Amphitheatre (Drakensberg) Nov 2004

We all met outside the Biochemistry kitchen at just after 16:00, Friday afternoon. When everybody arrived, we packed the two cars and were just able to squeeze nine people and packs into the two cars. We left after 16:30. Traffic was heavy and the rain we had on the alternative route made driving difficult. Even so, we got to Harrismith at around 9pm, without incident. We soon got a nice spot at the municipal campsite and pitched the tents before the rain started again.

Day 1 (13 November): We woke to a lovely looking day. We had breakfast and took down the tents. At 06:30 we were on our way to Sentinel car park. We got to the car park, signed in, sorted out all the gear and got underway. It really was a lovely morning with a few wispy cirrus clouds in the sky and a cool wind blowing from Lesotho. Having sprained my ankle badly at badminton the past week, I was favoring my left foot and stepping gingerly over the rocks. We kept to a reasonable pace and got into the zig-zags just behind a group of Germans. At the viewpoint we took the higher path and got in front of them at the breakfast rock. The walk around Sentinel and onto the Amphitheatre was pleasant but I could feel that my ankle was protesting a little. Clouds also slowly started materializing and I guessed it was probably going to rain a little later. At the chain ladder I quickly set up a belay system to help Erika to the top. Yolandy came up slow but steady. All the others managed to get up with their packs and while I carried up Erika’s pack everyone made it past the second ladder as well. We rested a bit at the top of the ladder and watched as clouds started building even more. We then continued onto the plateau and then walked straight for the Tugela lip. I was walking quite slowly at this time due to my ankle but when a few rain drops started to spit, I had to stop to put on the Splash cover. But the clouds didn’t really open and we got to the Tugela lip where I decided to have lunch. Most of us got about halfway through when it started raining. We donned our rain gear and started heading for the cave when the rain stopped again. I then sat down to rest a little more and finish our lunch. Finally we packed up again and we headed for the cave. Not far past the hut it started dripping again. About halfway to the cave, small pellets of hail started to fall. I was lagging behind and having a hard time getting up the slope and by the time I had about 100m to go, it was hailing quite hard. Thunderbolts also hit frequently and one got so close that Yolandy, Corné and I all felt a tingly sensation. I finally made it into the cave and we all watched the spectacular electrical storm. We were frightened more than once by terrific lightning flashes and counted five distinct spots on the plateau where it hit. It hailed for about an hour and the entire Tugela bowl in front of us was covered in white hail so thick that it looked like snow. Surprisingly, there was no hail towards the south. We took some photographs and mainly sat around chatting or snoozing while it was still raining outside. The hail later saved us the walk down to the river to collect water. We started dinner at 5pm and it was nice to sit back and relax while Ingrid and Gordon did our group’s cooking. Dinner was finished just after seven and we still chatted well into the night before finally settling down.

Day 2 (14 November): Luckily we did not have any unexpected visitors during the night. Most of us got up for a spectacular sunrise and the cameras flashed away as the sun ascended into a thick bank of clouds. The entire group except Erika wanted to go to Mont-aux-Sources so I walked around with the group to show them where to go while I stayed behind with Erika. I managed to take some pictures of the group on top of Mont-aux-Sources and they were back within the two hour limit I set. We packed up and started to walk to the chain ladder just as it started raining again. But as the group descended, the sky cleared. Just past the saddle between Sentinel and the main wall, I stopped for a rest and tried to give my foot and ankle a rub. Then we were on our way again and eventually we made it down the zig-zags and all the way to the cars. We got there just before 12pm and left for a Nando’s lunch in Harrismith.

Ben Nevis and Europe Oct 2004

On my way to Holland to do some work for my MSc, I stopped off for a day in Madrid. I was in Holland for 5 weeks during which time I also visited Brussels and took a bus trip to Malmo in Sweden. I flew back via the UK and spent some time with friends in London and Durham before taking the train from Newcastle to Fort William via Edinburgh and Glasgow. I stayed over at Fort William Backpackers the nights before and after my ascent of Ben Nevis.

