Injasuthi and Leslie's passes (Drakensberg) Dec 2005

After meeting at Karen’s place at 13:00, we left Pretoria at around 13:30 in Johan’s bakkie. The drive was uneventful. We had a bite to eat in Harrismith and arrived in Bergville not long after sunset. Although the tennis court verandah was already occupied we decided to sleep there again.

Day 1 (16 December): We got up at 5am, had a quick bite to eat and drove another hour and a half to get to Injasuthi. The weather looked good and we all thought it was going to be a good day. We signed in at the office. Ian and Henry, the two guys that were supposed to join us on the hike from Pietermaritzburg, drove in to say hi but were not going to hike with us. When the office opened we paid, packed up and left. The Injasuthi river looked very crossable at the bridge so we decided to stick to the standard route. After the first river crossing we climbed the first hill and walked strongly towards Marble Baths where we arrived just before lunch. Another group was already enjoying the water slides and we jumped right in as well. After a spot of lunch we carried on up, trying to follow the path and cairns through very thick underbrush. At around 3pm we arrived at the fork where Leslie’s pass splits off from Injasuthi. According to Archie there was supposed to be a campsite in the area. All of us started walking up and downstream looking for something but none of us were able to spot anything worthwhile. Chris even climbed onto the ridge to see if the height advantage could help. Johan however managed to spot two sites about 30m apart that could each accommodate a single tent. Very glad that we would be able to sleep semi-comfortably that night, we pitched the tents and lazed around a little before starting dinner. Not long after dinner heavy clouds moved in from Lesotho and it started raining. Luckily it only rained for about an hour and a strong wind dried out the tent from both in and outside.

Day 2 (17 December): We got up early in anticipation of the ascent of Injasuhti pass. Te sky was mostly clear but the strong wind was still blowing. We had breakfast, packed up and left at 06:30. The bottom of the pass was reasonable and not nearly as choked with Ouhout as Ship’s Prow. Our progress was good but as the gradient increased we ran into a few waterfalls that were tricky to negotiate. Just before 9am we ran into a 15m cascading waterfall that looked rather tricky. As I was in front at the time I immediately spotted a steep crumbling gully to the right that led to a grass ramp above the waterfall. If the grass ramp could be reached, one could easily scramble to the top of the waterfall. I started climbing up the crumbling rock and had to test every single hand and foot hold. Halfway up this gully, Harry was just coming up behind me. Realizing that the gully is far harder than I thought I shouted to Harry to find a different way to get past the waterfall. Down-climbing the gully looked to be much harder than climbing up so I carried on. At the top of the 10m gully I faced an overhanging wall of mud and rock and I realized I need to step across the wet gully onto a steep slabby bit before reaching the grass that led to the final ramp. The traversing move looked particularly hard as there was no hand or foot holds of any substance and everything was either wet or covered with moss. But I was getting a bit desperate and knew I had to commit myself. As I committed, I knew I was going to come off. Perhaps because subconsciously I knew I was going to fall, I managed to turn my back towards the rock and slid down the steep gully on my back, trying very hard to keep upright and not go into free-fall. I hit the ground hard with mainly my right leg and because my pack slid up my back, the pack landed on my neck. I collapsed to the ground and got the pack off. Harry got around the waterfall via an easier route and saw the whole thing happen. He asked me if I was okay but I was in shock. I realized my elbows and back were bruised badly. Karen, Chris and Johan arrived. Karen told me I was as white as a ghost. Chris and Johan helped to clean up my back and elbows and Chris put on some betadine. Then Harry returned from the top of the waterfall where he was waiting and said that he had seen enough and he was turning back. After some debating, we decided that Harry was experienced enough and the route easy enough for him to return on his own. Initially I wanted to go back with him because I did not want to split the group up but my stubbornness got the better of me. I still rested a bit more, had some Game and water and also took the rest of the tent and dinner from Harry before he left back down the pass. The other three helped to lighten the load in my pack slightly before we carried on. We crossed another two smaller, easier waterfalls before we got to a large one where the only option seemed to be a steep gully leading off to the left. Chris had to help carry my pack past a difficult scramble - I was still very shaken and unsteady on my feet but I still walked strongly. This last gully was long and slabby. It turned out this gully was the one we had to take – we only saw this higher up in the gully when we noticed the main fork ended dead against the high cliffs. We carried on in this gully, resting frequently. We didn’t think to take water when we split from the main fork, thinking we would soon be back in it. Luckily there were many drips high up in the gully so Chris and the rest were able to collect some water. We had a quick bite to eat before tackling the last bit. The gully finally narrowed to a very steep chimney about 50cm across. Some hail from the last night was still trapped in the upper reaches. Johan was ahead at the time and was able to free climb it. When I got the chimney I didn’t feel comfortable climbing it solo at all so I asked Chris to climb ahead and rig a belay. Chris then climbed with his pack and the rope to a ledge where he was able to set up a precarious stance. We didn’t have any anchor equipment so Johan only stabilized Chris slightly with Harry’s short section of nylon rope. I couldn’t climb with my pack either but I managed to get up to the ledge with legs shaking and breath coming in gasps. With me at the top, Chris tossed the rope and harness to Karen. Together with Johan I provided a better anchor for Chris while he belayed Karen up. With Karen safely at the top, Chris down-climbed with a belay to fetch my pack. After this very scary section we had only a short scramble remaining. While we were climbing the chimney, mist started blowing up the pass and at the top we only had fleeting glimpses of the bowl below the pass. We celebrated the top of the pass with whoops and backslapping before contouring around most of the bowl. We finally descended towards a river and found a spot decent enough for tents. I took a break while the others climbed to a saddle above us, looking for the top of Hilton pass as well as a cave that was supposed to be in the area. Returning 20 minutes later, they found Hilton pass but not a cave, so we pitched the tents immediately. With the clouds swirling non-stop we cooked dinner and went to bed. It rained harder and longer than the previous night when it started around 18:30. The wind was quiet though, so the tents were soaked when we woke up the next morning.

