The first time our friends Bill and Tammy Snell, hailing from Orlando, Florida, in the good old US of A, did a bike trip with us, it was to Botswana, documented in ‘Botswana Odyssey’. KTM were kind enough to loan us bikes for that trip. A couple of years later KTM again obliged when we took Bill and Tammy through Swaziland, the KZN Midlands, Clarens and back to the big smoke. Again the rockstars at KTM helped us out with a 1290 Adventure S and a manic 1290 Super Duke. That story got told in ‘So what will yours be then, Espresso, Cappuccino or a Mochaccino?’.
At the launch of the Norden 901, I mentioned to Husky’s Fred Fensham that I would love to do an extended tour on the hugely impressive Norden. Typical of Fred he rang me up when his Norden stock arrived and they, at last, had a demo model. “About that tour Dave…” It so happened that Bill and Tammy were due to visit again, so a plot was hatched. (Bill is President of Missionary Ventures International, a US-based organisation that does a lot of missionary work all over Africa).
The Husky was ideal for an extended tour but what about the epitome’ of adventure bike offroad excellence, the KTM 890 Adventure R? Can you even consider touring two up on this offroad weapon? A call to Grant Frerichs at KTM is all it took. “Sure Dave, no problem”…flip, I so appreciate KTM’s willingness to help where they can.
We rode south out of Pretoria on a Monday morning. Irene and I were on the Husky and Bill and Tammy were on KTM’s finest. The luggage was two Go Gravel water and dust proof stuff bags bungeed to the luggage racks. All our clothing for a week, including the girls’ body putty, was in those bags. How would the bikes cope with a boring drone down the highway? Surprisingly well in fact. Neither bike has any windshield adjustment. I believe this could be achieved without compromising on offroad performance. The 1290 Adventure R has an adjustable shield after all. The main wind-blast is taken off your chest, however, and the cruise control with which both bikes are blessed is a boon.
These two bikes share so much DNA but are so different in how they go about their business. The KTM has the WP Explore suspension, with 240 mm of travel at both ends. The forks are also beefy 48 mm units whereas the Husky runs 43 mm WP Apex shocks with 220 mm of travel in the front and 215 mm at the back. The suspension is fully adjustable for preload and damping on both bikes. The KTM is appreciably firmer given its full attack capability. The Norden is plush by comparison.
We equipped both bikes with gel seat pads for the passengers which got a solid thumbs-up from both girls. I found the Norden perch wide, firm and supportive. The KTM on the other hand expects you to be standing a lot of the time and doesn’t pay as much attention to seat comfort. Our tails got put to the test due to having to take a detour through Welkom. Apparently, the residents of Ventersburg were protesting due to the lack of service delivery and lobbing rocks at passers-by…welcome to SA, Bill and Tam.
With cruise controls set to 135 km/h at a chilled 5,500 rpm, the bikes were giving us 5l/100. Brilliant! 20 litres of fuel goes a long way with that sort of economy. In the late afternoon, after a light sprinkling of rain, we got to ride our first little bit of dirt, as we did 5 k’s of gravel to our overnight accommodation. The place we stayed on our first and last night really deserves an honourable mention.
Tzamenkomst River Lodge is on the banks of the Orange River, 20 k’s before Colesburg. The river view is beautiful and watching the setting sun turn the river as red as molten lava is a scene not easily forgotten. Dinner was delicious lamb shanks and veggies washed down with a superb Kleine Zalze Cab Sav. Then it was off to very comfortable cottages for a well-earned kip. Tzamenkomst offers decent value for money given the fine facilities and deserves a visit if you are travelling in that area.
Breakfast done, we rode out towards Colesburg in fresh early morning chill. Taking the road to Graaf-Reinet it was invigorating to take in the stunning endless Karoo vistas under an azure sky with brush strokes of white cloud here and there. The bikes continued to impress. A smoothly delivered 105 hp and 100 Nm of torque punts you along effortlessly, even two up and loaded. With the peak torque at 6500 rpm, the motor is around its sweet spot travelling between 135 and 150 km/h. Snicking up or down with the bi-directional quick-shifter makes it effortless to maintain momentum. Why you think you need more, with the weight penalty that comes with the bigger Adventure bikes, is beyond me.
