Montagu Pass is situated in the

Western Cape The Western Cape is a province of South Africa, situated on the south-western coast of the country. It is the fourth largest of the nine provinces with an area of , and the third most populous, with an estimated 7 million inhabitants in 2020 ...

province of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

, on the unsigned road between Herold and

George George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

. The all gravel pass parallels the newer

Outeniqua Pass The Outeniqua Pass is a mountain pass in the Western Cape, South Africa, that carries the N9/ N12 national road through the Outeniqua Mountains north of George. It connects George and the Garden Route coastal plain with Oudtshoorn and the Little ...

which is designated as the N9/ N12. The pass was named after John Montagu, Colonial Secretary of the Cape in the 1840s, whose enthusiasm for good roads resulted in the first ambitious program of construction in Southern Africa. It was damaged by floods in November 1996, and was closed for most of 1997. It has been repaired and is now open. A driving time of about one hour will take one over the

Outeniqua Mountains The Outeniqua Mountains, named after the Outeniqua Khoikhoi who lived there, is a mountain range that runs a parallel to the southern coast of South Africa, and forms a continuous range with the Langeberg to the west and the Tsitsikamma Mountains ...

and through the village of Herold to the N9.

Construction

In 1844, some 250 convicts started with the construction of the pass and it was opened for traffic in December 1847. The passage over the Outeniqua mountains, which used to take a full three days over the Cradock Pass, could now be accomplished within three hours. Today it takes 15 minutes by car. Henry Fancourt White, an English-born early emigrant to then Cape Colony, was an experienced road engineer in charge of the work. His name is perpetuated in the lovely Fancourt Estate and in the village of Blanco (originally called White's Village). On the ascent, one passes the Old Tollhouse where once the toll of one penny per wheel and one penny per ox had to be paid. This historic building, declared a National Monument, is currently in a bad state having been vandalised. "Keurrivier se brug" further on has also been declared a National Monument. The original stone wall still exists all along the pass. The name boards tell interesting tales. The narrowest part of the pass with overhanging cliffs was called "Die Noute". Here wagons could not pass abreast. Further on is "Regop Trek", the steepest part of the road. Where the road passes underneath the railway bridge, is "Stinkhoutdraai" where stinkwood trees used to grow in profusion. In this way the pass continues, until reaching the hotel at North Station. The oldest part of the building dates back to 1840.

The Old Toll House

This building is built of local stone and it is a proclaimed heritage site. The toll was 2 pence per wheel and one penny for each pulling animal, 2 pence for a horse, cow, ox or mule and 1 half a penny for a sheep, goat or pig. The first toll keeper was John Kirk Smith who was born in Nottingham, England, in 1818.

External links

{{Commons category, Montagu Pass
Passes Index
at Wild Dog Adventure Riding website File:Montagu Pass sign.jpg, Montagu Pass roadsign File:Montagu Pass01.jpg, Remains of shop File:Montagu Pass02.jpg, Convict plaque File:Montagu Pass04.jpg, Old picture File:Montagu Pass05.jpg, Recent picture Mountain passes of the Western Cape South African heritage sites