Day 3 (18 December). There were heavy cloud and mist around the escarpment. Johan and Chris wanted to go to Mafadi at 4am but slept in a little late. We agreed the previous day that we would not attempt Hilton unless the entire pass was completely visible from the top. With all the cloud then, we decided Hilton was out and we’ll go down Leslie’s. We thought we had more than enough time so Karen, Chris and Johan went to climb Mafadi while I walked over to the Injasuthi buttresses. I had a look at Hilton pass and then climbed both the Lesser and Greater Injasuthi buttresses. I returned to the tents about 15 minutes before the others. The slight breeze had dried most of the tents but it did not remove any of the clouds – it was still pretty cold. We packed up and left back up the bowl towards Injasuthi pass top. From there we continued to the top of the ridge which we followed all the way to Leslie’s pass. The wind was howling most of the way and heavy mist kept obscuring any view from the valleys below us or in Lesotho. Consequently I walked most of the way on a previous GPS co-ordinate of the pass. Getting to the top of Leslie’s we had a quick snack-break before starting the descent. Still carrying remnants of shock and whiplash from my little slide the previous day I was taking the downhill hard. As we descended the wind calmed somewhat but the mist thickened to a total whiteout. I could not remember the path traversing right so far just below the upper cliffs before starting the descent in earnest. Because the path was also very dim at this point, I took it slow and made sure that all of us were keeping up. I followed the cairns more than the path through the boulder field before we got to a more distinct path through the thicker slope vegetation. We got to the little stream where the path crossed onto the left hand ridge for the final descent. Here we drank some water and had a few peanuts. By now I was soaking wet and sitting still for longer than 5 minutes meant becoming hypothermic. At the bottom of the ridge I waited until all of us were together again. We continued together a short distance before sitting down for a short lunch. As we sat, the mist lifted slightly in the valleys below us. After lunch I sped away but it wasn’t far before the lifting mist turned into heavy thunderstorm clouds and the lighting flashed behind me. I increased my speed because I realized that the boulders that were dry up to now would become treacherous when it rains. I managed to get to within 1.5km of the caves when the rain started. It rained hard. I suspected that the others might actually try to find shelter, especially from the lightning, but at the time I couldn’t really care – I was cold, wet, and very sore, especially my neck and back and I wanted to get to the caves and lie down. As I walked onto the slabs at Marble Baths, the rain subsided a bit but it was still a very wet and muddy climb up to the caves. A guy was sleeping in the first cave on his own and we chatted briefly before I continued around the corner to the bigger cave. I immediately took off all the wet stuff and put on some dry clothes. I was lying on the dry grass inside the cave when Johan showed up. He also picked up speed and got in about 15 minutes behind me. Karen and Chris showed up another 30 minutes after him – they had indeed taken some shelter from the worst of the storm. After we all were dry, we brewed some tea and watched the rain getting worse and the mist closing in once again. But it was really nice to lie in the sleeping bag, dry and cozy, and watch the storm outside. At 17:30 we cooked dinner and went to bed by about 7pm. Chris and I still chatted well into the night about future and past trips before closing our eyes at 9pm.

Day 4 (19 December): Although the day dawned beautifully sunny and mostly clear, everything around us, including our clothes and shoes were still soaked. We packed up quickly and were gone before 7am. It took some grinding teeth to bear the cold, wet shoes and clothes but the sun warmed us nicely around the first ridge. We had a quick break where the path from the caves joined up the path that goes up to Centenary hut. Then it was a rather enjoyable walk back out. Karen and I got to the Injasuthi river crossing first and waited almost 30 minutes before Johan and Chris arrived. Then it was just the final walk back to the road and then to the car. Harry was waiting for us when we got there and had stories to tell about lost American hikers and helicopter searches and hail in the afternoon. We also had many stories to tell but the shower was shouting loudly. In the car on the way back we chatted a lot about our experiences on this trip and planned for the next one.

Sentinel (Drakensberg) Dec 2005

I first picked Pip up from his work, then we drove to Camilla and Peter’s place where Gordon arrived shortly. As it was raining a fair amount on the road I decided not to risk driving up that night to Sentinel and we drove through to the municipal campsite in Harrismith. None of us slept too well that night, mainly due to traffic and mosquito noise. We got up at 5am and packed quickly to start the hike as early as possible

Day 1 (10 December): We got to Sentinel car park without problems, signed in and started walking. Just before us was a very large church group going up for the day. The wind was blowing strong and cold and all of us were dressed up for a cold day. Although we walked slowly, we made good time and soon sat down at the viewpoint for a short break. Then we continued up to the contour path and was soon below Sentinel. Because we planned to do the climb, I scrambled to the start of the first pitch and saw that it was fairly wet. Combined with the strong wind, the climb would not have been pleasant at all – I decided to write off the climb for the day but said that we would consider it the next day if the weather was any better. We then carried on to the chain ladder where I deemed it necessary to belay Jenny up as the wind was blowing horrendously. On the way to the falls I noticed that there had been a fair amount of rain as the Tugela was flowing strongly. Despite this, we could see that Fika Patso dam was well below its normal level. At the lip of the falls we had some lunch and lazed around for a while. The wind was still blowing without let-up so I decided to head for the cave for some shelter. As I was carrying rope and climbing gear I asked Gordon to carry up the 10 litres of water in the Drom bag. We split up the tent he was carrying to make it easier, and then headed up the slope. Apart form a few drops of rain, we had good weather for the walk up as opposed to November 2004 when we walked up in the hail. We got the cave and settled in quickly. Most people took a well-deserved rest while some others went for an afternoon stroll. It rained later on when the strong wind pushed in some heavier clouds from Lesotho. As the rain cleared, beautiful rainbows caused everyone to rush for their cameras. After 5pm we all started feeling hungry and I put on some water for soup, tea and coffee. As we only had my stove, we had to eat in stages but all worked out well. When we were all settled in our sleeping bags, just before 8pm, Thomas pulled out two good short stories by Herman Charles Bosman. I proceeded to read the stories to everyone and by then we all felt sleep coming on quickly.

Day 2 (11 December): We were all up at 6am and I urged everyone to get going as it was a beautiful day and I wanted to head for Sentinel. Although the wind was still blowing very strong, most clouds have disappeared and there were only scattered clouds in the valleys below. By 07:30 we were all walking back to the chain ladders – still dressed warmly. Past the ladders we walked around quickly to the climb. Some of the clouds in Royal Natal have consolidated and started pushing over the escarpment – luckily the strong wind from Lesotho kept them at bay. I went ahead from the Sentinel saddle to set up. As I tied myself in, Pip and the rest arrived. The wind was still blowing very hard and it made the climbing less fun. It also made the hands and fingers exceptionally cold. At least at the top I climbed into the sun, clipped myself into the top piton and proceeded to belay up the rest. Everyone tried for the climb, even Jenny, and it was nice to have everyone up there in the sun. Pip climbed solo last and then we started hiking up the west face. When we climbed on to the sharp arête we discovered that the wind kindly removed all the clouds that were pushing up the cliffs earlier on and we had a stunning view onto the Amphitheatre. At the start of the final scramble, the wind subsided considerably, but we still thought it necessary to put up a handrail, especially as we had so many novices up there. We finally managed to get up to the final summit and I wrote all our names in the summit log. It was nice to see that my last climb in 2002 with Darrell’s church group was also still there. We then descended quickly back to the handrail. I had most of the girls come down first so that they could start walking back to the top of the abseil while Pip and I pack up. At the abseil I went first and then provided bottom belays for all the rest as they descended. Then it was the last 3.5km back to the cars that we completed in good time.

Cathedral Peak (Drakensberg) Oct 2005

It was a rough drive and we only arrived in Bergville just before midnight. No-one was home so we drove down to the tennis court where I was very surprised to find other people sleeping there already. Whispering in the dark we quickly settled down. Neither Camilla, nor Laurel had sleeping pads so I gave mine to Laurel, folded open the tent’s flysheet for Camilla, and used the tent for myself.

