Roughing it on the Karoo National Park’s Pienaar’s Pass

Posted by Scott Ramsay on 14 January 2012

The spectacular Pienaar’s Pass starts near the Karoo National Park‘s main rest camp and bumps its way up the forested kloof. It is a challenging 4×4 route that also offers the opportunity for good wildlife sightings including kudu, klipspringer and zebra, and possibly lion.

Last year several lions were reintroduced into the Karoo National Park. The lions are doing well, according to senior section ranger Johan de Klerk, who gave me some of his photos for my blog as we haven’t seen them yet (although we did see the remains of two zebra, one on the spectacular Pienaar’s Pass). If the natural vegetation is conserved, the Karoo can support a healthy population of wild antelope and ungulates. (The Karoo actually has very fertile soil –250 million years ago this area was an ancient floodplain, so the soil is full of nutritious prehistoric sediment and minerals – but because the soil is so thin, and the area is so arid and rocky, it can’t be ploughed or farmed.) The park has more than 1 000 gemsbok and plenty of hartebeest, kudu, eland and zebra. So the lions have lots to eat in the 88 000 hectare park.

The Karoo National Park is far from being an endless monotonous landscape and has some of the most beautiful kloofs and koppies in the region. The top of Pienaar’s Pass offers a superb panoramic view of the koppies and is a great spot to stop for a sunset drink. We got to the top and took a few photos before heading back at sunset. We wanted to check out the bird hide which is situated a few hundred metres from camp. It’s a fantastic little hide, with lots of birds including the bright weavers and acrobatic martins.

The pass was tough, but my Ford Everest handled it really well. A few times the vehicle lost a bit of traction on the loose shale, but on the second attempt, I chose a slightly different angle, and the Ford simply crawled inexorably up in low-range first gear. Highly impressive, and I have new respect for this vehicle. It cruises easily at 140km/h on the highway, consuming 10 litres of fuel per 100 km, but it can also get up the Pienaar’s Pass with relative ease. It makes a nice change from my old Land Rover Defender which is only good for the rough stuff. The Ford is a great combination of rough and smooth!

 

 

Find the best places to stay in the Karoo with Getaway Accommodation.

 

Thanks again to my sponsors for making it all possible. CapeNature, South African National Parks, Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, Eastern Cape Parks, iSimangaliso Wetland Park, Ford, Total, Evosat, Conqueror Trailers, Vodacom, Digicape, Lacie, Frontrunner, Safari Centre Cape Town, K-Way, EeziAwn, National Luna, Nokia , Goodyear, Global Fleet Sales, Hetzner, Clearstream Consulting and Escape Gear.

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