Route 62: 850km Through the Passes the Khoisan Named

850 kilometres of mountain passes, farm stalls, brandy, and the frontier that time forgot. Route 62 connects Cape Town's wine country to the Klein Karoo interior through passes named by the Khoisan. Robertson wine valley offers Shiraz and Chardonnay at a fraction of Stellenbosch prices. Montagu has hot springs and muscadel. The road follows the path that phylloxera spread inland after 1886.

What to do there

4 things to do

1. 1 Hunt the Mountain Passes That Time Forgot Adventure · Free

   Eight hundred and fifty kilometres of mountain passes with names the Khoisan gave them. Bainskloof. Cogmans Kloof. Passes cart drivers crossed when brandy was the only spirit at the Cape. Start from Worcester or Franschhoek, heading east through the Breede River Valley toward Montagu. Drive slowly. The dried peaches at Montagu farm stalls, the muscadel in Barrydale, the witblits distilled in secret for 300 years—this is South African wine history written in mountain rock and fruit. This is the road phylloxera followed inland from 1886, killing vineyards and replacing them with orchards. The frontier that wine forgot, but brandy never did. Stop at every farm stall. If you're short on time, drive Worcester → Robertson → Montagu → Calitzdorp (250km) to catch the best wine stops.

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2. 2 Taste the Valley That Undercuts Stellenbosch Wine · Price: low

   Here's the secret Capetonians don't tell tourists: Robertson Shiraz and Chardonnay rival anything from Stellenbosch. At a fraction of the price. Graham Beck MCC was served at Barack Obama's inauguration and Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday. It costs R150-250 (under $15 USD). Equivalent Champagne quality = $80+. Robertson Wine Valley sits halfway along Route 62, between Worcester and Montagu. More than 50 award-winning wineries. Stop at Graham Beck Estate for world-class MCC tasting. Then De Wetshof—South Africa's 'eminent Chardonnay House' and the first registered wine estate in Robertson. If you want quirky: Viljoensdrift offers wine tasting on a boat. If you only have time for one stop, make it Graham Beck. The MCC alone justifies the detour.

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3. 3 Soak Where Dried Fruit Kings Built Art Deco Empires Adventure · Price: low

   Montagu made a fortune in the early 1900s exporting dried peaches and apricots to Europe. The wealth shows: the Montagu Country Hotel is the only original Art Deco hotel on Route 62, built when dried fruit barons had more money than taste. Avalon Springs hot mineral pools sit at the base of the Langeberg Mountains, fed by natural springs. Day visitor entry R150-175, open 08:00-23:00. Multiple thermal pools, jacuzzis, waterslides. After soaking, walk historic Church Street to see Art Deco buildings from the fruit boom era. If hot springs aren't your thing, visit Kingna Distillery (18km outside town) for mountain-view brandy tasting in the Klein Karoo heat.

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4. 4 Find the Road Where Vineyards Became Orchards History · Free · Optional

   Watch wine history erase itself in real time. As you drive east from Robertson toward Barrydale, the vineyards give way to fruit orchards. Peaches. Apricots. Raisins. Phylloxera spread along this exact route after 1886. Farmers couldn't replant vines on infested soils, so they planted fruit instead. The Klein Karoo became the dried fruit capital because a vine louse from France killed an entire wine region. Stop at roadside farm stalls between Montagu and Calitzdorp. Buy dried peaches, apricots, preserves. Ask the farmers: 'Were there vineyards here before?' Some will remember stories their grandparents told. The orchards you're eating from replaced wine. The oldest farms with stone buildings sometimes still have empty wine cellars from the 1800s, now storing fruit.

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