Day 1 (8 October): We got up at 6am and packed quickly. The weather looked a little ominous and I had a feeling we might have a wet weekend. We first went to the BP garage to get some more food and plastic bags, then left for Cathedral Peak. After signing in and paying we parked the car and started walking. As we approached the trail head it started raining. We all whipped out our rain gear, put our pack protection on, and then started up the trail. The next hour saw the rain coming and going and some welcome sun poking through now and then. Despite the sweaty work in our rain gear, we made good time and soon we were approaching the gully leading up to Orange peel gap. At the top we sat for lunch, but the cold wind blowing over the ridge forced us to hurry. As we got up, a couple returned from the top and said we didn’t have too far to go. The walk on the back ridge leading to the peak was pleasant and flat and we made good progress. My concern for water at the cave was alleviated slightly when we got to a small puddle that we used to fill up our bottles. From there it was a short walk to the start of the gully. It was a hard climb and by now we were tired, wet and cold. We took it slowly but Laurel and Pip pulled a little ahead of us. Pip managed to return and help Camilla with her pack. I rested frequently on the way and finally also stood on the saddle between the peak and the gendarme. Getting down the other side of the gully proved interesting on the wet rock and by the time we got to the traverse it was raining softly again. We were very relieved to find numerous small streams tumbling over the cliffs and the walk over to the cave was full of expectation – expectation of a dry, protected spot, hot tea and a warm sleeping bag. At the cave I decided to pitch the tent in the upper section which was most protected. Having just the 3-man tent between the four of us, I planned to sleep on my space blanket between the tent and the cave wall. It was already 4pm as Pip started brewing some tea. The wind picked up and he had trouble keeping everything together. I was very cold at the time and climbed into my sleeping bag to warm up. Pip made dinner of spaghetti and pasta sauce which I supplemented with chips and chocolate. The weather gave us a little break just before sunset, but when it started growing very dark suddenly, I realized we were in for some more rain. The girls were already settled in the tent, Camilla with my sleeping pad and Laurel, this time with nothing besides her sleeping bag. I retreated to my sleeping bag and spent a restless night tossing and turning on the hard ground. After some heavy squalls pushed through, strong drips developed above my bag that I only discovered when my legs and feet got wet inside the bag. Covering my legs with the space blanket helped a lot but when I finally passed out, a new drip developed so that I was very wet when I woke up the next morning.

Day 2 (9 October): It was a beautifully clear day when we woke up – sunny and bright but with a strong breeze blowing from the east. I got up first and spread all my wet stuff in the sun. Just after 6am the others rose as well. We had breakfast and packed up quickly. Typical of a clear start, clouds were already forming in the valleys again. We were still hoping to get up the peak, so soon after 7am we were on our way. The climb up the gully was tough so early in the morning but the weather looked good from the saddle. After dropping my pack and climbing to the path going up to the peak, I decided that the peak was attainable. While Pip decided to go, the girls opted out and walked down to the path to wait for us. Pip and I made short work of the trail and were up and down in under an hour. We picked up our bags and descended to the girls. As we left down the gully, another group of two guys came walking up. They slept in Sherman’s cave and also wanted to climb the peak. The path down the gully took us a while and the weather looked a bit ominous, but once on the contour path on the ridge, the weather cleared and we sprinted to Orange peel gap. Down the gap and onto the last ridge we were walking well and soon found ourselves back on the tar road. We had a quick shower at the campsite before driving back.

Abseiling in Fern kloof (Magaliesberg) Sep 2005

Al, Zelda and I drove out for the day to Fern kloof to some abseiling and practice basic rescue training. It was a short but fun day out in the hills

Sani and Phinong passes (Drakensberg) Aug 2005

After a meeting I drove to Darrell’s place. Darrell and Liza showed up a little later but by 4pm we were on our way. We drove all the way on the N3 to Mooiriver but only found a dodgy municipal campsite. We continued on to Howick where we got a decent caravan park and paid the R40 pppn. We pitched the tent only and slept peacefully till the next day.

Day 1 (20 August): We left at 05:30 and drove to Sani pass. On the dirt road things went a bit pear-shaped. The road had deteriorated severely since I was there last and Liza and I had to exit the car a number of times and direct Darrell around difficult spots. About 3km before the border post, Darrell decided not to put his car through the punishment anymore. We turned around, drove back to Sani pass hotel (the first decent place we could leave the car) and parked. Then we packed up and started walking on the road. I was confident that we would get a lift at some point but Darrell was very pessimistic. When the first few cars didn’t pick us up I settled into a decent pace and just kept walking. When we haven’t gotten a lift after an hour and a half of walking I started getting concerned. Neither Darrell nor I had water so I was hoping to get to a little stream we saw along the way. I finally got to a little pool where I drank from but the other two were a bit skeptical about it. Soon thereafter I flagged down a Dutch couple in a Jeep. They could only offer one of us a lift and I was trying to think who should go when another empty 4x4 stopped behind them. They were willing to take Darrell and Liza and I went with the Dutch couple. We soon passed the point where we turned around and not much further the 4x4 Darrell and Liza were in had to stop to lock there differential – we would never have been able to get past this point in Darrell’s car! At the border post we said our goodbyes to our friends (they turned around here) and continued walking up after getting stamped through. We walked about 2km before a very friendly couple stopped and picked us up for the last 6km to the top. At the Lesotho border post the wind was blowing fiercely. It was already after 12pm and we were all hungry. Not long after we left the road over the Sani flats towards Mqatsheni, we stopped at a small stream for lunch. Expecting that we wouldn’t have water where I camped to sleep, I filled my Drom bag and carried it all the way. The wind was strong and cold and we had to dress up to stay warm. About halfway to the top of Phinong pass I started struggling with the heavy load and we finally decided to camp on some soft grass next to a pool in the upper reaches of the stream we had lunch in. We dumped our packs and had a short break. Darrell and Liza wanted to go up to the little snow patches on Mqatsheni, but it seemed like too much effort to me. I chose to go towards Thaba Phinong instead. However, not long after we went our respective ways I spotted three people approaching the general direction of our campsite. Not trusting them at all, I walked back to camp and decided to not summit anything that day, despite the 3 people passing the campsite harmlessly in the distance. I rested the rest of the afternoon flat on my back until the other two returned. We pitched the tent and started cooking at 5pm. Unfortunately we didn’t have any condiments for the mince and rice and it turned out very bland. Not long after sunset we were in bed but disappointingly, temperatures that night only dropped to -0.5ºC.

Day 2 (21 August): On the 2nd morning we packed up early. As we didn’t need the Drom bag’s water the previous night, we kept it for the next night on Kokotobangi ridge where I was pretty sure there won’t be water. But I couldn’t carry it alone. I took Darrell’s share of the tent and also the pots and stove so that he could carry the 8 litres of water. We walked to the escarpment edge and was greeted by a ferocious wind. I found Phinong pass easily but noticed the map indicated the start of the pass incorrectly. Descending the pass went slow but we eventually reached the top of Kokotobangi ridge where the wind across the ridge picked up again. Clouds were moving below us in the valleys and high cirrus indicated a possible cold front moving in. We moved well on Kokotobangi ridge but sat down for an early lunch just before we reached Secocosebhaca. After lunch we continued with a fast pace. As we descended from Secocosebhaca, clouds became heavy and just past the sandstone boulders where Shirley Eddie and I slept previously, it started to drip slowly. As I was ahead by about 200m, I started looking for a good campsite. When Darrell and Liza caught up, we put the tent up in a hurry and rushed inside. Although it rained a little on and off for the next two hours while we dozed contentedly, it never came down strongly. The wind removed most of the clouds and we were able to cook a nice dinner of cous-cous and bacon on a nearby flat rock. At sunset we went back to dozing until the next morning.

Day 3 (22 August): With all of us wanting to get down the ridge, we were on our way by 07:30. The last section to the path going past Salt and Pepper went fast. The descending path zig-zagged much more than I remembered and we soon opted for a straighter trail that went down the ridge. Not long after I picked up the original trail again and continued down to the pub where Shirley, Eddy and I came past the first time. Then we were on the road back to Sani pass hotel. I sped ahead, wanting to get the awful road over as soon as possible. Darrell and Liza stayed close behind and eventually we reached the hotel.