The bikes carry their fuel low, enhancing the lightweight feel. The KTM was Karoo 3 shod whilst the 901 was running Pirelli Scorpion Rallys. Both bikes were stable and sure-footed everywhere we rode them, inspiring huge confidence. 18” rears and 21” fronts allow brilliant offroad tyre choice. The bend on the bars enhances excellent overall ergos. Seated or standing, the riding position feels just right. Taller riders may well consider bar risers for offroad standing riding though.
Naude’s Nek and Loodsberg passes were strafed before rolling into Graaf-Reinet and beyond. Stopping at a farm stall after 80 k’s of arrow-straight road between Aberdeen and Willowmore, we chatted to Jake, a fresh-faced young Brit, cycling from Cape Town to Kenya. Respect! Taking on the wind we were enduring, on a bicycle, takes a special sort of fortitude.
We sped past Willowmore then turned right down a long beautiful valley to De Rust. At this time of year, the Karoo is dotted with a profusion of wildflowers. Predominantly orange but with clumps of bright purple flowers too. Reminded me of the scripture that says “not even Solomon in all his glory was arrayed as one of these”.
The road T-Junctions at the start of Meiringspoort. Riding this piece of road on a bike, with unimpeded views of the towering mountain faces, is simply awesome! It is a short haul from there to Prince Albert. If you have not yet visited this quaint Karoo town then you need to get your act together. We scoffed afternoon coffee and cake at the Lazy Lizard before pulling into Casa Milorca, our quaint B+B for the night. Again we hit the motherlode in terms of comfortable accommodation.
Craft gin sundowners at the stunningly restored Prince Albert Hotel preceded a delicious dinner at ‘The Rude Chef Bistro’. Strolling back to our digs along silent load shedding darkened streets was very pleasant. There is a lot to be said about relaxed small-town living! Smiles come easily to the faces of locals, in stark contrast to our typical big city life with its particular stresses and strains. The Karoo was definitely getting us under its mystical spell. We toppled into comfy beds after a wonderful day’s riding. Tomorrow would be the highlight of our trip. We would get to traverse the spectacular Swartberg Pass, complete with hairpin bends and steep ascents and descents through unique fynbos flora.
We had an elephant feeding appointment at 10:00 AM for Bill and Tammy at a Safari spot near Oudtshoorn, so we rode out of town at 7:30 AM the next morning. 5 k’s out of town we turned onto the Swartberg Pass dirt road. A splendid cutting through the mountain crosses two streams and then leads out onto the climb up the pass. As you go up, the views get more and more stunning. We stopped to take some pics and Tammy had a moment all of her own.
In her haste to get off the bike, her foot hooked on her gel seat pad and she landed on her back in the dust, spraining her ankle properly too. Murphy’s law dictated that at that precise moment, two mountain bikers were descending towards us at breakneck speed. A bakkie was also looking for a way past going up the Pass. Irene came to the rescue (after first telling Tammy to hold the pose for a pic, not realising that she had done herself mischief) plucking Tammy out of harm’s way. Bill looked mighty relieved. I think he envisaged Tammy with a set of MTB tyre tracks across her torso becoming a speed bump for the bakkie. Ribbing Tammy about her capsize, we suggested that she starts a vlog entitled “Itchy Booty…Off her bike”.
We stopped at a few more vantage points for photos, then descended the Pass, which transitions to a super smooth tar road which sweeps through perfect constant radius bends for kilometres. We rolled in for our elephant appointment in amazing spirits. An encounter of this sort with these huge, yet so gentle African behemoths tend to leave you somewhat speechless. It is the emotions that are evoked that are so difficult to express adequately.
