memel

This pass connects the Free State farming town of Memel via the R34 with the KZN town of Newcastle and straddles the border between the Free State and KZN. The pass starts at the summit altitude of 1809m ASL and descends to 1569m taking you 245 meters down the escarpment and in the process producing a gradient of 1/21 over 5.0 km., which is moderate. There is one U shaped bend halfway down the pass which turns through almost 170 degrees, but the arc is fairly wide, making it fairly safe providing the speed limit is complied with. With a summit altitude not far under the 2000m mark, it does sometimes snow on this pass.

A short, steep hill on the tarred R34 between Newcastle and Memel, named after the Brink family over whose land the pass traverses. At only 1,45 km it ranks right near the bottom of our pass distance table but it does ascend 85 vertical metres over that distance to produce a stiff average gradient of 1:17 with the steepest sections being at 1:10

This short but difficult little pass is located to the south of the town of Memel in the eastern Free State, on top of the Drakensberg escarpment close to the KwaZulu-Natal border. Named after a scenic farm situated along the banks of the Klip River, it is also sometimes referred to by the locals as Roodepoort. With a summit altitude of just under 2000 metres, the pass is subject to frequent snowfalls in winter and violent thunderstorms in summer, so careful planning is required if you intend to drive this pass. Even in good weather, a 4x4 vehicle is recommended.

Kwaggasnek is a short and straightforward gravel pass which straddles the border between the Free State and KwaZulu-Natal near Volksrust. It would usually be driven in conjunction with Majubanek, a much bigger pass located to the north-east on the same route. The road is not in a particularly good condition, but can be traversed in any vehicle, provided that the weather allows. The pass is probably named after the now-extinct Quagga, which once roamed these hills in vast herds, but the name could also refer to the Burchell’s Zebra which is sometimes called a Kwagga in Afrikaans.

This is a short, steep, but minor climb over a hill on the gravel road linking Newcastle in KZN with Memel in the Free State. The pass has an average gradient of 1:16, but the climb up the steeper eastern side is as steep as 1:7. The  road is important for gravel pass fans as it gives access to both the Normandien and Mullers Passes.

This is a substantial gravel pass of 8,8 km long that connects the N11 to the north of Laings Nek pass with the R34 near Memel and runs along the SW/NE axis. The pass climbs 266m to summit at 1848m and produces an average gradient of 1:33, but there are some very steep sections at 1:5. We issue the usual KZN gravel pass cautionary of "slippery when wet" as well as the occurrence of frequent mountain mists which can become extremely dangerous when visibility is reduced.

This steep, gravel road pass lies between Newcastle in KZN and Memel in the Free State. The pass traverses a natural path up the Drakensberg and is located roughly 33 km west-south-west of Newcastle and  15 km north east of the Normandien Pass. It is OK to drive in a normal car subject to conditions being dry. Like most passes in this part of the Drakensberg, it is subject to heavy electrical storms in summer and snowfalls during winter. In such conditions a 4x4 vehicle is much safer.

Approximately 11 km to the west of Memel a ridge of mountains runs on the north/south axis, effectively separating the towns of Memel and Vrede. The tallest on this range is called Rooikop, with a summit height of 2045,2m ASL. Between the Rooikop peak and the next ridge to the south is a natural neck, through which the R34 traverses - this is Rooinek.

This is a short, but steep tarred pass on an otherwise gravel road (the R722) which connects Memel in the east with Verkykerkop and Harrismith in the west. The road displays an altitude variance of 149 vertical metres in just over 2 km producing an average gradient of 1:13 with the steeper parts measuring out at 1:7. This is a high altitude pass with a summit height of 2023m ASL and is subject to winter snowfalls.

This is a minor pass on a gravel road through a neck, north-west of Memel, on a farm road with moderate gradients and no corners. The only time you need worry about driving here would be in heavy rain or snow conditions, as the summit occurs at 1853m ASL and it does occassionally snow here in winter, when temperatures are regularly well below 0C.