Rwanqa and Rockeries passes (Drakensberg) Aug 2005

I left my car at Karen’s place and Gordon picked us up just after 3pm. Traffic through Jo’burg was horrific and we only arrived in Bergville after 9pm. Neither Karen nor I were entirely sure of the way but we got it right first time and got to the Ntonjelana river in fair time. However, we couldn’t immediately find the road where it went through the river but a local herdsman showed us the way and we promptly got to Mnweni Cultural Village. We were welcomed with great gusto and shown around. We settled in our 4-bed rondavel and went to bed.

Day 1 (6 August): All of us were up at 7am and had breakfast and packed while waiting for the rest of the party to show up. Archie, Bernelle and Chris arrived shortly after 8am. We decided that we were too lazy to walk all the way so we dropped the packs about 3.5km down the road. While all the men waited Bernelle and Karen returned the bakkie. We started hiking at 09:30. Despite it being August, it was warm and we were soon sweating on the uphills. We made good progress however, and around the first bend we saw the Dassie in the distance. At the little stream before the ascent past the last settlement we had our first little break. Then we pushed on and soon found ourselves in the Mnweni valley. Gordon and I had decided to take the high road but as we were getting close to lunch we descended down to the river and joined the rest of the group in the river bed. After lunch we got back on the path on the true left and carried on past the Fangs pass turn-off until we got to the Rwanqa valley. We sat for a nice break at the stream while Archie went to explore camping opportunities higher up. When he returned he informed us that we were probably better off sleeping at the campsite right there (bottom of Rwanqa pass). We all agreed eagerly. After a quick wash and resting around the campsite, we started with dinner. Later, Gordon, Karen and I settled down and read some paperbacks while the other three treated us to some quality folk songs.

Day 2 (7 August): We woke before sunrise and started packing up – we had a hard day ahead. We were away before 8am and started walking strong on a path leading past an overhang cave. The going was fairly easy on the path and we made good progress, resting only after an hour and a half on the march. At around 2100m the path descended down to the river bed. Bernelle decided to stick to the grassy northern slopes while the rest of us felt more comfortable on the river boulders. At around 2400m we walked into a 20m high waterfall. This proved to be an interesting obstacle. I managed to scramble past the crux with my pack on, heart in the throat. Archie then got a short piece of rope out and between Chris and myself we started hauling packs up two difficult sections. Then Chris climbed past me and took packs from me to a safe spot above the waterfall. In the mean time I tied a few alpine butterflies and sat down to body belay Karen and Gordon up the second difficult patch. After the waterfall we were adrenalin rushed and a little shaky but we managed to push on until about 12:30 when we sat down under a large boulder for lunch – we were just over 2700m. Archie and Karen sped off after lunch and managed to get to the top of the pass just after 2pm – the rest of us followed within 20 minutes of one another. We had a look at the map and decided to camp in the hanging valleys above the cutback. Archie took the lead on the path and we made good time despite feeling dehydrated and weak. We finally descended to the river valley and arrived at a little stream at 16:30 – a good long day’s hiking! We immediately started boiling water for soup and Gordon started dinner straight after. I decide to leave the tent as there was no rain in the air. That night the ground temperature dropped to -15.6ºC! Even so, we all slept warm and comfortable.

Day 3 (8 August): Having only about 8km to walk for the day we explored the escarpment below the hanging valleys in the early morning. At 09:30 we were ready to go and headed up the ridge to the south. We soon crossed over and got onto the path that led past Point 3024 which Gordon, Karen, Archie and I quickly climbed. Then we marched around and had striking vistas of the cutback and the Mnweni valley. A strong wind blew in from the ocean and kept us walking rather than sitting still. At our own pace we soon entered the Orange river valley and walked over to the stream bed looking for water. I didn’t see any water just below the waterfall and assumed there wouldn’t be any higher up. I started hiking further down to fetch water, but luckily Archie and Karen spotted some pools higher up and we sat down for a leisurely lunch. After lunch I filled my Drom bag with 7 litres of water for the night in Mponjwane cave. I started before the others after lunch, expecting that I would take far longer with the extra load. I walked well though and got to the top along with Karen and Gordon. After a few spot checks, we found the cairn at the top of the escarpment and descended to the cave. The others soon arrived and we settled in. The wind was blowing hard across the cave and it was chilly in the shade. Tired after the heavy load, I lay down for a while, while the others explored the area. Karen cooked this time, and made a nice pot of rice and chakalaka soup. After dinner I still finished the Roald Dahl book Karen lent me and only went to sleep after 10pm.

Day 4 (9 August): We got up before sunrise and packed up. As the sun rose, all of us took pictures. At 07:30 we were off and quickly got down to the top of Rockeries pass. All of us took pictures on the way down, especially just below the Rockeries. We got to the junction of Nguza and Rockeries, about 1 hour 45 minutes after starting the pass. Clouds were drifting in from Lesotho and a chilly breeze was blowing. A quick breather got us going again and we sped down the path on the right hand bank. At our first main river crossing we sat down for a few snacks – it was 11:30. Then we entered the rural areas and I started to speed up a little. Over the last 5km I took the lead as my feet were getting sore and I felt like a good shower. I arrived at 13:20 back at Mnweni Cultural Village and the others soon followed – all a bit sore and tired after 18km!

A good trip with a new pass and peak, as well as some new friends. The temperatures at night were once again a little warm for winter but we suspect that a cold front was pushing through on the last night as temperatures climbed and heavy clouds built up on the last day – we even had a few spots of rain!

Climbing Maternity Couch (Magaliesberg) Jul 2005

Day 1 (30 July): Rob picked Darrell and me up from my place. We arrived at Mountain Sanctuary Park at around 09:00 and started walking almost immediately. We soon were level with Cedarberg kloof and Rob started looking for Frog gully. He led us through bushes until we found a cluster of trees where we could leave our packs. While Rob sorted out his rack, we put on harnesses and a few other bits and pieces. We walked over to the gully where we scrambled down a fair distance before using a tree belay for the first abseil. We scrambled another short section before the second longer abseil. At the bottom we found Maternity Couch very quickly – it was right next to Frog gully. We clambered about 5m above the kloof floor before setting up our first stance. While I belayed, Rob led off. Darrell followed and I came up last. On the first pitch there was only one scary bit where we had to step across open space and swing onto the roots of some trees. Unfortunately my rope was still leading straight up at this point and I tried to climb up an overhanging crack. Getting pumped after four attempts I stopped and looked around me. Only then did I spot the runner on the tree because my rope wasn’t clipped to it. Then I stepped across and soon I was on top of the first stance. The second pitch went uneventful. After Rob led off on the third pitch and Darrell climbed up as well, I had to disassemble the stance. A cam that I put in over-cammed and refused to budge. After five minutes of fiddling I gave up and climbed the last pitch. At the top Darrell volunteered to have another go at it. Rob lowered him but after 15 minutes he also gave up. He climbed back up and we walked over to our packs for lunch. Rob left after lunch and we bouldered a little before walking over to the MCSA campsite at Cedarbergkloof. We made early dinner and watched the sun set before going to bed. We talked for a long time, partly because it was warm and partly because I struggled to sleep on the hard ground - I forgot my sleeping pad.

