THE MELTON WOLD

Melton Wold Guest Farm (40 km west of Victoria West) is one of those rare old Karoo institutions which should be on the bucket list of all itinerant motorcyclists. It’s ten years since I last visited it and I decide to explore some long-awaited virgin dirt tracks en route.

- Nick Yell

“Joh, sorry boet, it wasn’t meant to have rained so much here,” I say to Bruce Houghting, who is kindly riding part of the way with me to my first overnight stop at Merweville. It’s not that Bruce can’t ride his GS1200 LC through difficult conditions, like the slippery gruel-like mud we’ve just oozed through, but his rear 80/20 tar/dirt ‘slick’ has about as much traction in potklei mud as a knobbly has on the painted markings of a wet tar road.

It’s one of the reasons I’ve fitted the Moto-Z Tractionator tyres to the KLR. Yes, you’ll get about 20% less wear time than on a Heidenau Scout or Mitas E07, but as a fellow adventure rider said to me recently, if you can’t afford the right tyres you probably shouldn’t be venturing offroad much. Besides, the peace of mind and confidence it gives you is priceless.

I say goodbye to Bruce about 25 km after our Wimpy breakfast in De Doorns — my first since lockdown, so good! — when he heads down the Koo Valley road (R318) to Montagu, and then via Stormsvlei and the N2 back to Bot River.

There’s too much boring blacktop (142 km) between me and the Merweville dirt road outside Laingsburg, so I take the Pienaarskloof dirt track detour, confident my newly fitted rubber and mothballed mud riding skills will be up to the task if more gruel is served up.