beyond, you leave on the M3 and the N2, which are busy but quick.

   The weather is a factor. In summer the southeaster, the Cape Doctor, can blow ferociously across the Cape Flats and the N2, while winter brings rain and the mountains catch the clouds. Spring and autumn are lovely, with green vines and long, clear light.

   Constantia has shopping centres with fuel, cafes and supermarkets, and the wine farms have restaurants, though booking is often necessary at the popular ones. Taste with discipline: South Africa enforces drink-driving limits and the roads out of the valley are not the place for a heavy head.

5. Near Constantia finish

   The wooded eastern flank of Table Mountain rises right above this point, a few kilometres from Constantia, where the southern suburbs meet the forests and the mountain. This is Cape Town's green side: oak avenues, pine and gum plantations, old estates and the cool, shaded slopes that catch the clouds when the southeaster blows. Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden lies along the same slope, and on its terraces you can walk among proteas, ericas and other plants of the Cape Floral Kingdom with the mountain towering overhead.

   The roads here wind through the trees. Rhodes Drive runs along the mountain from Constantia Nek past Kirstenbosch toward Newlands, a narrow, curving road shaded by old trees, with glimpses of the mountain through the branches. It is slow, often busy and shared with cyclists, but beautiful, especially in the early morning light. The forests of Cecilia and Newlands have walking trails up toward the mountain, and the air smells of pine, damp earth and fynbos.

   The rides from here head east into the winelands and beyond. The Franschhoek Pass ride takes you through Stellenbosch and Franschhoek, the valley settled by French Huguenot refugees in the late seventeenth century, whose names still appear on many of the wine farms. The pass climbs out of the valley on a road said to follow an old elephant trail, with tight bends and spectacular views back down over the vineyards. Clarence Drive is the coastal road from Gordon's Bay to Kleinmond, clinging to the mountains above False Bay, where whales can be seen in winter and spring.

   The weather shapes everything. In summer the southeaster blows hard and the tablecloth of cloud spills over the mountain, while winter fronts bring heavy rain and cold. The best riding months are often spring and autumn, when the air is clear and the light is golden. Bush fires are a real danger in the hot, dry months, and roads may be closed when they flare up.

   For fuel, food and supplies, Constantia's shopping centres are close, and there are cafes at Kirstenbosch and in the nearby suburbs. Leave yourself time for a walk in the garden or the forest; it is one of the most peaceful places in the city, and a fine way to begin or end a long ride into the mountains.

6. Retreat pass

   Retreat sits on the flat land between the mountains of the Cape Peninsula and the sandy plains that run down to False Bay, a busy, working suburb on Main Road and the railway line south of the city. It is no beauty spot, but it lies right at the foot of some of the finest short rides in Cape Town, and its petrol stations and shops are useful when you are about to climb into the hills or head out along the coast.

   The road that makes Retreat worth knowing is Ou Kaapse Weg, the M64, which starts in nearby Tokai and climbs steeply over the mountains to Noordhoek and the Atlantic side. It is a proper mountain road, with long sweepers, tight bends near the top and wide views back over the southern suburbs and False Bay. At the summit you ride through the Silvermine section of Table Mountain National Park, with fynbos on every side, and the descent to Noordhoek reveals the long white beach of Long Beach and the cliffs of Chapman's Peak. The road is popular, policed and occasionally closed for fires or accidents, so ride it with respect.

   The other good option is Boyes Drive, which hangs on the mountainside above Muizenberg and Kalk Bay, with False Bay below, surfers in the water and, in winter and spring, the chance of whales offshore. Muizenberg itself, with its colourful beach huts, was where Cecil Rhodes had his cottage, and the coast road south leads through Kalk Bay, a fishing harbour with good fish and chips, to Simon's Town and the penguins at Boulders.

   Nature here is fynbos country, part of the Cape Floral Kingdom, the smallest and richest of the world's plant kingdoms, with proteas, ericas and restios that flower at different times of year. Tokai Forest, near Retreat, has old plantations and walking trails, and the Steenberg and Constantia wine farms are just to the west.

   The weather matters. Summer brings the southeaster, which can blow riders around on the flats and over Ou Kaapse Weg, while winter fronts bring rain and low cloud on the mountains. For the long rides to the Cederberg or Clarence Drive, you head out onto the M5 and the N2 or N7. Retreat has fuel and supermarkets, which makes it a sensible place to fill the tank and grab water before the long road out.

7. Retreat scenic
8. Back to Clarence finish

   The dot sits well inland of Clarence Drive itself, on the northeastern side of Cape Town where the city thins out toward the winelands, and the ride is on its way home. Kraaifontein, a big working suburb, sits just beside it, while Stellenbosch and Paarl lie a short run to the east. The coast road that gives the ride its name, the R44 between Gordon's Bay and Rooi-Els, is hours behind you by now.

   Clarence Drive deserves a few lines anyway, because it is the reason the day exists. It was carved into the foot of the Hottentots-Holland mountains, with the road clinging to the cliffs above False Bay, and it has a reputation among South African riders as the best coastal tarmac near Cape Town. The corners come in a long, rhythmic series, the sea sparkles on your left, and in winter and spring the southern right whales sometimes show up in the bay, close enough to watch from the lay-bys.

   By contrast, the final stretch is purposeful. The N1 and the R300 carry fast, heavy traffic, with trucks, minibus taxis and commuters weaving between lanes, and a rider should keep a calm distance and check the mirrors often. Sunday evenings are especially busy. If you have energy left, the Durbanville and Stellenbosch roads are worth a detour, with vineyards laid out on rounded hills and the Hottentots-Holland and Simonsberg ranges standing blue behind them.

   Fuel is easy everywhere, with large stations and shopping centres in Kraaifontein, Brackenfell and Bellville. A cold drink and something to eat at a roadside cafe is a good idea after the day's heat, because the Cape sun is strong and dehydration creeps up quietly.

   The Winelands also hold an older story. Dutch settlers arrived in the seventeenth century, and the French Huguenots followed a few decades later, planting the vines and building the gabled homesteads that still dot the valleys. A ride through the hills as the light fades, with mountains turning pink behind the vineyards, makes a very satisfying last half hour.

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