Trail Daze | Down by the River

Following our previous installment of Trail Daze, where we traveled North West in search of greener pastures, we bring you another sensory overload of lush green, endless singletrack that will make you want to pedal until your legs fall off. Simply referred to as the River Trail, it follows along the Magaliesriver. You will be forgiven to think this gem lies somewhere in New Zealand, and not 45 minutes drive from Johannesburg.

Our base station during our visit to the North West – with soon-to-be trail dog Benyah, keeping us all entertained.

Farm house vibes and fiddling with bikes – so not a care or rush in the world. What trail riding should be all about.

Hayden leading the way to the river through the spectacularly green and lush pecan plantation.

Having a few mates come over for a braai and a beer is one thing but having them come over to enjoy a network of trails that run through the beautiful Pecan Farm I stay on is on a totally different level! I felt very privileged to show the guys what my backyard had to offer!
Hayden Brown

Down by the river, the trails were hard-packed, narrow and fast. Roots, full canopy above and as much flow as you could possibly want. Yes.

I will never feel sorry for a Jo’burg mountain biker ever again! Just an hour from the concrete jungle lies a network of beautiful trails at Van Gaalens. The river trails have great flow that will inspire beginners to take up this beautiful outdoor lifestyle while experienced pinners can still have loads of fun at speed.
Daniel Dobinson | iRideAfrica

Hayden scrubbing at mach 3 through the narrow woods.

The trail crosses the river a few times over some narrow bridges, so if you’re planning to ride till the sun sets like we did, pack a headlamp as things could get super sketch over these structures in the dark.

Always good to use guinea pigs to check if it’s safe to venture out there with cameras and such.

The epitome of flow, the River Trail makes you want to crank it till your legs fall off with fast flowing single track that keeps you alive with a big grin on your face. Heading up the ridge we found some awesome trails with a variety of loamy forest and rough rocky sections, leading back down to the start with some full throttle single track. It took a bit of hike a bike but it sure was well worth it. Having been to the area many times and not ridden several of these trails, I will definitely be back to doddle along them again.
Chris Pearton

Heading toward the ridge line, the trail exits the lush tree canopy and opens up.

Not part of the official trail per se, but if you stumble upon a tunnel, I guess you got to ride it?

Local fauna and flora doing its thing.

Higher up the trail, just under the ridge line, things were a little less groomed, fairly overgrown and pretty technical with some proper rock sections in the mix. Trail riding at its finest.

Even though you pass through active, commercial farm land, we hardly encountered any other humans – giving that feeling of escaping to the less beaten track.