Tammy hobbled and hopped back to the bikes before we rode to the eclectic Smitswinkel eatery in Oudtshoorn for brunch. Our lunch stop became a bit extended so we made haste as we rode to De Rust, past Willowmore, with a hectic crosswind battering us to Aberdeen (for a quick splash and dash) then Graaf-Reinet, before turning off to Nieu-Bethesda, nestling in the heart of the Sneeuberg mountains. Starry Nights was our B+B of choice, as I have stayed there on previous trips, including when my mate Cobus and I rode Baviaans.
Nieu-Bethesda, like most tourism-driven towns, comes alive on weekends. Given that we arrived on a Wednesday night during load shedding, there was not a lot going on. I also discovered that in a senior moment, and in my haste to get going, I had left my phone at Smitswinkel. Oh, bugger! Weary and worked up, we sought some solace at Boeties Pub, the local watering hole. As so often happens, it turned into a really great evening, including some counselling with a young lady who runs the restaurant where we ate. She had recently suffered some severe family trauma and really needed to get it all off her chest. Sometimes you find yourself in the right place at the right time. The therapeutic effect of ‘Dr Jamieson’ did the trick and a good time was had by all.
The Tower Cafe was our breakfast venue. Great service and great food soon had us fortified for further travel, so we packed, then grabbed a coffee at The Brewery and Two Goats Deli, before riding a short 215 k’s for a day of R+R at Tzamenkomst River Lodge, before our long haul back home. We got there in the early afternoon and just chilled out before another lovely sunset-splashed evening of cold drinks and good food. In bed by 10:00 PM, we woke to the sound of thunder and rain at 2:00 AM.
Oh boy, about that rain gear that we don’t have! We woke to intermittent rain which luckily, by the time we left at 8:00 AM after breakfast, held off for a while. The bikes again impressed with their sure-footed handling on what was now a somewhat muddy dirt track back to the N1. We again got sprinkled with occasional showers and rode wet roads until 50 k’s before Bloem. The 901 and KTM ran sweetly in the cool and damp air, with the speed controls set at 150 km/h.
We got into a monumental traffic jam 40 odd k’s before Bloem resulting from the worst road accident that I have ever had the misfortune of witnessing. A Fortuner appeared to have ploughed into another, possibly stationary vehicle at high speed, ripping the engine and gearbox out of the car and bowing the chassis like a banana. The damage to the other vehicle was so extreme that it was not even recognisable. Horrific! The bikes allowed us to filter past and get on our way. Cars must have been stuck there for hours. The bikes hummed home from there, only to hit Jo’Burg at peak hour on a Friday. A reality check of note.
Reflecting on our trip and on the bikes, in particular, a few things come to mind. Distinctly different in character despite their shared DNA, they are horses for slightly different courses. The Norden is stylish and capable on all surfaces. The two-up comfort is obviously better than the KTM, courtesy of a more accommodating seat and bodywork. The suspension was never found lacking given the demands of two-up touring, whether on tar or dirt it inspired confidence. This is one smooth Swede.
The Katoom is a whole different story. It coped surprisingly well with the ‘work-man-like’ role that we subjected it to. Can you tour on an Adventure R? Hell yes! It does require some comfort compromise, but not as much as you may imagine. What it does do is allow its race pedigree to shine through in the most spectacular way. The harder you ride it the better it responds, with a kind of “is that the best you’ve got?” attitude that makes it incredibly appealing to anyone with even a smidge of adrenalin in their system.
So, you may ask, which one would I like to own? That’s easy…both! They are both purposeful pieces of kit which excel at their intended purpose with dash and panache which is sometimes rare in our sanitised world. The Norden for practical all-around adventure bike stuff and the 890 R to rip! No other adventure bike on the planet comes even close to the dynamic ability of this bike. If you hail from an offroad riding background you will settle for nothing less. It’s a big motard on the road and a dirt bike in the dirt.
A huge thanks to our friends at KTM for the loan of these two magnificent bikes. 2665 k’s covered in 5 days, at an average of 5,2l/100, two up and riding between 135 and 150 km/h. That’s impressive!
For more information on the bike featured in this article, click on the links below…
