Route Description
This arguably rates as the favourite mountain biking discovery of the year, with a range of world-class, purpose-built trails for mountain bikers and trail runners with a proper sense of adventure.
You get to run and ride in a safe and picturesque environment, and will sample quality, hand-built single-track expertly crafted by Mark Oberman. Expect it to be flowy, dippy and utterly rideable, with a range of fairly non-technical natural and man-made obstacles to test your full skill set in the saddle.
The majority of your riding at 3 Silos MTB Park will be amidst eucalyptus plantations, densely wooded valleys, savannah grassland and indigenous Eastern Cape montane and riverine forest. You have three trails options to choose from. The Blue (18 km) and Red (20.5 km) trails include a massive climb around the 7 km mark, while the easier Yellow (10.7 km) Route bypasses this Calf-cruncher.
The Red Route brims with superb, purpose-built single-track, with a smattering of super-tight bends, a good few wooden bridges (even some floating ones!) and stiles, drops, stream crossings, switchbacks, climbs and descents and a generous dollop of hard grunt.
A Kiddies’ Loop - Green Trail
Big wheelers will struggle with their 29ers on the very tight bends, but there is more than enough cool single-track sections twisting amongst the trees for you to fully enjoy the natural surroundings. A Kiddies’ Loop (Green Trail) caters specifically for children over 8 yrs, including some short trails options of 2 km, 4 km and 7.5 km. The rugrats get their own cool single track, the odd rock garden, mild climbs, fence jumps, switchbacks, bridges, a 15 m floating bridge and an 80 m floating pallet bridge (on the 7.5 km trail).
An added attraction is the 3 Silos MTB Park ‘Afkak Hill’ route. This comes with a bit of a ‘health’ warning, as the gritty climbs and tricky switchbacks are not for overly cautious types. Winter riding brings with it a few added tests, especially in the deep-forest sections, with wet roots, mud and slippery crossings - take due care!
The trails here are constantly rebuilt, monitored and improved, so you can bet your bottom bracket on a brilliant ride, every time. Entry fees are payable via an honesty box system and trails stay open 24/7. It is also a brilliant night-riding destination, but please keep your headlights on and be on a constant lookout for game on the trails.