All roads lead to Fraserberg

It's amazing how some obscure little towns have so many roads leading to them yet few people go there. Fraserberg is one of those towns. For about 200km on the N1 heading from Cape Town there must have been 4 turn offs going to Fraserberg. By turnoff number 4 I was tempted but alas schedules and time dictated that Colesburg it was going to be for the night.

The beginning of every trip is always accompanied by the desire to get past the city limits as soon as possible. This trip is no different and I was anxious to get past Belleville and out of Cape Town. Driving past the winelands the smell of rotting grape skins was strong. A couple of the farms I drove past one could see the piles of grape skins and stalks being loaded onto tractor trailers ready to be taken out to the fields to become compost. I have always wondered if there is no other use for the leftovers other than compost...

Slowly the road climbs until you come to face to face with Du Toitskloof mountains that separate Paarl from Worcester. In late January I was coming in the opposite direction and there was an oppressive berg wind blowing with the outside temperatures ranging in the late 30's to early 40's. Today it was mild and pleasant. I used the Huguenot Tunnel and stopped in Worcester for a cup of coffee and a snack.

Other than the frequent Fraserberg signs the rest of the leg was pretty uneventful..

Accidents (1)

• A rolled BMW 3 series on the death stretch between Laingsburg and Beaufort West – Picture from Flickr

Speed Traps and Speed Cameras

• On the Worcester side of the Huguenot Tunnel look out for the bloke who tries to hide behind the armco on the centre island. Speed limit 100km. Chances that you will be going faster - moderate (nice sweeping bends and good condition road)
• All little towns have cameras either when you enter or when you leave or both. Speed limit 60km. Chances that you will be going faster - High (60 seems positively stationary when you have been watching the scenery fly past at 120 for the last 2 hours... never speed through little dorpies)