Day 1 (14 October): Though I only got up quite late, everyone was still fast asleep in my room. I had breakfast all by myself, packed my bag in the hallway and got nderway. I took the little path that goes across the spur to Glen Nevis. It was very misty and with the rising sun, the colours in the valley were beautiful. My pack was heavy and I was sweating underneath all the layers of clothes. I was smart enough to forget my tracksuit pants so I hoped I would pull through with my long johns and rain pants. I soon came down into the glen and walked next to the road up to the Visitor Centre. The path then crossed a bridge spanning the Glen Nevis and then continued next to it for about 500m before running straight up to the mountain past sheep grazing. Then the path started climbing slowly and at a very gentle gradient up the slope. I enjoyed the walking despite the heavy sweating – the colours all around me were indescribably pretty. After climbing a little more than 100 vertical metres, I had my first break for the day. The path zig-zagged a little and a few people also going for the top came past me. Every one of them were carrying daypacks only and although some of them thought I was nuts, most of them thought it was pretty brave and cool to sleep out alone in the mountains. The gradient increased slightly to the saddle just below the halfway mark. Loch Lachan was lying tranquilly in the morning sunshine and it was a spectacularly beautiful day. At a large cairn I sat down to have a leisurely lunch. My left foot had started acting up again but at least I was pretty much where I planned to sleep so I took my shoes off and basked in the morning sunshine. Many people came past and I chatted with quite a few of them. After lunch I scouted for a camping spot. I was surprised that although the terrain looks very similar to the Drakensberg, everything was soaking wet, even the slopes, and the only place I would be able to pitch a tent was in the middle of the path. I decided to wait until most people were off the mountain before I pitched the tent. I didn’t have much to do for the rest of the afternoon, so I took a walk on a narrower path that led off the Aonag Mor ridge on the other side of Ben Nevis. I was extremely lucky that it hadn’t rained yet and I was able to take many pictures. Later, I waited until most people were back from the summit before I started to pitch my tent. The path was very rocky and I vowed to place as many of the clothes I could spare beneath me. I had dinner of wild rice and plockworst before I got my bed ready. I read by flashlight to fight the boredom of lying in a tent at 7pm already. By 10pm it started raining lightly. This carried on all through the night.

Day 2 (15 October): I woke up to a completely cloudy sky and heavy weather. At least it didn’t rain. I heard someone come past my tent at around 07:30. He said good morning and I replied from within the tent. Knowing that someone was there already before me, spurred me into action. I quickly packed some water, fruit juice, a few chocolate bars, GPS, camera and my beanie, and off I went. The foot was much better not having to carry the heavy pack. The gradient was easy enough but the path was very rocky. Still, I climbed surprisingly fast and gained 200m in between rests. Past 900m it started raining and it became very misty. Not having my tracksuit pants, my legs were cold and I could feel the chill creeping to my upper body as well. Above 1200m the slope eased off and I realized I was on the summit plateau. I could not see beyond 20m but the path was clear with plenty of huge cairns to show the way. I continued on and soon the rain turned into sleet and eventually snow. As I got closer to the summit, it got very windy and I was getting seriously cold. At the summit I met the guy (an Ozzie) that walked past my tent. We took pictures of one another and then started walking back down. It was easy going down but the rocks were still wet and slippery in places. We descended past people coming up and we finally reached my tent. The Ozzie guy was there with his mom and they continued down while I quickly packed up my tent. My left foot was starting to become sore again and I didn’t look forward to the slog down. It was a mission to get the tent packed up. It was soaked and the wind made it very difficult to keep control. But I managed somehow and headed down just after 10am. I walked past a lot of people on the way down. My foot became so sore that I had to take a few breaks before continuing. Finally though, I was back at the visitor centre and I could increase my pace slightly on the tarred road back to Fort William. In Fort William it wasn’t long before I could get to the Backpackers for a nice long break.

Kgaswane Mountain Reserve (Magaliesberg) Aug 2004

Everyone joined up at varsity before 3pm and we were soon on our way. We drove through town onto the toll road and then over the dam wall. We stopped at Damdorein to get some drinks for the weekend. The road to Rustenburg flew past and before we knew it we were there. The entrance was fairly easy to find but it was quite a mission to sign in. Eventually we were granted access and we drove off to Naga camp. The reserve was quite pretty despite the winter colours. We drove around the large marshy area in the middle onto a fairly rocky road to the camp itself. It was not long after we arrived that Corné showed up and our group was complete. Gordon and I started immediately with the fire and we enjoyed a lovely dinner around the fire. We only went to bed after 9pm.

