101 Trail Guide | 2010

Kagga Kamma 4x4

In the belly of a wilderness area southeast of the Cederberg lies the privately-owned 15 000 ha Kagga Kamma Game Reserve, and its lesser-known entanglement of off-road tracks.
The reserve offers a variety of activities, from game viewing and rock art to botanical exploration, birding and even astronomy. The landscape juxtaposes the expaansive Karoo with dramatic Cederberg rock formations.
In the south of the reserve, around the lodge and rest camp, lies a network of sandy game-viewing tracks where you can see eland, gemsbok and kudu, and to the north, a maze of over 100 km of criss-crossing off-road tracks.
Access to the reserve is strictly controlled. After paying your fees, you receive an information pack that includes a clear, concise map detailing the trails. It is possible to plot a route that follows the periphery of the reserve, taking in all five of its wilderness campsites.
But even if you don’t plan your route, you won’t get lost as every intersection in the park is marked by a beacon that corresponds to a number on the map. Navigation is therefore just a matter of following the numbers.
Some early descents are quite steep, requiring careful navigation to avoid sidewall cuts. The more technical parts are marked by large X’s on the map and can be bypassed.
The off-roading in this first section is not too challenging – it presents predominantly rocky surfaces with some bouncy bits, but no cross-axles, and very little road-building is required. You’ll have more than enough time to enjoy the scenery.
Between Bobbejaankrans campsite and Joubert’s Kloof, your next stop, things get a little more interesting, with the track’s bends becoming increasingly tight. Further on it unexpectedly and potentially hazardously drops into Joubert’s Werf. Before you tackle this loose rocky downhill, get out and walk it … it’s nasty, but a careful line will get you through. Vehicles with limited ground clearance could be in for a tough time, and some road-building may be necessary.
The rest of the route, past Graskop campsite and back to the starting point, is typical mountain driving – ascending and descending on tracks of loose rock, with repeated cross-axles over and around rocks, boulders and holes.

What you need to know

Accommodation:
All Kagga Kamma’s campsites are wilderness sites (ie without amenities) and you have to be entirely self-sufficient - bring your own water, and ablution and sleeping gear.

What else? Hike, swim, identify succulents, star-gaze, go birding and take photographs.

Contact:
Hein de Waal
021 872 4343;
info@kaggakamma.co.za,
www.kaggakamma.co.za

Nearest town: Op die Berg (60 km)

Best time to go: Autumn and flower season (September-October)

Trail distance: There are over 100 km of tracks to explore.

How long will I be driving? At least 6 hours to do it justice.

GPS: S32.76741 E19.59137

Full Review | June 2008 (DO31) | Philip Sackville-Scott

In the belly of a wilderness area southeast of the Cederberg lies the privately-owned 15 000ha Kagga Kamma Game Reserve and its lesser-known entanglement of off-road tracks.

The reserve offers a bit of everything: from game- and rock-art-viewing to botanical exploration, birding and even astronomy. Moreover, you will be awed and humbled by the landscape that comprises a surprising juxtaposition of expansive Karoo lands and dramatic Cederberg rock formations.

In the south of the reserve, around the lodge and rest camp, lies a network of sandy game viewing tracks where you can see a variety of game such as eland, gemsbok and kudu, to name a few. However, we were heading to the north with its maze of over 100km of crisscrossing off-road tracks.

Navigation by numbers
Access to the tracks is strictly controlled. We paid our fees and received a package of information, including a clear and concise map detailing the maze of trails.

The route we plotted included all five of the reserve’s wilderness campsites and traced the reserve’s border.

However, even if you don’t plan your route, you won’t get lost as every intersection in the park is marked by a beacon (even if, as in some cases, they lie on the ground nearby) that corresponds to a number on the map. Navigation here is simply a matter of following the map’s numbers.

The route we had chosen, started on compacted gravel tracks winding through twisting valleys and kloofs.

Some early descents are quite steep, requiring careful navigation to avoid sidewall cuts. Although there are a few technical sections, they are clearly marked by large X’s on the map. Be aware, these sections cannot be bypassed.

Our first stop was at the Bobbejaankrans campsite.

All Kagga Kamma’s campsites are wilderness sites that lack amenities. You have to be entirely self-sufficient − bring your own water as well as ablution and sleeping gear.

Fortunately, there are no large predators in the reserve and you are free to walk around and sleep under the stars.

Up till then, the off-roading hadn’t been too challenging. The road comprised predominantly rocky surfaces, with some bouncy sections, but no cross-axles.

Moreover, very little road-building was required. The scenery compensates for this early shortfall though.

Between Bobbejaankrans and Joubert’s Kloof, our next stop, things got a little more interesting with the snaking track’s bends becoming increasingly tight.

Further on it unexpectedly and potentially hazardously drops into Joubert’s Werf.

Before you tackle this downhill of loose rock, get out and walk it. Yes, it’s nasty, but a careful choice of line will get you through. Vehicles with limited ground clearance are in for an especially tough time and some road building may be necessary in their case.

The Cruiser waltz
After a quick walkabout at Joubert’s Vlak, a campsite 1.5 km on, we continued eastwards, where things livened up considerably.

The rest of the route, past Graskop campsite and all the way back to our starting point, became the typical mountain 4x4ing we had been expecting.

Ascending one moment and descending the next, we wind our way on tracks of loose rock, repeatedly cross-axeling as we tiptoe over and around rocks, boulders and holes.

Scenery so mesmerising you have to force your eyes away from the horizon to the track constantly surround you.

The Cederberg mountains to the west and the plains of the Tanqua Karoo to the north are at once indifferent to your passing and conspiring to overwhelm you with their splendour.

Drive Out says: At Kagga Kamma it’s about more than just the trails − it’s about getting lost and forgetting yourself for a while.

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