We recently visited Rosendal in the Eastern Free State and decided to do a road trip using the back roads to Fouriesburg.

We left Rosendal heading to Ficksburg on the main tar road and then turned left onto the S385 gravel road. We continued following this road driving past Moolmanshoek Nature Reserve and when the road eventually forked we kept left.

This road snakes its way though some of the beautiful sandstone mountains until it reach the main tar road from Ficksburg to Fouriesburg.

When we got to the tar road we turned left and travelled for about 5km to Ionia Cherry Farm. Unfortunately we missed out on the Cherries because the season on started three weeks later (mid November). Ionia normally has a big Cherry festival around the 3 weekend in November with Cherry tours, MTB trails and live music.

Leaving Ionia with bags loaded of Cherry jam and liqueur we drove to Fouriesburg were we stopped for lunch at the Orange Apple. This shop not only offers excellent food, but also a large number of produce from the area in the form of jams, chilly pickle, etc.

Make sure you visit then from mid November when fresh cherries is available to have a slice of their freshly baked Cherry Pie.

We decided to take the tar road back to Ficksburg, and again turned off on the S349 heading back to Rosendal.

Tips: Always deflate your vehicle’s tires on gravel roads as to ensure a softer ride and if you are driving a 4×4 vehicle you can always engage 4×4 high gear for better traction.