Day 1 (14 August): We rose early and had breakfast. We left the camp just before 8am. The sun was already quite warm for winter and I regretted not looking harder for my hat at home. The path was fairly distinct and the footprints showed the way over the rocky areas. It first wound up and down the side of the back of the hills facing south. We stopped for a breather in a small gorge before climbing up to a low saddle. We saw a Verreaux's eagle soar over the vast expanses south of the range and took some pics before returning to our packs. The path continued further upwards before eventually descending down to the Tierkloof pools and a magnificent waterfall. We decided to have an early lunch here. It was an awesome spot and we spent more than an hour looking around and enjoying the scenery – Chris even braved the cold water for a swim. The waterfall was about 40m tall and the cliffs next to it would have made ideal abseiling was it not for the virtually impossible route back out. I reckoned it would be quite challenging and good fun if you were able to abseil down past the waterfall and continue down the gorge to see where it ends up. We left just after 12pm. The path climbed up a distinct ridge and followed the upper contours where we spotted first a lone sable antelope, then a waterbuck, and not long after, an eland. It was fairly hot at this time despite some high fuzzy clouds moving through. Past the ridge we came onto the main plateau, crossed the main road in the reserve and ascended with a long detour the main ridge on the northern side of the reserve. At a point the path split and while I told the rest of the group to continue along what seemed an easier way to get around the ridge, I continued up. I walked past a trig. Beacon and onto the next saddle. I discovered there was no path joining up with the one I was on. I left my pack and jogged back to find the rest of the group. I found them resting below the summit of the hill; they have come to a dead end on the path and I realized it must have been a viewpoint. I showed them the way back up and we all got back onto the path. We soon walked past a sign that indicated the hut to be only 2km away – I was a bit surprised as I expected the hut still to be a good 3km away. We started descending steeply down a wooded gorge along a rocky and dangerous path. The 2km marking fired on the faster walkers and they were soon no more than dusty footprints. The rest of us had another quick break as we entered the acacia forest. We followed the path and saw the 1km mark not long before the path split to the two separate camps. According to the signposts we had less than a kilometre to go but as we walked we realized the path to be considerably longer. The path kept on winding through tall grass and then joined up with a gravel access road that went up a steep little hill before descending to the hut. We arrived at the hut quite exhausted and a bit annoyed at the distance having been indicated wrongly. But the sight of a beautiful setting of three steeped wooden huts on stilts made us forget all this and we sat down for a well-deserved break. We all had lots to drink and a good rest in the afternoon before starting the fire around 16:30. Dinner was good and we chatted the early evening away. At 9pm most of us went off to bed.

Day 2 (15 August): We got up a little later and were away just after 8am. The path barely gave us time to warm up sore muscles before it started climbing steeply up the hills west of us. Despite a few flat and downhill sections, the path continued steadily upwards and we stopped now and again for a breather. When it looked like the worst of the climbing was over we crowded in the shade of a tree for a good rest. Most of Rustenburg was lying below us and we spotted five hikers on a slope opposite us. The path still climbed although at a much easier angle than before. We went past a dry Zebra dam where four eland tried to escape our cameras. Following the path that wound next to the trickling stream, we also spotted a lone waterbuck. After winding next to the little stream for about 300m the path veered away towards the escarpment and we headed straight for a lone tree on the edge where we had a nice rest in the cool wind that had picked up. In the distance we could see the trig beacon that marked the highest point in the reserve. The walk to the beacon was quick and we took a couple of mugshots before descending steeply down the escarpment. This was quite unexpected as I was quite sure the path would stick to the upper slopes of the escarpment. But the path wound down to a grassy slope about 50m below the escarpment. At the time, Florian and I were walking in front. We frightened two large eland into fleeing through the thick undergrowth. We waited for the rest of the group to join up and then climbed steeply back to the escarpment. The path then continued to wind its way through a few rocky sections before aiming for the flats towards the camp. We sat down beneath one of the last trees to have a quick lunch. The GPS said we were 1.6km away from camp and not long after we started walking again, we spotted the green watertank in the distance. Then we all bee-lined for it and were back at Naga just after 1pm. Most of us washed our faces before packing up and leaving for a well-deserved drink in Rustenburg.

