the little karoo can only be accessed by road through the narrow defiles cut through the surrounding cape fold mountains by ancient, but still flowing, rivers. a few roads traverse the mountains over passes, the most famous and impressive of which is the swartberg pass between oudtshoorn in the little karoo and prince albert on the other side of the swartberg mountains in the great karoo. also, the main road between oudtshoorn and george, on the coastal plain, crosses the mountains to the south via the outeniqua pass. the only exit from the little karoo that does not involve crossing a mountain range is through the 150-km-long, narrow langkloof valley between uniondale and humansdorp, near plettenberg bay.