Day 2 (31 July): We rose at around 7am and were ready to go into the kloof just after 8am. We struggled to find Lunch and some of the other climbs upstream of Grey gully. Eventually we decided to go back to the things we know. I climbed Easy Meat and Jam & Toast again. Darrell had a go at two other faces on the same buttress but gave up after a while. We then walked back to camp for lunch. After lunch I walked down to MSP to collect Al. He arrived at 12:40 and we walked together back to the campsite. We returned to the same boulder and Al climbed a little with me belaying. Then Al had a go at belaying Darrell before we decided we had enough, packed up and walked out to MSP.

Namahadi Peak (Drakensberg) Jul 2005

I drove to the JSE on Friday afternoon where Al and Zelda were waiting. We left soon after 4pm. The traffic was the same as always through Jo’burg and we took the alternative route to Warden. We arrived in Harrismith at 19:30 and had dinner at the Spur. We drove into the municipal caravan park just after 20:30 and got ourselves settled. We found a tree with some leaves on to sleep under as I thought we should try to keep the tent relatively dry. When we got up the next morning the thermometer read -6.2 degrees C.

Day 1 (9 July): We left Harrismith just after 6am and got to Sentinel car park just after 7am. I boiled some water for coffee, then we packed and were on our way at around 8am. It was very cold and we all started the hike with fleece jackets and long pants. Into the first zig-zag we walked into the sun and shed some layers for the first time. We made good time past the upper zig-zags and were soon on the contour path. Then the chain ladder came and went and at 10am we were standing at the large cairn at the top. I had a good look at the maps and started off in a westerly direction. Having reached altitude quickly and still feeling a bit chilled, we took our time up the long incline to the ridge leading down from Mont-aux-Sources. Getting to the saddle at around 11:30 I decided to continue to a little rock band a little more than a kilometer distant for lunch. After lunch we contoured around the first ridge and caught sight of what could have been Namahadi peak. After another contour through a large bowl I realized it was too close to be Namahadi. Then there was a long climb up an attached peak and on the way we had awesome views over the northern escarpment. Past the long climb we had to contour yet another salad bowl before getting up to a saddle and seeing for the first time the real Namahadi peak – it was still quite a way to go. As we trudged along at a gentle gradient to pass another ridge I decided that we should rather set up camp soon and climb the peak later, rather than trying to get up the peak with packs as I initially thought would be the best. So past the last ridge, with Namahadi peak straight ahead of us, we quickly found a suitable spot for the tent. Al offered to go and collect water while Zelda started the cooking and I pitched the tent. The idea was that we have an early dinner of hot food, wash up before it gets cold, and then climb the peak in dusk and early evening, returning to the tent for pudding. Al returned in good time with plenty water and we were able to wolf down some Mince Mate before 16:30. After a quick wash-up and dressing up for the expected cold, we walked up to the summit of Namahadi peak. The view from the top was good and we stayed quite a while, waiting for the sun to set. We got back to the tent before it was dark enough for torches and I quickly boiled some water for tea while all of us had pudding. In the tent we took great care to hide our valuables and boots inside. The packs were tied together and to the tent just in case. As everything got quiet I was sure I heard footsteps but later realized it was my heart beating against the fabric of the sleeping bag. Even so, I slept badly and got surprisingly hot in the early morning hours.

Day 2 (10 July): I woke everyone up at 6am. The coldest temperature during the night was about -5.5 outside and -3 inside the tent – not really as cold as I hoped. But as we made breakfast and waited for the sun to rise, the temperature dropped to a chilly -10.7! We managed to pack up quickly and were on our way just after 07:30. Because we had more descending than ascending to do, I expected to finish earlier than the previous day. Feeling strong, I pushed hard past the three bowls and even with short stops in between, we stood on top of the saddle at 09:30 and at the top of the chain ladder at 10:00! That meant we hiked 10km in 2.5 hours! Then I got the itch again to get back and after a break below the chain ladder we started moving fast. We passed a few people along the way but barely stopped to say hi. We were back at the car park at 11:15! We packed up and left for some greasy food in Harrismith.

It was a good long hike with the very notable peak of Namahadi to bag. Although not difficult at all the peak is quite remote and so far away from the usual hang-out at the Tugela falls that I suspect very few people ever see it. I expected there to be no snow but I was pleasantly surprised to see remnants of old snow in a few permanently shaded spots. The cold was not bad at all and I’m hoping that the next few winter berg hikes will be even colder.

Bermanzi hiking trail and abseil Jun 2005

I drove to George’s on Friday but we still had to wait until 3pm for Brian and Norma to show up. The drive took us just under 3 hours and we arrived just after dusk. Everyone else was already there and we quickly got ourselves beds. The coal stove inside was going but the smoke struggled to escape and we choked in it. The others had the fire going already and while I waited for some coals I had rolls for dinner. After dinner we all flocked inside to Norma’s apple crumble for pudding.

Day 1 (25 June): We started walking just after 8am. I was hoping to do some abseiling later in the afternoon and put on a little speed. Shirley and Elize kept up with me though and at the bottom of the descent to the river, we rested together. The path ascended again steeply to the Witkruisarend beacon and shortly thereafter descended back to the river. At this point George and I were in front and when we got to the river we decided it was an ideal place to have lunch. After a short rest I decided to go for the hut so we could go abseil. I got up and started walking in the river bed, passing the remains of a monkey on the way. George, Shirley and Eddy joined me and soon we were all ascending steeply to the top. We got to the junction where the paths went to the top and down to the waterfall. Deciding that we were going to go to the waterfall the next day, we all started for the top. Getting to the top was hard work but once there, it was an easy walk back to the hut. We had a little bit to eat and drink back at the hut before starting out for the crack where we abseiled last time. It took me a while finding good anchors but once I had them, I was able to set up two 20m abseils. I quickly abseiled on the one rope and then ascended on the second, changing over to abseiling, close to the top. Then I descended past a knot and waited at the bottom. Eddy was supervising George’s descent and then also Pam’s and Lawrence’s while I set George up for an ascent. Then I climbed back to the top and took some photos of George as he came to the top. I then decided to do a sequence of abseiling past a knot, changing over to ascent, passing the knot a second time, changing over to descent and passing the knot a third time. At rescue training we were suppose to be able to do this in 20 minutes. While I got ready, Shirley went to the bottom to take some pictures. I asked Eddy to time me as I got to the knot and then proceeded to do the whole sequence in 18:15 minutes – not bad! Then for a final exercise, Eddy timed me ascending the 20 odd meters back up – I completed it in 2:55! Both Pam and Lawrence wanted to abseil again so I supervised their abseils before we packed up and walked back to the hut for a nice dinner that consisted mainly of cake. We went to bed just after 8pm.

Day 2 (26 June): It was cold when we got up but as the sun rose, the temperature became tolerable. George along with most of the others wanted to do more walking and decided to do the extra trails. Shirley, Eddy and Elize walked along with me to the top of the waterfall where I intended to set up the highest abseil I’ve ever done. It took me a while setting up the anchors properly and Eddy and Shirley took the time to walk down to the bottom to take some pictures. I used about 20m of Eddy’s static for rigging, tied the club’s static to the bottom of that, and tossed it over the edge. I tied Eddy’s dynamic to my back and made sure I had all that I would need on the way down. The step-off was awkward and overhanging. I struggled getting the edge protection in place but when I had it in, I was able to abseil smoothly. It was extremely scary. The 30m to the first knot I took slowly making sure I was going smoothly. At the knot I was able to stand on a tiny ledge, easing the harness pressure slightly. I passed the knot safely but with shaking hands and then abseiled to a second ledge choked with fierce thorny bushes. I noticed that the second rope wouldn’t be long enough so I took the time to take the third rope off my back and tie it onto the second one. I then continued the abseil to the second knot which I had to pass hanging just below a ledge. About 20m down the third rope I got to a large bouldery ledge where I had to stop for a while to gather the bottom of the rope and throw it down the last little bit. The last few meters went smoothly and when I got to the bottom (in a shallow little pool), I measured about 9m of the third rope remaining. I struggled getting over the slippery boulders to the path where everyone was waiting. Shirley, Norma and Brian were there to congratulate me but I had to sit for a while to stop the shaking and calm the nerves. Then I sped off to the top to retrieve the rope and break up the rigging. I measured the rope used for rigging as about 19m, making the total height of the abseil 122m! The whole abseil took me about half an hour. Feeling very relieved and elated, we walked back to the hut, packed up and left for a late lunch on the way home.

