Northern Farms

About 6 months ago, I started cycling. Nothing hectic, I’m more of a leisurely rider who likes to look at the scenery while I’m doing it. My father recently introduced me to Northern Farms. It’s a Nature Reserve out near Diepsloot and I think it may have at one time been a JHB Waterworks site. There is also a cow farm on the property. 

According to the website (http://www.northernfarm.co.za) , it offers over 2500ha of beautiful green grasslands and woodlands to explore. It is a great spot for bird watching, cycling and horse riding. It can get very busy, judging by the number of cars parked, but the area is so big you can go for ages without seeing anyone (although they do tend to sneak up behind you on the single tracks!)

There are 5 marked out routes – pink, green, red and blue. Pink being the easiest and shortest and black the longest. At the moment, I prefer to do the green route, not too many hills and lots of mud! There is a combination of jeep and single tracks and we go past dams, through forests and fields and past cow enclosures.  

I love taking a relaxed cycle around while looking at the awesome scenery. There are green fields and farms with housing complexes, informal settlements and power transmission lines in the distance. Every now and then a Kulula plane takes off overhead – it’s close to Lanseria.  

After your ride, you can drop your bike at the bike wash which is part of the Dipesloot Development Project. They also host the Diepsloot Mountain Bike Academy that provides MTB and life skills training for underprivileged youth sourced from schools in Diepsloot (https://www.facebook.com/DiepslootMTBAcademy).  

There is also a ‘coffee shop’ where you can buy a delicious bacon and egg or cheese and bacon roll with a coffee or Sterie Stumpie. You sit outside on benches under the trees and inhale your roll while cyclist watching.  

It really is a great and safe weekend morning out!