About the Route
This route takes you from just outside of Uniondale to the coastal town of Knysna via the Prince Alfred Pass (Gravel). This pass is the longest mountain pass in South Africa at 68 km and also the second oldest unaltered pass that is still in use. Along the pass you can see the old dry walling as you're riding. Just before the pass you go past the small town of Avontuur. At the time, the petrol station in Avontuur was closed. I am not sure if it has since opened again. The prince Alfred's pass is not a highly technical pass (for us this was the first gravel pass ever), but if you are terribly afraid of eyes you might want to skip riding this one yourself. There is no barriers on the pass and it is a pretty steep downhill... halfway there is a small settlement called de Vlught, there are several places to eat here. Angie's G Spot is probably the most well known for bikers. From here you go up for a bit, this section directly after de Vlught was a bit tricky at the time. At the end of the pass you can either go straight, through the Knysna Forest or you can turn right and go towards Plettenberg Bay. We got advised to go right, as the Knysna Forest road is used by trucks and has a large amount of potholes. But we wanted to see the whole pass including the forest, so that's where this route goes! The road did had some potholes but wasn't too bad at the time. If you want an easier road or need to make up for time after dreaming away on the pass, you should probably take the road towards Plettenberg Bay. In Knysna we got a room at the Island backpackers on the main road because of a large storm. Good, clean and well maintained backpackers.