What a fantastic weekend! I did the highest, scariest abseil to date and still got some good walking in. However, the paths on the hike need some maintenance especially the extra paths walked by George and the rest. The coal stove inside the hut can do with a chimney cleaning session and they would do well to grade the dirt road.

Mike's pass to Old Fire Lookout - Cathedral Peak (Drakensberg) Jun 2005

I picked Gordon up at his home and drove through to Bergville. There wasn’t anybody at the campsite’s office so we left R50 and a message that we were sleeping at the tennis courts. We read a little before bed but were trying to get up early so we went to bed just before 10pm. During the night temperature dropped to -2 degrees and I was optimistic about some really cold weather up on top.

Day 1 (11 June): We got up at 05:30 and were on the road before 6am. Just after 7am we arrived at Cathedral Peak and signed in. We left the car at the bottom of Mike’s pass and started hiking up, very hopeful in getting a lift to the top. After about an hour’s walk we started to realize that we were not going to get a lift. There were just no cars on their way up! There was one long section we could have skipped by taking a steep shortcut, but the hope of hitching a ride and the steepness of the path kept us on the road. We stopped once to take a quick breather but only sat down for a while once we reached the top of Mike’s pass. It was just before 10am when we started the slog up to the Old Fire Lookout. We made good time around the first few hills; the veld was burnt all around us and the path was as clear as daylight. Then the steep ridge to the hut began. Having already walked up Mike’s pass, the effect began to show and we slowed down considerably. Because I expected there to be water at the hut neither of us packed a lot of water. We had a few bites to eat before we got to the hut. Arriving at the hut just before 2pm, we were shocked to find the water tank in two pieces on the ground and the roof of the hut falling apart. The lack of water was appalling. With my feet packing up over the last 2km I wasn’t really in a state to go any further – we had already decided that we were not going to push for the top. But now without water, I had to rely on Gordon to take the Drom bag and go look for water. He left at immediately. I rested my feet and had a short snooze before a family from Qumbagana showed up at the hut. The kids poked around the hut and they all had a good lookout before going down again. Gordon got back at 15:30 having found some seepage water not too far up the path. He managed to collect a good 8 litres – more than enough for us. We started with food at 5pm and had a very nice dinner with mince, bacon, tomato and onion relish with some rice. After dinner we took pictures of a beautiful sunset and went to bed. The wind blew all night. Although we didn’t get any unwanted visitors, we barely slept with some very strong winds trying to take the hut off the mountain.

Day 2 (12 June): We got up early having grown quite tired of trying to sleep with gale force winds raping the hut. The temperature dropped to a low of 4.9 degrees only – very disappointing. We had a quick breakfast and left down the path. We made good time and was soon at the top of Mike’s pass. We were hoping to catch a lift down but once again, nothing came along. We decided to go down the shortcut this time and were able to skip a good 3km of the pass. The shortcut was steep and very loose in places but at least we saved a lot of time. We were down again just before 10am. After a good shower we signed out and left for home.

It was a rather disappointing hike. Although we managed to climb just over a 1000m in the day, we didn’t reach the top of Organ Pipes and the expected cold never came. But we also learned that we shouldn’t bank on water at the hut again.

Centenary hut - Injasuthi (Drakensberg) Mar 2005

I drove to Albert’s work at the JSE in Sandton, early Friday afternoon. Zelda was already there. We transferred all our equipment to Zelda’s Golf and left for the Berg just before 3pm. The drive through Jo’burg proved to be less problematic than I expected it would be and we got to Harrismith at 6pm where we had dinner at the Spur. At 7pm we left for Bergville and arrived just after 8pm. I paid for Darrell and Liza as well so they needn’t worry about the accommodation when they arrive later. The three of us set up camp so long under the tennis court club house. Darrell and Liza arrived sometime after 11pm. I helped them to set up the tent before all of us went to bed.

Day 1 (19 March): I actually forgot for a while that it was my birthday. We had a quick breakfast, packed up and left for the Berg. However, Al forgot his contact solution and we had to wait in Winterton for a pharmacy to open. When we heard from someone that the owner was there but wouldn’t open up, Al decided to force the issue. Luckily he managed to get his solution soon after 8am and we were finally able to leave for Injasuthi. The road there is as bad as it always was and we only got to the Office after 9am sometime. We signed in, paid and packed our bags ready to go. There was a fair amount of cloud in the sky and it wasn’t too hot when we started. Where the path led off the road I decided to take the shorter route that would require us to cross the river, as opposed to the longer but drier walk along the top. We got to the river soon enough and all of us had to take our shoes off and struggle across the river. It wasn’t too deep but it was flowing quite fast. With the river behind us I set off up the slope to where I suspected the lower path should be. Through the thick vegetation at the bottom I managed to pick up a game path but wrongly thought that it was an overgrown version of the main path we should’ve been on. Therefore I stuck to the dim path with grim thoughts about how the path will look further up. Luckily we kept on climbing and not long after we started up the slope, stumbled onto the real path. From here it went easier but when we got to the little forested stream it was already almost 12:00. I decided on an early lunch. We had another 500m to go before we reached the turn-off to Marble Baths so we were approaching halfway. However, it was still a long way to go and we didn’t linger. We crossed the little stream just before G8 junction without shoes. The junction was virtually non-existent but I picked up the faint trail leading up next to the river. With Al and Zelda in front we made decent progress despite the very heavy vegetation along the path. This time I managed to stick to the path all the way to where it swung into a side valley. Here the path all but disappeared and I decided to go for the hill. We filled water bottles and headed straight up the steep grass slope. We soon crossed the path again after which the climbing was hard but not intolerable. Liza took her time up the slope but made good progress. Just after 4pm we finally topped out just short of 2200m and our destination was not far off. After a good rest we set off again and finally made it to the hut at 16:45. We were all fairly exhausted after a long day but we set up all our stuff inside the hut. Vandalists had ruined more glass panes throughout the hut and we had to do some sweeping to get rid of the shards. Al, Zelda and I had Mince Mate for dinner while Darrell and Liza cooked rice and mince. We settled soon after dinner.

