Kingskloof mountain bike trail is located on the western side of Johannesburg in the West Rand. The trail is situated behind the Laurentia farm. This kloof has some amazing scenery and natural beauty. Think Walter Sisulu National Botaniacal gardens but with mtb trails. Kingskloof is not far from there actually and in in the same ridge line.
Laurentia Farm was established in 1898 and is one of the oldest cut rose farms in the country. Louw Geldenhuys bought the Laurentia Farm in 1898. Currently the 5th generation reside on the farm.
MTB Trail Location
The trail head is a small farm stall off the N14 heading west on the N14 from Cradlestone mall on the left had side. There is a signpost before the farmstall indicating Kingskloof. Opening times are normally sunrise one weekends but can vary so best to checkout their Facebook page for latest times. Entry fee is R40pp. There is secure parking inside the fence when they are open. It is also a popular trail running spot.
There are two sets of mtb trails, an easier green section on the northern side of the N14, accessed via the culvert under the road. The main trail section is on the southern side of the N14 into the kloof.
Kingskloof MTB Trail Network
All the mountain bike trails are marked with green, blue, red and black arrows. Green being beginner, blue intermediate and red and black expert. For a while, the trails were not maintained but in the last year, they have been looked after and improved. Thre are some additional routes now and the bridges have been fixed and cattle gates installed so you can keep on riding.
The green route is on the flatter sections on the northern and southern sides on this side of the river. As far as beginner routes go they are fairly technical but not at all dangerous. The total distance is around 14km.
The blue route goes onto either sides of the kloof and crosses the river. This is a fun route with some great single track through the indigenous trees and along the river. There are some technical sections but they can be navigated easily. The total distance is about 11km for the blue route
The main Kingskloof mountain bike trail is the red and black route. This was the first and original trail built. The trail heads through the kloof over an extremely rocky and technical single track, rideable only by the very experienced. The trail then goes down into the kloof and up into the hills at the back of Kingskloof. This is where the real magic and beauty is.
The Mtb trail criss crosses the little stream surrounded by high rugged hills all around. The original black route is around 21km long with a significant amount of climbing. All of the trail is on rocky single track that requires real concentration. Many of the climbs and decents are steep loose and rocky so technical skills are required. This is not hartail territory, a propper full suspension bike is what you need, even better if you have an enduro bike.
Favorite MTB Trail
It is very remote so if you have a fall it will not be easy to get back to the trail head. Its best to ride carefully and ideally with some other riders. The descent back down is via an old wagon trail. This is sure to test your endurance and decending skills. At the end you finish off with parts of the blue route singletrack which is awesome.
This is one of my absolute favorite mtb trails. It helps that I am literally a stone throw away from it but still it is proper mountain biking. The combination of the technical challenge and the natural beauty make this a real favorite. If you link the blue and black trails then you can get a comfortable 30km of awesome mtb trail riding.
