The Outeniqua Powervan

A unique experience awaits you when you travel on the Outeniqua Power Van’s railbus from George on the Oudtshoorn railway-pass.

Panoramic views over the Outeniqua Mountain Nature Reserve can be enjoyed whilst listening to the commentary of an experienced tour guide.

The stunning beauty of the Outeniqua Mountains unfolds as you travel one of South Africa’s most scenic routes. Experience the forest, four passes, water falls, seven tunnels, fynbos, proteas, bird, animal life and the panoramic picnic site. Take a picnic basket.

Trips start from 07:30. Tariffs are: R95 (adults) and R75 (children, ages 3 to 15). Booking is essential. A picnic stop is usually made at a former steam train watering point called ‘Power’
Now steam, it is not, but train it is, with only two cars or car­riages,  seat­ing only 12 people each, and powered up the rail­way pass by a ‘motor­ised trol­ley’. So we made our book­ing, which you need to do, and pre­pared for our depar­ture at 11h00. (A second run had been added at 14h00, since it was hol­i­day season.)

The rail­way pass travels par­al­lel at times, to the old Montague Pass, and the train powers its way up to the highest point. The jour­ney is accom­pan­ied by a know­ledge­able guide, who nar­rates details from the res­id­ent flora, to the his­tory of ox wag­ons tra­vers­ing the haz­ard­ous pass. At points on the upward jour­ney you can view all three passes; the old dirt road, the rail­way pass and the majestic new road. The upward route ends at the point at which the rail­way pass and old Montagu Pass meet.

On the upward jour­ney one passes through six little tun­nels, At times the pass is so nar­row that you think you are going to brush the rock face on either side! The rail­way passes through areas of forest and fyn­bos, includ­ing an abund­ance of king pro­teas, cul­min­at­ing in spec­tac­u­lar views at the summit. The return leg brings you back through the six tun­nels, with the cars trav­el­ling in reverse order, offer­ing pas­sen­gers an altern­ate view. About halfway down the pass we stopped at a pic­nic site, to enjoy our packed lunches and take in the sur­round­ing scenery.

The Powervan des­cends back into the Outeniqua Transport Museum in George, which houses an array of steam loco­mot­ives and car­riages from days gone by.

Save some time either before or after the jour­ney, to explore the amaz­ing his­tory of travel in South Africa, includ­ing a fas­cin­at­ing photo gal­lery of steam trains at the Outeniqua Transport Museum.

The two hour exper­i­ence, with an addi­tional half-hour for lunch, costs R95 for adults and R75 for chil­dren; a worth­while way to spend a morn­ing. An altern­at­ive for the act­ive at heart, is to take a moun­tain bike with you on the up jour­ney, and cycle the 15km back down the Montague Pass into George and to the rail­way museum.

Special trips for special occasions or functions can be arranged. You may take your own mountain bike on the Power Van and cycle down the scenic Montaqu Pass, a trip of 15km back to the Railway Museum. Group bookings for 20 passengers may be made. Trips are also offered from George to Great Brak of Mossel Bay on which route splendid views may be enjoyed, especially at Maalgate Bridge and Glentana Heights.

Special excursions are also offered to Camfer (over the Outeniqua Mountain).

For Bookings: Call:  +27(0)82 490 5627

E-mail to:  opv@mweb.co.za.

Departures:  George’s Outeniqua Railway Museum at 2 Mission Street.