Day 2 (20 March): I had set my new thermometer during the night and it measured a minimum temperature outside of 9.0 degrees. It was fun to play around with a new toy! Although we rose just before 6am, we took our time to pack everything up and were only ready by 8am. Darrell, Liza and I removed the tops of our packs and stuffed all our gear and food needed for the day. The five packs were scattered between rocks and grass outside the hut, and we tried to camouflage it a little as well as protect it from possible rain. We set off at a fast rate up the slope to the contour path and then started traversing to the south. It was a nice day for a walk in the mountains and we all enjoyed the easy trail around to the bottom of Corner pass. At the pass we started climbing. There were a number of large clouds up on the escarpment and both Darrell and I suspected rain later on. After 40 minutes of climbing and 150m higher in the pass, I calculated that we would not be able to go up Corner, down Judge’s and all the way back to the hut. So instead I aborted the pass and decided to walk around to the bottom of Judge’s pass for lunch and also to inspect Judges pass for future attempts. It was still another 2km around the spurs but we got there after 11am. We had a quick snack before Darrell, Al and I set off to at least where we could see the entire pass. We walked to a major split in the river and sat at a small waterfall for a while, contemplating life. We returned to where we left the girls at the bottom. Al had a refreshing bath in a pool in the river while the rest of us lazed around. At 13:30 we started heading back to the hut and I decided to track the entire path back on the GPS. Without packs, the walking was easy and we maintained a fast pace. At Corner pass I mistook a game path for the real thing and got us onto a steep slope on the true left of the river bed. But we managed to clamber down to the real path and were on our way again. Dark clouds were building on the escarpment and I speeded things up a bit. We saw a lone hiker walking towards us on the lower path leading away from the hut. I was immediately suspicious and sent Al down to investigate. But it turned out to be an innocent hiker on his own mission in the Berg. As we descended towards the hut it started raining lightly and we made it back to the hut just before heavier drops came down. We stayed inside until we heard voices around 4pm. We climbed out and saw some people coming down towards the hut from the contour path. They were a group of seven that camped close to Lower Injasuthi Cave the previous night. We chatted a little and offered to sleep in the one large room of the hut so they could take the other two. This time we had Tuna Mate for dinner. The other group prepared dinner in the room next to ours. They chatted a little afterwards but soon five of them vacated to the two tents they pitched outside. During the night it rained off and on.

Day 3 (21 March): It was a beautiful morning when we woke up. We were underway at 07:30, aiming for the Injasuthi Management track. We got there relatively fast and started the slog back to camp. I didn’t know if there was a path from the Field Ranger’s hut where the track ended; we thought that the path indicated on the map would be a bit long to do. As we hiked, heavy clouds formed on the escarpment and pushed over towards the east. The track hiked very easy and just before 11am we were on the last few 100m looking down on the road back to camp and the cars far beneath us. I was a little worried about getting back because we still haven’t found the trail indicated on the amp, the weather was threatening and there were plenty cliffs right below our feet. But confident that we would find something we kept going, and just a 100m from the Ranger’s hut, we found a path leading down. We took it full of hope which turned into a nice surprise when we saw that the path was in fact pretty good and did lead all the way down. However, the steepness was extreme and the three ladders we had to negotiate did not make things easier. Eventually we got down safely and were on our way back to the cars. Just as I put my pack down it started drizzling slightly. After signing out and all having had a shower, we started driving back. Unfortunately we had to wait an hour for a flooded river to subside before we could cross a low water bridge on the way back to Pretoria.

Grootkloof (Magaliesberg) May 2005

Al and Zelda picked me up from home on Saturday morning. We drove to Sparkling Waters hotel and arrived at about 10am.

Day 1 (1 May): The hike in to the campsite was uneventful. We dropped the packs at the campsite, packed some lunch and other necessities in two bags and set off up the hill. We entered Main Gully quite quickly and were at the chock stone soon. Al abseiled first and took the rope across to slide the bags down. Then Zelda abseiled and I joined them shortly after. The water was pretty cold as expected, but it was still good fun. We continued down the kloof and when we got to the slide rock, I set up a handrail for Al and Zelda. I took the slide again and found quickly that the water was slightly deeper than knee height – a little deeper than what it used to be. We finished the entire kloof in about two and a half hours and sat in the sun drying and having lunch. We then climbed out and walked back to the campsite. The rest of the afternoon we rested and walked a little around camp. Dinner was mince and spaghetti. As we got ready to pack up and go to bed, we heard some rustling behind us. We were pleasantly surprised to find a Small spotted genet that came to look for food. It was fairly tame and both Al and I were able to take some nice pics of it before we finally went to bed.

Day 2 (2 May): After a good night’s sleep we got up late and had a quick breakfast. We left the tent standing to dry and started walking up the side of Ysterhoutkloof. We walked until we spotted the canopy tour in progress and we took a few shots of them as the zipped down the kloof. I was mildly surprised to see that their ziplines crossed over onto MCSA property. We later heard that costs are R395 pp – a little bit steep for us. We then walked up next to the fence and crossed Grootkloof where the path crosses the two gullies from Ronnie Bartlett’s place. It was a bit of a huff and a puff to get back to the top but then it was downhill all the way. We wanted to get into Woodpecker gully but it seemed like it might take up too much time. I therefore aimed back to the campsite but at the junction of Woodpecker gully and Grootkloof we had to negotiate a few rock bands carefully to get back down into Grootkloof. Luckily it was quite easy and we were soon back at the camp. We took the tent down, packed up and walked out. We were back at the hotel just before 12:00. It was a good fun weekend!

Grootkloof (Magaliesberg) Apr 2005

Gordon and I drove to Sparkling Waters Hotel and left for the kloof as soon as we got there. unfortunately our trip was cut short soon after we descended Main Gully into Grootkloof, just before the waterfall. Gordon slightly misjudged a jump onto a rock and bashed open his big toe badly. Since it was easy to get out from here, we decided to turn around and walk back the way we came. Unfortunate, but these things happen!

Kransberg climbing Apr 2005

I was at Rob’s place at 06:00 and we left about 15 minutes later to pick Jaco up. We left Pretoria just before 07:00 and arrived at the MCSA campsite turn-off at about 10:00.

Day 1 (23 April): It had been raining since before we got to Thabazimbi and it didn’t look like we would be able to do any climbing. Instead, we drove to Grobbies’s place and walked up to his bouldering spot. Rob and Jaco evaluated his bolt protection and gave him some advice on what to do. We walked back down to Grobbies’s house where we had lunch. After lunch we visited Grobbies’s climbing and abseiling spot, a nearby waterfall as well as a possible training venue for Search and Rescue. We were back at the farm just after 6pm and were invited to a dinner prepared by the Grobler family members. We went to bed fairly early as we all wanted an early start the next morning

Day 2 (24 April): Both Jaco and my alarms went off at 05:15. We got up, had a quick breakfast and got packed for the day’s climb. We decided to try Sunshine crack, an 11 graded climb close to Groothoek gully. We first drove to the MCSA campsite and was surprised to discover about 8 other members camped there. We said hello but bid them farewell as we headed up towards the base of the cliffs. It was a long slog through the familiar ferns and thorny underbrush that I hated so much when we were at Kwela Anget. We managed to reach the base of the cliffs at around 09:00 and Rob went to show us the campsite. We left our gear at the campsite and got ready for the climb. We then traversed across to the bottom of a fairly steep and vegetated scramble from where we reached the bottom of the first pitch. Jaco started climbing with Rob belaying. After about five minutes I took over from Rob until Jaco reached the first stance. He combined the normal first two pitches of 34 and 8 metres to make a single pitch at 42m. Rob climbed second and I third. It was a relatively straightforward climb but it was well exposed and a good climb. While I was climbing, Rob started to belay Grobbies up. When I reached the first stance I took the belaying over from Jaco and then proceeded to belay up Chris and Dean. In the mean time, Rob belayed Jaco on the second pitch. The second pitch had an interesting start, traversing to the right around a blind corner before starting up. But the handholds were huge and it was an easy climb to a fairly large ledge for a second stance. While I belayed Jaco on the third pitch, Rob brought Chris and Dean up. Soon the rest of us also climbed the third pitch and then only a short scramble to the top remained. We immediately descended Groothoek gully to the campsite, collected gear and returned to the MCSA campsite. We drove back to Grobbies’s place and had something to eat before leaving for Pretoria.

