The Bloukrans Pass is a pass through the ravine of the Bloukrans River on the R102 between Plettenberg Bay and Jeffreys Bay, in the Western Cape of South Africa. Before the establishment of the Garden Route section of South Africa's N2 highway a small secondary road (R102), snaking its way through the area's valleys and gorges, provided the only access into South Africa's "Garden of Eden". When the R102 was built its engineers did not have the luxury of today's huge concrete-arch bridges and thus the route descends into gorges rather than jumping across them. If you have time, diverting from the N2 onto the R102 makes for a very scenic and quiet detour. On the Garden Route the best sections of the R102 are those incorporating the Bloukrans River Pass and Grootrivier Pass.
If you are doing a self-drive tour it is advisable that you enquire about the state of the roads from locals before venturing onto them.
The Bloukrans Pass (Afrikaans for "Blue Cliff" Pass) diverts from the N2 near the Storms River Mouth turn-off. It descends into the Bloukrans River Gorge, winding its way through indigenous forest. The area is rich in bird life and you will probably see vervet monkeys or baboons along the way. At the bottom of the Gorge one has a perfect view of the very impressive Bloukrans River Bridge in the distance (located on the N2). The Bridge is the base for the highest commercial bungy site in the world. If you hang around long enough you'll see what looks like ant-like figures from a distance, jumping off the Bridge. From this vantage point you probably get the best idea of just how high a jump it is.
Once you cross the Bloukrans River, which in most seasons is not much more than a mountain stream, the road climbs back to the coastal plateau and rejoins the N2 some way east of Plettenberg Bay and inland from Nature's Valley. Crossing the N2, continuing on the R102, will lead you onto the Grootrivier Pass towards Nature's Valley.
The pass underwent major repairs during 2011.
