Traversing the West Coast of South Africa

Words & photos by Simon Pocock

We had debated traversing the West Coast of South Africa for years and after weeks of hard lockdown we emerged all the more hungry to tackle it.

The plan was to follow the coast North, before hitting the border on the Orange River and then head inland along the Namaqua eco-trail through the Richtersveld, before heading back home.

We travelled for days without seeing any other people, true isolation in a magical environment. Spring weather meant we were blessed with warm days and nights - with the cold only catching up with us on the last day.

Eight nights and 2000km on the bikes, fun technical riding and amazing environments made for an awesome trip!

After detouring around a diamond mine we found our first coastal campsite, West of Lutzville.

Sand riding - the perfect blend of stress and stoke!

Namaqua National Park

Hondeklipbaai

Refuelling in Koingnass.

Archie / Honda XR600R

Scotty / Suzuki DR350

(lost his moto goggles on the first day and opted for the hardware store edition)

Bernard / Honda XR650R

We had grand plans to tackle a 4x4 trail heading East from Kuboes over the mountains, but fully loaded bikes and broken bodies meant we only covered a little ground and with limited water, we knew we were in for some challenging times!

After many hours of tackling the trail we were losing light and pitched our tents on the flattest section we could find.

Cold Cokes and route discussions After getting off the mountain in Kuboes.

Flat tires in the sun.

Discovering fresh and clean water in the desert never felt so good, after a day of overcooking in the sun.

Back in the mountainous Richtersveld en route to the Orange River.

Luxury campsite on the Orange River - after many days of wild camping.

Scoring fuel from the rafting camps along the Orange River.

The only shade for miles.

Snapped clutch cable for Scotty and his DR350.

We camped along the Orange River on the Namaqua eco trail.

Archie’s second flat tire, our only 2 flats for the trip.

Rain and cold weather caught up with us outside Loeriesfontein, the local hotel opened up & sorted us out. Small town hospitality at its finest.

Departing Loeriesfontein, we rode hard back to Cape Town. Avoiding as much weather as we could - it was a long and cold day on the bikes.