{"id":14147,"date":"2021-08-31T14:07:00","date_gmt":"2021-08-31T13:07:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/2021\/08\/31\/kogelberg-nature-reserve-the-perfect-local-adventure-r8318\/"},"modified":"2023-02-08T19:01:29","modified_gmt":"2023-02-08T19:01:29","slug":"kogelberg-nature-reserve-the-perfect-local-adventure-r8318","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/kogelberg-nature-reserve-the-perfect-local-adventure-r8318\/","title":{"rendered":"Kogelberg Nature Reserve: The Perfect Local Adventure"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\tWith international travel not really on the cards for the foreseeable future, you probably aren\u2019t the only one looking out for some local options for a weekend away with the family. Local travel is the perfect way to satisfy that travel craving and let\u2019s be honest, we live in one of the most beautiful countries in the world. People travel from all over the world to visit what we have right on our doorstep.\n<\/p>\n

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\n\tOne of those areas is the beautiful Overberg, specifically the coastline between Betty\u2019s Bay and Kleinmond.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe Kleinmond area needs no introduction, it\u2019s a firm favourite for many a weekend adventure or day trip for a scenic drive along Clarens Drive,\u00a0but while a busy beach might not be everyone\u2019s cup of ale, there is a small reserve just off the main road between Betty\u2019s Bay and Kleinmond that has some great trail running and MTB routes.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tWhile the MTB route is just 11km out and 11km back, it has some great views with just over 400m of climbing. Not much single track though but the jeep track is so technical at times it more than makes up for it.\n<\/p>\n

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\n\tThe route starts from the main car park where you can also purchase your day permit. It starts off with a gradual climb up along past the eco-cabins that have been put up recently. Called the Mbali Collection, they are 8 magnificent glass fronted eco-cabins built with as little impact to the reserve as possible. Five of them are 2 sleepers and three are 6 sleepers. The perfect place to relax and explore all that the nature reserve has to offer. Each cabin has its own bedding, crockery and cutlery and\u00a0is powered by the Eskom grid with backup solar power. A Braai and grid is provided as well.\n<\/p>\n

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\n\tThe jeep track, as mentioned, is very rocky and technical so the ride still requires a fair amount of concentration. The road actually goes out all the way to the highlands road that links up to Grabouw but it\u2019s unfortunately not possible to link up to Grabouw any more due to different landownership in the valley.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tThe track follows along the Palmiet River which in summer is an excellent way to cool down as it can get quite warm in the valley. Winter rainfall means the river flows stronger in the colder months, which makes the views out over the valley pretty exceptional. Like I said, it might not have twisty singletrack and steep drop offs but the views more than make up for it.\n<\/p>\n

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\n\tThe jeep track route also makes it the perfect place for a novice or beginner cyclist to build up some confidence before tackling something a bit more advanced. There are a few river crossings which need to be navigated on foot but otherwise it is a great place to practise, especially if you have just moved from flat pedals to clipless pedals. We all know how daunting that can be, so having a space free of cars to build confidence clipping in is always a winner.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tOnce you turn around you almost feel like you are in a different valley because you see things from a different perspective. It really makes the ride feel like you are going point to point instead of out and back.\n<\/p>\n

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\n\tAlso on the reserve is the Oudebosch Eco Cabins which make you feel about as close to nature as you can get. Just like the Mbali Collection they are glass fronted but they feature five four sleeper cabins with two separate bedrooms and a spacious kitchen, lounge and dining area. The type of place you can arrive on Friday evening with all your supplies and not leave till Sunday evening. A total mountain Emersion experience.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tApart from the MTB track there are plenty of hiking trails of various difficulties waiting to be explored. The shortest being just 3km and the longest being 24km. For those who enjoy multi-day hikes, there is a fantastic two day hike called the Highlands Trail which leaves from the Iona wine farm.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tIt\u2019s safe to say that whatever sport or activity you enjoy other than your cycling, the Kogelberg area has access to it all.\n<\/p>\n

\n\tCapeNature is offering free entry at selected CapeNature reserves during Access Week from 13 – 20 September.<\/em><\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\n\tFor more information call 087 087 8250, email\u00a0reservation.alert@capenature.co.za<\/a>\u00a0or visit\u00a0https:\/\/www.capenature.co.za\/events\/access-week<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

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With international travel not really on the cards for the foreseeable future, you probably aren\u2019t the only one looking out for some local options for a weekend away with the family. Local travel is the perfect way to satisfy that travel craving and let\u2019s be honest, we live in one of the most beautiful countries […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":58321,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[120,105,121,106],"featured_location":[],"class_list":["post-14147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adventure-and-travel","tag-kogelberg","tag-overberg","tag-travel","tag-western-cape"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14147","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14147"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14147\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/58321"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14147"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14147"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14147"},{"taxonomy":"featured_location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bikehub.co.za\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/featured_location?post=14147"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}