Vergelegen (Drakensberg) - Aug 2004

I picked Gordon up from varsity just before 13:30. We left immediately for the Berg. As it was a long weekend, the roads were jammed with traffic but we still got past Jo’burg in about two hours. Traffic on the N3 was still terrible but the alternative route from Villiers surprisingly quiet. We got to Estcourt just after 8pm and decided to sleep there rather than trying to drive the dirt road at night.

Day 1 (7 August): We were up at 4am and gone beofre 04:30. We got some coffee in Mooiriver and continued to Nottingham road. A lot of fog was hanging around the valleys and the going was slow. Only after Nottingham road, already on the gravel road to Sani pass, did we climb out of the mist. But we descended back into it as we got closer to Vergelegen. The road was in very poor condition and especially on the road to Vergelegen itself, I had to reduce speed right down to 20km/h. We got to the office just after 8am. The guard spoke little English but we managed to pay the fees and sign the mountain register. We had a quick breakfast before putting on thermal layers and donning the packs. I was disappointed that we had to walk back along the dirt road for a kilometre before joining up with our path but there was nothing else to do. We left with high spirits into the low clouds. The jeeptrack was not as wide as expected but it walked easy enough. We were able to make good progress, despite our boots getting soggy from all the wet grass. After little more than an hour we reached a stream where we found a group of high school kids led by two guides from Wilderness Leadership School. We passed them quickly and climbed on towards our destination. At about 11:00 the clouds started parting and we had fleeting glimpses of the hills surrounding us, but still no view of the high Berg. Sitting next to a rock in the path, we had lunch at noon. Soon after we saw the forest where we had to go through and knew it wasn’t far to go. We lost the path a few times in the forest but managed to walk in the river bed where the track disappeared. About 500m after the forest we came upon Birdsnest cave on the true right hand side of the river. It doesn’t give a lot of shelter but it was certainly large enough for 12 people. At last the sun broke free for good and we started setting up camp for the night. Later in the afternoon we were able to finally see the high Berg and some patches of snow as well. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to ID any of the peaks we saw and we decided to leave it for the next day. Our dinner of noodles, viennas and sweetcorn went down well, and we went to bed hoping to start early the next day.

Day 2 (8 August):We rose at 05:30 and after breakfast and packing-up chores were done we got away just before 7am. A strong wind started during the night and it seemed like it could carry on for a while. We dressed in thermals again and started up the faint track towards the high Berg. The first two or three kilometres were fairly easy as we were able to keep to the track. But then it started going into funny directions and I veered off to climb a burned hill. From here onwards we stuck to the true left bank and kept a steady pace. The bank was not as densely vegetated or steep as most northern Berg valleys are and we were able to stick to this for a good distance. At just over 2200m we sat for a short break and Gordon noticed what looked like a cave. I consulted the map and was convinced it had to Bridge cave. We walked over, had a quick look and decided it would be fair shelter on the way back. We continued upstream but eventually had to give up the slopes and went down to the river. From here we alternated between the river bed and the slopes on either side, making up good distance on the true right. But the wind that has still not abated started to take its toll. We were slowing down and the going got tougher. The pass steepened and a few nasty side gullies had us climbing up and down steep grass slopes. We gave up on the slopes completely just after 11:00 and went for the river bed. The bed was steep, rocky and choked with Ouhout and other vegetation. We found patches of snow and had to skirt deep patches a few times. My legs started to feel weak and we stopped for lunch. We were just short of 2600m. After lunch and a good rest we climbed on. The narrow gorge we were in became steeper and we ventured onto one of the slopes again. On the slopes, the wind was ferocious. The higher we climbed, thr stronger the wind got and in places we had a hard time keeping our balance. We finally topped out on a little ridge at just over 2900m and spotted Nhlangeni cave higher up below a cliff face. By now, the wind was extremely strong and the long shadow of the setting sun made us very cold. We were able to absorb a few final rays of sun before climbing into the shade again. We reached the cave at 15:30, utterly exhausted. We climbed just over 1300m for the day. The cave was relatively small (about six people) and a bit dirty from Basutho donkeys. At least the cave protected us from the main force of the wind and we both lay down for a while to rest. At 16:30 I started melting snow that Gordon collected from a patch outside the cave. We had a cup of tea each before starting with rice, bacon and tomato and onion relish for dinner. The wind died down to almost breathless as we went to bed and I stayed awake for a while, counting stars. However, during the night, the wind picked up again to its previous strength.

