N6

  • This minor, but scenic poort is located on the tarred N6 route between Queenstown and Jamestown. It's only 2,7 km long and displays an altitude variane of just 18m producing a very easy average gradient of 1:150. The typical poort statistics allow the traveller to relax and enjoy the wonderful country scenery. The poort is suitable for all vehicles and on the odd occassion snow can be encountered. The road is in excellent condition with safety shoulders, but be aware that this is a fairly busy road and it carries large volumes of traffic.

     

  • Beestekraalnek is a fairly minor pass located on the N6 between Bloemfontein and East London, close to the southern border of the Free State near Aliwal North. The pass is 5.8 km long and only has four bends along the entire route, all of which have a gentle radius and are easily negotiated at the speed limit of 100 kph.

    The road is in an excellent condition with wide shoulders, and will not present any problems in all weather conditions. The scenery along the pass offers wide-open vistas of the Free State plains, with flat-topped koppies dotted randomly about the landscape, and the Drakensberg and Maluti mountains in the far distance off to the east.

  • Hobbs Hill is located just 3 km north of Cathcart and whilst it's a short pass at only 2,7 km, it descends a substantial 132m over that distance producing an average gradient of 1:20 with the steepest section being just north of the summit at 1:14. This is generally a safe, well designed road and only contains two easy curves. Having a summit altitude of almost 1200m means this pass is sometimes subject to winter snowfalls. The usual snow driving precautionary measures apply.

  • The Penhoek Pass is a well engineered, high altitude tarred pass forming part of the N6 highway between Queenstown in the south and Jamestown in the north. The 5.6 km long pass traverses through the aptly named Stormberg to assert itself as one of South Africa's dangerous tarred passes. In earlier days (circa 1846) the original pass was known as the Stormberg Pass and featured some impressive retaining walls with very steep drop-offs. Some of the original lines can still be seen on the satellite imagery. Traversing the old pass was a major event, compared to the easy drive over today's version with it's perfectly banked corners, deep cuttings and easy gradients.

  • Telemachus Poort (also known as Modderpoort) is located near the tiny Eastern Cape town of Jamestown, about 60 km from Aliwal North. It is named after the Telemachusspruit which tracks the pass on the western side along its southern half. The poort is quite unusual in that it consists of two distinct sections; a “poort” section which follows the stream, and a “neck” section which climbs up a hill towards its summit on the northern side.

    The road is in a good condition, and should present no problems for any vehicle in all weather conditions. There are only four corners on the pass, one of which is a big loop of 120 degrees, but this curve has a very wide radius and is easily negotiated.