Go! Drive & Camp – September 2019

http://www.weg.co.za go!Drive& CampSeptember^2019 |^63

BIG SKY COUNTRY What

is the Karoo without

wide open spaces, tall

church spires and lonely

railroad tracks? The

back road from Gauteng

to the Cape may be

profoundly quiet, but

there are no speed traps

nor any toll roads.

THE SECOND DAY of your trip has more

gravel roads, we promise. Drive through

Warrenton, across the Vaal River, then

immediately turn left onto a dirt road that

will deliver you to the R370. It’s a lovely road

along the Harts River, past the Spitskop Dam

to the Schmidtsdrift farm community.

Here you connect briefly to the N8

highway (for only 5 km) to get back to the

R370 and then head south to Douglas. From

Douglas you follow the R357 (the Prieska

road), but turn left at Markdrif after 15^ km

(S29.16733 E23.68927) onto a dirt road

that you follow for 100 km southward to

Strydenburg, which got this name because

the founding fathers couldn’t decide where

the town should be built.

At the end of the town, near a Total

garage, turn right (S29.94603 E23.67060)

onto a dirt road, and turn left after 2,5 km

(S29.93536 E23.64629) toward Vosburg.

Dry pans spread out all around you and

every now and then you have to brake for

sheep that dart nervously over the road. In

Vosburg, stop at Ricks Karoo shop to pick

up some chops before joining the R384

regional road, and turn left after 3 km onto

another gravel road. This farm road leads

to Pampoenpoort, a lonely settlement

away from the main routes. Check in at

Pampoenpoort’s abandoned train station

before travelling further south to Loxton,

today’s destination.

The Rooi Granaat in Jooste Street, across

the Dutch Reformed Church, makes

delicious vetkoek with figs, pomegranates

and cheese (R35) – perfect for tomorrow’s

padkos. There is also a display of Deon

Meyer’s novels as the writer had until

recently a home in Loxton. Deon apparently

liked to sit and write in a corner of the Rooi

Granaat next to the fireplace.

Haul out Vosburg’s mutton chops and

N3

N1

N1

N2

N2

N7

N14

Johannesburg

Springbok Douglas Bloemfontein

Vosburg

Loxton

Cape Town

Sutherland Beaufort West