Tractor trips and potjiekos in the Koo Valley
Since 1985, every Wednesday and Saturday, a blue Ford has towed a trailer of visitors up the Langeberg to a stone hut at 1 491 m. There’s Muscadel at the top and a potjie at the bottom.
Past the dams
The tractor pulls out of the yard at 977 m, rattles past two farm dams and into the pines. Nobody talks much yet.
Oom Niel’s road
Then the zigzags start. Niel Burger cut this road into the Langeberg himself. The fynbos closes in, and in season the wild proteas the farm is named for are right beside the trailer.
The hut, 1 491 m
The road stops at a stone hut below Dassieshoek. Everyone climbs off, stretches, and gets a glass of Muscadel and a handful of dried fruit from the farm.
The view north
The whole Koo is laid out below in orchard blocks. On a clear day the Matroosberg shows on the skyline, 2 249 m high and about 40 km off. Then it’s back down, and the potjies are waiting.
Book a visit
Oom Niel Burger built the road up the mountain himself. Later he hitched a trailer to the tractor so other people could see what he saw from the top. That was 1985. His son Pierre still drives it, twice a week.
The hut at the end of the road is at 1 491 m, about 400 m higher than the top of Table Mountain. The farm has been in the Burger family since 1780.
Up the mountain
The tractor pulls out of the farmyard in the morning with a trailer full of people and climbs the farm road into the Langeberg. It stops halfway for fruit and juice and a look back at the valley.
At the top there’s a stone hut, a glass of Muscadel and a handful of dried fruit. On the way up you look over the Koo. On the way down it’s the Robertson valley far below, with McGregor in the distance.
- When
- Wednesdays and Saturdays, mornings. An afternoon trip on busy days.
- How long
- About two and a half hours there and back.
- Cost
- R300 adults, R250 teens and students, R170 kids. Under 3 free.
- Bring
- A jersey, a hat and a camera. It’s colder at the top.
Every bend of Oom Niel’s road
3.7 km from the farmyard to the hut, and 514 m of climb. Scroll down and the tractor drives it.
South is at the top, so the road climbs up the page. Contours every 20 m from satellite elevation data. Tracks from OpenStreetMap.
- 977 m
The farmyard, the dams and the pines.
- 1 090 m
Out of the trees and onto the open mountain face.
- 1 220 m
The zigzags start below Dassieshoek. This is the bit people talk about afterwards.
- 1 491 m
The stone hut, and the Muscadel.
Lunch under the pines
Back at the bottom, the potjies have been on the coals all morning. Lamb and chicken, usually, with a bread table, wine and juice, and moer koffie to finish. Lunch is served at long tables under the pines, with swings for the kids.
It’s R300 for adults, and you can have it before or after the trip.
What people say
4.8 on Google from nearly 500 reviews
Just when you think you’ve gone high enough, nope, the tractor keeps going.
Megan Greyling, Google review
Definitely one of our highlights in South Africa. If you are anywhere near Montagu, this is a must do.
Udo Nuss, Google review
The farm owner himself drives the tractor high up in the mountain.
Marisa Triegaardt, Google review
I have been coming here since I was 2 years old. 20 years later it is still an absolutely wonderful place to visit.
Alex Blom, Google review
Stay the night
Four self catering cottages and a campsite by the river. Sleep over and you’re first in line for the tractor in the morning.
Bring the whole lot
School outings, year end functions, church and club trips, and tour groups from overseas. Tell us how many and which day, and we’ll plan the tractor and the potjie around you.
Schools
A morning on the Cape Fold Mountains, fynbos in the wild and lunch on a working fruit farm.
Teams and year end
Out of the office and up a mountain, then a long lunch under the trees.
Tour groups
A real Western Cape farm day, two hours from Cape Town on the way along Route 62.
Two hours from Cape Town. 29 km from Montagu.
We’re on the R318 at the top of Burgers Pass. Come through the Hex River Valley, or take the long way on Route 62 through Robertson and Montagu, which Kfm listeners voted Best Dorpie in the Cape 2026.
It works as a long day trip from Cape Town. Most people who come from overseas stay a night or two and see Montagu as well.
Before you come
All the questionsHow far is Protea Farm from Cape Town?
A little over two hours. Take the N1 through the Huguenot Tunnel and the Hex River Valley, then the R318 towards Montagu. Our gate is at the top of Burgers Pass, 29 km before Montagu. It works as a long day trip, but most people who come from overseas stay a night or two.
Which days does the tractor go up?
Wednesdays and Saturdays, in the morning. On busy days there’s an afternoon trip too. It takes about two and a half hours there and back.
What does it cost?
R300 for adults, R250 for teens and students, R170 for kids aged 3 to 12. Under 3 is free. The potjie costs the same again.
Is it really higher than Table Mountain?
Yes. The hut is at 1 491 m. The top of Table Mountain is about 1 085 m, so you’re roughly 400 m higher, and the peak behind the hut goes up to 1 698 m.
Book a Wednesday or a Saturday
The tractor trip is R300 for adults, and the potjie the same again. Spring weekends and school holidays fill up first.