PRLCH

On Boxing Day we are travelling from Didima in the Drakensberg (Cathedral Peak Area)to OR Tambo Airport. We need to be at the airport by 11am. Which would be our best route and how long would you allow for the trip?
Some people say go via Oliviershoek Pass as it is most direct. Others say to avoid it due to early morning mists and baboons on the road. Some say go via the N3 entering at the Winterton/Colenso ramp. Shell Geostar suggests the Oliviershoek Pass route and says it would take about 3.5 hours for 404km. This sounds awfully quick to me, and is contrary to what friends who did the trip said.

Also, what time of the morning could we safely leave Didima. I have been told that we should not leave before first light (what time is that in December?) as the roads are not fenced and we could come upon cattle on the road.

HELP locals, please. I am confused. I am not too sure about my sources and seem to get contradictory advice. I don't want to miss the plane and am happy to start as early as is safely possible.

ArthurSA

I know the route through Oliviershoek pretty well, it's my preferred route Jo'burg to/from Durban and I'll be travelling it for the umpteenth time this Saturday. (I started using it decades ago, when most of it was still a dirt road.) I also know the Cathedral Peak/Bergville road, although it's been a while since I travelled it.

But it would be my own preferred route from Cathedral, and from memory I think it would be about four hours to Jo'burg (Sandton). So to OR Tambo would usually be about the same. Last year I had to drop someone at OR Tambo after a trip on that route and I worked out what I thought would the most direct route after nearing Jo'burg. But although it was the shortest, it was very frustrating as most of it was a 60 kph zone. So for the same requirement earlier this year I stuck with the 120 kph national roads. N3, briefly back East on the N12, then NE on the R24. And before that, Cathedral/Bergville (44 km)/Harrismith/Jo'burg, as you probably know.

I don't think mist on the pass would slow you down significantly, it's a relatively short section. Just take it very slowly if necessary.

ArthurSA

And yes, you also need to be especially careful on the first part (30 km+?) of the Cathedral/Bergville road if you leave when it's still dark. So allow extra time for that.

ArthurSA

But . . . sunrise on 26 December is 5h10 for Bethlehem, which is a little West in longitude compared with Cathedral Peak. So at a guess about five minutes earlier there, and first light before that. So it seems you'll not be travelling in the dark.

PRLCH

Thanks so much ArthurSA! Sounds like it is going to be the Oliviershoek pass route. We will leave at 5am (first light), and that sounds like it would leave us with a couple of hours up our sleeve for contingency.

As a matter of interest, why would you avoid using the N3 all the way? In Australia we find the freeways are generally considerably quicker even if further. Just interested?

ArthurSA

Why? Mainly because I'm originally from Durban and I used to do a lot of hiking in the 'Berg. And that route is closer to it than the N3! It's usually more attractive, even when mist or cloud obscures the main 'Berg.

In "the old days" when it wasn't tarred (sealed), almost no-one seemed to know it as an alternative. On busy holiday periods in particular, in those days before the N3 got improved further (and tolled!) it could even be quicker. I can remember once going to Jo'burg from Durban on the Easter long weekend and the traffic became literally stationary just before the turn-off to Winterton at Frere. For the first and last time in my life I used the emergency lane for a few hundred metres to get past the traffic to the turnoff. And then on that 'Berg route I passed a couple of trucks and no vehicles passed me.

The whole bypass is just 12 km longer (I've measured!), albeit with a 100 kph speed limit not 120 kph. And although not the main reason, missing the most expensive toll (Tugela) is a bonus!

But enough of nostalgia. Enjoy your visit.

ArthurSA

Just one more thing. Possible speed traps. Until recently the only speed trap I'd even seen was one near Winterton in the 70's. So once the route got fully tarred I confess that where the road was good and straight, I'd treat it more like a 120 kph road not 100 kph. But in the last couple of years I've seen a speed trap twice. In the same place, about 10 km North of Bergville. Although on the other side of the road (going South) to the way I was going.

But you probably want to take it easy anyway, for a number of reasons. Another one being that although I referred to the road being good, in recent years there have been some unrepaired potholes on previously perfect stretches.

ArthurSA

". . . I'd ever seen . . ."

PRLCH

Once again - thanks for the info! We will be driving to the Berg from the airport 5 days earlier, so we will go down the same way - give us an opportunity to check it out! I used to visit the Berg as a child (many fond memories!), but have not been in SA for 14 years! I am sure much has changed, but am REALLY looking forward to going "home" (you can never really get Africa out of your blood). It will be great to show our kids some of their heritage.