On your bike

Built by resident wine maker Pieter Vis­ser, this network of routes is a true MTB gem that rates near the very top of most mountain bikers’ bucket lists.

Your adventure kicks off on single­track that gently meanders along the course of a small stream through a for­est of oak trees. Fence lines are crossed by riding over wooden bridges designed to allow riders to gain easy access, yet keep the cows in their place. Follow the Red arrows and just keep on riding the singletrack, and riding and riding. Re­member to breathe and enjoy the views.

The course will take you up a couple of hills, but nothing that will overly tax a moderately fit rider. Suck them up, as after every uphill there is even more sublime trail. In fact, Oak Valley could just as well be renamed Narnia, because every hill and corner hides yet another undiscovered visual and riding treat.
Once you get to the trail around the large dam you will see some arrows that lead onto the Black route. If you are feel­ing adventurous, follow them as they all loop back to the Red trail, and all of the Black trails are rideable by the average rider – they just have some steeper climbs in them.

Continue to the top of the hill at the 13.5km mark, then look at your riding companions and say in an authoritative voice, ‘If you think that section of the trail was amazing, you ain’t seen noth­ing yet.’ You’d be right, as the best bits are still to come ...

What follows from the top of this hill is very difficult to put into words, because if you haven’t ridden it, the adjectives will seem clichéd. Yes, it is epic, and it is awesome and it flows and swoops and drops and bombs along the course of the river. It is, in summary, everything you ever wanted in a trail ride, and it is all yours for the next 6km of MTB debauchery.

The bottom of the singletrack takes you into a gentle scenic ride through an oak forest and back to the finish area. Here you can clean up with a shower in the well-appointed ablutions before you head back into the ‘real’ world. A meal at Peregrine Farm Stall just down the N2 main drag is one way to extend the fantasy for a couple of hours ...