Drakensberg Passes | Intro

March 20, 2018

The Drakensberg is the highest mountain range in Southern Africa. Exactly what is included in the range is debated, but in general the range is divided into two parts:

The basalt “High Berg” range
The sandstone “Little Berg” range

The High Berg

The High Berg is one of the oldest volcanic mountain ranges on earth. What makes this range so unusual is that it was formed by volcanic fissure rather than the more common volcanic cone features one might find in a range like the Andes. If you know what to look for, the original fissure lines are very easy to spot, often being in almost perfect straight lines.

The Hawk.

The High Berg range runs north to south from the region around Golden Gate National Park in the Free State to Lady Grey in the Eastern Cape. It is difficult to pinpoint the exact western end of the basalt range in Lesotho – but it extends close to the western border with South Africa. The Eastern edge is considerably easier to identify, being a point below the Gable on the Giants Castle ridge.

The main range is split into three distinct ridges. The East and West ridges split in the Kgotjwane region near the northern end of the range. The East and Middle ridges split at the source of the Senqu/Orange River near the Mnweni Cutback on the KZN/Lesotho border.

Black and Tan Wall from Pins Pass.

One of the main features of the range is the large number of caves. Most of these were formed by bubbles in the lava that were gradually eroded away, leaving a very convenient shelter, almost always with an amazing view.

The Little Berg

The bounds of the Little Berg depend largely on whose definition one looks at.

The range varies from the towering formations of the Southern KZN Drakensberg, to the fairly simple ridges of the Central KZN Drakensberg.

Unlike the basalt range that includes a large number of rock climbing routes, the quality of the sandstone is very poor making climbing very dangerous. As a result of this, one can count the number of sandstone climbing routes on their fingers.

The sandstone range also includes many caves, but most of them have been formed by water undercutting the rock. As a result, many of these are wet in summer. These caves range from the amazingly well sheltered, such as Tarn Cave in the Southern KZN Drakensberg, to very poor shelters such as Engagement Cave, also in the Southern KZN Drakensberg.

Near Curtain Cave – Garden Castle area.

Access

The majority of the KZN Drakensberg is managed by Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife. Permits are required, and are relatively inexpensive – especially if one considers that these include mountain rescue.

The amaNgwane Tribal Authority manages the region between Mount Amery and the Ntonjelana Ridge, commonly known as “Mnweni”. Fees for access to this land are paid at the Mnweni Cultural Centre. The Free State Drakensberg is generally accessed via Sentinel Car Park, where a fee is paid to the local tribal authority to cover maintenance of trails and roads. Access to the majority of the Lesotho, Free State and Eastern Cape mountains lacks a formal process. One can generally walk around without issue – but be aware that the land belongs to the people who live there, be respectful.

Tugela Falls: Second highest waterfall on earth (948 m).

Trails and Maps

Trails in the Drakensberg vary from the very clear and well signposted – such as the trails of Giants Castle Nature Reserve, to various fictitious trails depicted on the map at Lotheni just south of there.

Clear trail markers on the Giant’s Cup Trail.

Most trails in the Little Berg include erosion barriers – small wooden poles across the trail to direct water off the route and slow erosion. Some trails are signposted, but not all are. As you get higher up, most trails become difficult to follow, if they don’t disappear entirely. Many trails that are marked on the map either don’t exist or are not where they are shown.

The maps of the KZN High Berg are available from most mountain shops, and are split into six maps covering the different regions. Maps of other regions can be printed by a small number of map producers that have the Lesotho survey maps on file – although this is generally very expensive.

Map of the Drakensberg region.

Routes

Hiking in the Drakensberg can range from the very tame short routes such as the River Walk at Giants Castle, to very difficult such as Pins Pass at Mnweni. Routes also differ greatly in technical difficulty, with routes such as Injisuthi Pass including technical rock climbing.

Technical rock climbing up Injisuthi Pass.