Boskloof hiking trail Apr 2005

Just after 14:00 Friday afternoon, I drove over to George’s. Brian and Norma arrived close to 3pm. The drive to Boskloof was uneventful, but when we heard there was going to be another club joining us, we were a bit apprehensive of the crowds at the hut and on the trail. When we arrived, Gordon was there already, as well as most of the Boksburg hiking club. We were able to use one and a half huts, but there was still one bed short – I decided to sleep outside. Everyone arrived eventually and we had a nice braai.

Day 1 (16 April): The Boksburg hiking club was up early and busied themselves with breakfast and packing up. All this commotion got us out of bed as well and we were all ready to go before 8am. The trail started with a leisurely climb up a small kloof, which looked a lot like part of the Skeurkrans trail we did last year. Louis and Retha Strydom from Discovery Trails had laid out the trail and Louis’s style was apparent early on – plenty of ladders and walkways over rocks and rivers and aptly naming a lot of the scenic spots on the way. We were all impressed by the time and effort put into the trail. We topped out at the Ledge, a rocky outcrop where we abseiled from on the Skeurkrans trail. Past the Ledge the path climbed steadily, criss-crossing the kloof numerous times. We caught up with the stragglers of the Boksburg hiking club and some of our faster walkers managed to pass them. With the path rising continuously, all of us were sweating and panting up the hill. Luckily, it was not nearly as hot as on the Meteorite trail a few weeks ago. The path finally rose to just under 1600m with a lovely eastern view towards the highveld and north towards Skeurkrans. From here the path rambled in and out of a few rocky outcrops until it came to a short cliff where I decided to set up an abseil. While waiting for the others to arrive I set up anchors and got all the equipment ready. When Shirley, Eddy, George and Gordon arrived, I quickly set up the rigging and rope and soon all of us had a quick abseil. Although it was a bit of a mission to get back up, most of us abseiled twice. Just before 1pm we packed up and left. I set off in front and soon passed some of the group spread out on the trail. Ominous clouds were building in the east as I reached the viewpoints looking out onto Skeurkrans. It was a pleasant surprise as Skeurkrans trail never came close to this awesome feature. The rock pillar lent itself to a few interesting climbing possibilities. The path soon reached its highest point and descended into a high valley. At this point I picked up my speed – thunder and lightning threatened on my heels. Beyond the high valley, the trail aimed for a steep kloof north of Skeurkrans. The kloof promised to be bone jarring and with the impending rain I knew the trail would become dangerously slippery. Down the kloof there were a number of cliff faces that would have been far more fun abseiling than the one we used earlier in the day. I promised myself that I would come back just for the abseiling. The path zig-zagged precariously down the kloof until it eventually flattened out for about 700m before the hut. By then it had already started raining but I made it to the hut before the worst of the storm broke. As the rain continued, bedraggled-looking people started coming in. At around 4pm there was nobody left on the trail and most of the rain had gone too. We started the fire by 16:30 and despite the damp wood, we soon had a roaring fire going. Once again there were a few beds short and while Eddy and Shirley pitched a tent outside, George and I decided to sleep on the porch.

Day 2 (17 April): Dew that managed to sneak through holes in the roof, made it onto our beds outside. But the dawn was clear and it promised to be a beautiful day. We had breakfast quickly and set off before 8am. The trail led through the flat acacia forest below the high cliffs of Skeurkrans and it seemed we were going to be back at camp quickly. But after 3km the path started climbing towards the lower cliffs south of Skeurkrans. It wound past a rock captured by strangler figs before continuing upwards. It finally climbed precariously up a few rocky ledges before settling on the plateau above. Then it was an easy walk to where it joined the first day’s trail and descended down the kloof back to the basecamp huts. I had a quick shower while waiting for everyone. At around 10am everyone was back but we lingered a little longer to pack up and decide where we were going to have lunch. Eventually we left for the Wimpy on the highway, just past Kranskop.

Climbing Cuzco (Magaliesberg) Apr 2005

Rob, Jaco and I had a quick morning out in Cedarberg kloof to climb Cuzco, graded at 15 (SA).

Fernkloof (Magaliesberg) Mar 2005

A quick day outing to Fernkloof.

Cedarbergkloof hiking and abseiling (Magaliesberg) Mar 2005

Jeanne-Louise and Ivan left on Friday night already to sleep over at Mountain Sanctuary Park. The rest of us met early Saturday morning at the parking lot across the church at varsity. We left just after 7am and got to MSP just after 08:30. We decided to pitch the tents first, in case it rains, and also had something to nibble on before we finally scraped the courage together to go for a walk.

Day 1 (12 March): It was just after 10am when we finally left the campsite, walked up to the grotto and took the path that split off towards the twins. It was completely clouded over and the walking was very pleasant. We all took some photos at the Twins before descending down into Cedarberg gorge. We made our way to the overhang where I always abseil. While the others waited at the bottom, Al and I climbed to the top to set up the abseil. Then each of us abseiled and got everybody else up to do the same. Al packed up everything up top while the rest of us started to have lunch. After lunch we continued downstream. The gorge quickly got deeper and the memories of the kloof slowly returned to me – I haven’t done the kloof in 3 years! We got to the junction with Tonquani gorge and I decided to go see what the pool at the top looks like. I haven’t been there since I did the climbing course in 1999 and then it was from Upper Tonquani. So we took the walk to the top – I forgot how long it was, but it was very enjoyable. When we reached the pool and I realized it was almost 3pm, I got us all moving downstream quickly. I remembered one or two of the spots where we had to wade deep through the pools – it was good fun to be there again! When we finally reached the bottom we were all soaking wet but thoroughly happy. We got back out on the jeep track that led steeply back up to camp. As I still wanted to get some wood and firelighters from the office, I set out at a fast pace up the hill. Jeanne-Louise and Ivan stayed with me and when we got back to camp, Ivan and I went to the office to get the necessary things, including some very welcome ginger beer. We all had a quick shower after starting the fire. The braai was excellent but none of us stayed up for very long.

Day 2 (13 March): We all slept a bit late. Corne and Yolandy treated us all to a five star breakfast before we all took another rest until the clouds started to thin. We then took a leisurely walk down to the slide pools, lazed around for a while before returning just after 1pm. We packed up and drove back to Pretoria where we arrived soon after 3pm.

Castle gorge (Magaliesberg) Jan 2005

Darrell, Al and I drove out to Castle Gorge to have some fun for the day. We arrived at the parking area early and left soon after packing some abseil gear and lunch. It was steep but short climb to the summit of the Magaliesberg from where we easily descended to Castle Gorge. There were a number of other people around but we enjoyed ourselves abseiling and swimming. Just before lunch the sky darkened and heavy rain soon poured down. We tried to hide underneath an overhang but eventually got fairly wet anyway. The rain stopped but heavy clouds were still pushing from the south so we decided to head back. The last 200m to the car it came down in torrents and we had to run for it. The drive back on the dirt road was interesting as rather large puddles had started to form. We made it home safely though after a fun day in the hills.