Day 3 (9 August): The wind was terrible when we woke but we were sheltered enough to boil water for breakfast and packing up without losing anything. We were ready to go by 06:35. As soon as we got out of the cave onto the slope before the summit, the wind hit us full in the face. More than once we were blown off our feet and we could barely manage to get to the top. It took us half an hour to climb the mere 100m to the pass summit. When we got there, we couldn’t stand up. We fell over behind a rock and rested. There was no way we would be able to go for Thabana Ntlenyana. I decided to climb Mohlesi instead and descend to Mohlesi pass for our descent back to the valleys. Standing up in the wind was a mission. I estimated windspeed at 100km/h plus, with gusts probably reaching 130km/h. We were wearing all our warm gear as well as our rain suits, gloves and beanies. We slowly climbed to Mohlesi but the going was hard. We reached the highest cairn, took a co-ordinate and started descending towards Mohlesi pass. Twice we had to skirt around small cliffs but finally got to the top of Mohlesi pass. It certainly looked feasible under normal conditions, but about two thirds of the pass was full of snow and the top slope angle of 45 degrees scared us off. We decided to rather go for Mkhomazi pass, about 2km further on. We descended into a wind shadow past Mohlesi and were able to take off some of our gear. I mistook a further peak for Nhlangeni peak, and was pleasantly surprised to walk around a spur and find the pass summit straight ahead, less than a kilometre away. We filled up with water at an ice-covered stream and walked to the top of the pass. Here the wind hit us again in its full force and I realized the pass was going to be hell. We followed a faint track that skirted high to the right. Unfortunately it petered out and I made the decision to go straight down a spur that looked to go all the way down to the river. It was a very steep hill and would have been bad enough without the wind. More often than not the wind would blow us off balance and I slipped twice down the side. Close to the bottom I picked up a path that went in the right direction and started walking along it. Unfortunately both my ankles had twisted badly on the way down and the pain in my left foot’s cushion was starting to become debilitating. At a small stream that was mostly wind-protected we stopped for an early lunch. We were at about 2350m. I took some paracetamol and dosed for a few minutes after lunch. Before 1pm we left, back into the wind. There were a lot of burned areas we walked through. The wind blew the soot and dry dust into our faces all the time and when I couldn’t stand it anymore, I took out my snow goggles. This helped a lot. The trail that ran across the lower slopes disappeared continuously but we did eventually pick up a more solid trail that ran on top of the ridge, almost all the way down to Birdsnest cave. We progressed well on this trail and soon were less then a kilometre from the cave. There was one nasty steep slope we had to descend before we got down to the river and around a corner to the cave. By then we walked out of the strongest wind and it was heating up. We dropped our packs happily and rinsed our faces in the ice-cold stream. The rest of the afternoon we rested in the shade and started with dinner quite early. By dusk the air was virtually breathless around the cave and we hoped to get some good rest before the next day’s hike.

Day 4 (10 August): I woke Gordon at 05:30 again and we left before 7am. We made our own way through the first section of the forest, then picked up the trail on the right hand slope. It was a nice morning with a slight breeze and a brilliant sun rising in the east. Just past the forest we picked up speed and very soon we were at the junction where we met the school group on the first day. Just past the junction with less than 6km to go, we had a quick rest. Then we sped off and managed to get back to camp just before 10am – exactly 3 hours after we left the cave. We had a Portuguese shower before we left for the long way back home.

Fernkloof (Magaliesberg) Jul 2004

A quick trip with some clients of Wild Cave Adventures to Fernkloof in the Magaliesberg.