Views along the Waainek Pass looking south
Looking south from the summit 1350m

The name Waainek translates into 'Windy Neck' and windy it was on the day of filming, making the name perfectly appropriate! Every now and again we come across a humdinger of a pass that not many people even know about. The Waainek Pass is one of those hidden gems. Tucked into the well wooded ravines of the Boschberg, Graskop and Witkrans mountains north of Somerset East and mostly falling within the boundaries of the Glen Avon Falls Kloof Natural Heritage Site, this long gravel pass will hold you spellbound, with breath taking views, sharp corners, technical driving and a big altitude gain.

You might even be lucky and spot some wildlife, as we did on the day of filming, when a large group of warthogs sauntered over the road near the summit. There were also klipspringers, rhebuck and rooibok about. If you're in this part of the Eastern Cape and you have a few hours to spare, go and drive this one. It's a beauty!

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