Cape Sidecar Adventures: A Cape Town Tour on a Vintage Motorcycle with a Surprising Tour Buddy

Chapman’s Peak and the roads along the Atlantic Seaboard in Cape Town are among the most scenic in the world. In fact, these roads are used in car commercials and movie opening title sequences (Not that I can think of a single example right now, but they are!). Ever since I moved here, I have wanted to drive along this road (especially Chapman's Peak specifically) but as a passenger. I have wanted someone else to do the hard work of having to keep the vehicle on the road so that I could get blissfully distracted by the incredible views. 

I finally got my wish and in a far better way than I ever could have expected: on a live unicorn! ...Okay, it was only the second-best way to experience this drive, but it was still incredible! 

I recently joined Cape Sidecar Adventures on a trip around Table Mountain in the sidecar of a vintage motorcycle, and it was obscenely fun and scenic. Like, ‘Why is this legal?’ levels of fun.

This company just celebrated their 21st birthday, and what a cool company it is! They have 50 vintage bikes, which means they can take just over 100 people on a ride. They also have more leather jackets than any biker bar I’ve ever been in. And you know me and biker bars!

 

My experience of a Cape Sidecar Adventure Tour

At the Cape Sidecar Adventures depot in Woodstock, the experience starts like any good experience would: with the signing of an indemnity form. After this, you get kitted out with a beanie, gloves, a leather jacket and a vintage helmet. They will give you goggles too, otherwise sunglasses work perfectly fine as well. You’re also given a buff that is yours to keep. I will treasure mine always.

It's hard to tell with that magnificent buff, but that's me!

Vee: Driver, Guide, Former-Broker, and General Badass

Vee was my 'driver'...? 'Rider'? I don’t know. Both terms feel wrong, but she rode the motorbike that my sidecar was attached to. 

Before she was a professional biker, she was a broker with her own financial brokerage. Then, after a number of back ops, she had to give it all up. She had her own Harley, as one does, and one day she met some people from Cape Sidecar Adventures on “Chappies” (Chapman’s Peak). They looked like they were having the time of their lives (it's hard not to), and before she knew it, she was one of them. 

Jeffrey The Bike

Our trip was on (or attached to) a bike named Jeffrey who is 56 years old (but has been modernised with some safety features). Most bikes have feminine names, but there are some masculine names in there too. They are all named after people close to the owners of the company. 

Some bikes have a double bucket, which means they can accommodate two people (one behind the other). Together with a passenger on the bike behind the driver, these bikes can take three passengers. Jeffrey was one of those bikes. Sharing my sidecar with me was a handsome fella named Theo. 

My Fellow Passenger: Theo

When I was a teenager and I left the house to go out with my friends, my parents would ask me where I was going, and I would usually tell them I was going out with a gang of bikers to sell drugs and pirate DVDs (dating myself there!). Though I was joking back then, I think I have finally found my gang and I have to confess that a biker has stolen my heart.

Anyone who has heard of Cape Sidecar Adventures before will have heard about Brody. Brody is an 11-year-old dog and the company’s mascot. He has been on so many rides and made so many human friends from around the world that he has his own coffee table book. 

The legend that is Brody

Due to Brody’s more advanced age, he is now more selective about which rides he goes on, but he has trained up a successor, who, like him, is a ‘graduate’ of DARG (Domestic Animal Rescue Group). 

Theo and Brody used to share a single bucket but they’re a bit too big now to both fit. 

When Theo was more than keen for a sidecar adventure, Brody was kind enough to let him use his ‘doggles’ (goggles for dogs) and he became my sidecar companion for the trip, even letting me take the front seat. Dogs are the best! 

The Perfect Route for a Motorcycle Tour in Cape Town

The route took us through Newlands, past Kirstenbosch and over Chapman’s Peak to Noordhoek Farm Village. There we stopped for a tea and toilet break.

Then we went back over Chapman’s Peak and along the Atlantic side of Table Mountain with the incredible views of the ocean and the fancy parts of Cape Town like Llandudno and Camps Bay, through to Sea Point, and back through the city to Woodstock. 

We intentionally went this way around the mountain so that the sidecar side was facing the best views. 

After six years of feeling like a tourist in Cape Town, I still feel like there is so much more for me to experience. Every time I see the city from a different perspective, like this one, I realise how little I know about Cape Town, and I fall even more in love with it. 

A Cape Town History Lesson on the Side of a Vintage Motorcycle

I didn’t expect to learn so much along the way. I assumed I wouldn’t be able to hear Vee and the trip would be all about the sights instead of the stories. But Vee was exceptionally knowledgeable and I learnt lots of interesting facts about Rhodes Drive, the Lichtenstein Castle, leopards in Hout Bay, how Maiden’s Cove got its name, and so much more that I never knew (even though I do a lot of tours - Lots!)

We also stopped to look at this mountain that for realzies looks like a Rhino

Theo couldn't believe it either

Other Services Offered by Cape Sidecar Adventures

A Repurposed Fire Truck Called Mrs. Doubtfire

Mrs. Doubtfire is the name of their vintage fire truck that they often take on bike runs with large groups of people. They use her to serve coffee. She can also be used as a mobile party bus in Cape Town or booked out for private events.

They Also Have a Distillery

Sidecar Caffè Distillery is a family micro-distillery and tasting room at their base in Woodstock where they produce traditional spirits & liqueurs with a distinctly South African twist. I sampled their Limoncello at WTM and it was really good!

Getting drunk on scenery instead of Limoncello

Final Thoughts 

Cape Sidecar Adventures seems to be one of those companies that works because so many passionate people have found their way to them. It really feels like a family. 

After this experience, I left on something of a high. And no, I didn’t have anything from the distillery. Vee was so warm and lovely with interesting stories to share, Theo was so precious, and the sights of Cape Town were just disgustingly spectacular. It’s hard to walk away from an experience like this feeling anything other than high on life. 

Thanks to Tim, Vee, and Theo for such a special experience. 

My only regret is that I now have to return to travelling in a car like a normal person instead of being a majestic, wind-swept, sidecar-riding badass. But at least I have officially peak-Chapman’s-Peaked now. There’s no other way to do that road!

They have a number of different routes and tours for a range of budgets to choose from. Find out more or book your own Cape Sidecar Adventure here.

Things to do Near Cape Sidecar Adventures' Depot in Woodstock 

• Discover the street art and markets of Woodstock
• Do a cooking class with Food Jams 
• Learn about diamonds and drink gin at The Rockwell Shimansky Experience
• Experience authentic African entertainment and food at GOLD Restaurant
• Explore the underground tunnels underneath the Castle of Good Hope