Royal N N Park Gorge Walk 14 – 16 April
Leader: Kevin Stoffberg
Report prepared by: Lisa La Commare
Date: Weekend at Mahai campsite from Friday the 14th to Sunday the 16th of April.
Number on hike: 13 hikers.
Location: Royal Natal National Park Gorge walk to the base of the Amphitheatre along the Tugela River. At the gorge tunnel, the climb up the chain ladder and chimney provides a climb out and over the gorge western wall to reach the face of the Amphitheatre.
Distance: 15 km
Weather: Weather was disappointingly misty with drizzle till late morning when the mist started to lift.
Severity: 7 km and Grade 3+ to the gorge tunnel with a 280 m altitude gain from the car park and boulder hopping up the last 200 m of the Tugela riverbed. Grade 4 up the chain ladder and chimney climb with a further 40 m gain in altitude before descending back into the Tugela boulder strewn riverbed right in front of the majestic Amphitheatre.
There is something extremely majestic about the stature of the Northern Drakensberg. Mahai campsite in the Royal Natal National Park is a very neatly kept, clean and pretty campsite, with imposing Dooley Mountain and Ploughman’s Kop dominating the view. Thendele, on the other hand, has the most spectacular view of the Amphitheatre. Most of the hiking group stayed at Mahai campsite, whilst others stayed at Thendele Hutted Camp.
The weather from Wednesday, 12th April 2023, was glorious with blue skies, warm days and cool evenings, notwithstanding some rainy weather forecasts for the weekend.
The main group arrived on a sparkling Friday afternoon and frantically erected their tents and prepared for the scheduled hike to the Tugela Gorge on Saturday morning, before settling in for the night.
The excitement of seeing the Amphitheatre and perhaps the highest waterfall in the world, the Tugela Falls, were quickly dampened by the misty, wet and cold Saturday morning with virtually no view of any hill or mountain, accompanied by a light drizzle. Yet, undeterred, 13 determined hopeful hikers wrapped in woolens, beanies, gloves and raincoats, drove to the Gorge Car Park to start the walk up the famous Tugela Gorge.
With Kevin leading at a solid pace up rocky, muddy and grassy paths, we were soon uncomfortably wet, with legs drenched from the knees down as we collected every drop of water from grassy verges which we passed. The mist seemed to drop even lower as we slowly ascended and the visibility of the surroundings deteriorated.
Notwithstanding some serious reservations about continuing, the drizzle subsided and we entered a winding forest path which led us to the detour caused by a serious landslip that has taken place in the last year or two, taking part of the well walked forest pathway with it.
The scramble along a winding path of rocks and roots began and led us to the stacked and impressive boulders of the gorge riverbed. This involved not only boulder-hopping, but also scrambling on top of and around huge boulders the size of motor vehicles. With the help and strength of our male hiker companions, we squeezed through a tiny crevasse, to avoid the riverbed.
Hikers could be seen across the breadth and length of the gorge riverbed as each attempted to conquer the huge rock obstacle course. This was indeed an adventure, and a concerted effort to keep feet dry!
Finally, we arrived at the chain ladder which would take us over the gorge and back to the Tugela riverbed. It looked very daunting, wet and slippery. The long, grey, wet chain and wet logs hugging the rock face did little to inspire confidence or motivate the climb. A few of us simply lost our nerve.
The gorge tunnel, on the other hand was a sight to behold. The beautiful, high, smooth, light brown sandstone rock cliffs on either side were only matched by the pale green pools of crystal clear and icy water. This proved irresistible to some of the group who promptly kicked off shoes and rolled up pants to scrambled along the tunnel as far as the water depth allowed them to. The squeals of delight and of ice water could be heard along the length of the tunnel.
After being briefed by our hike leader of how to climb the ladder, one by one the brave group ascended the rock face safely and then proceeded upwards to climb the chimney, where one by one, the group ascended the chimney walls which required using all four limbs by clutching onto roots and pegs epoxied into the rock face.
This elevated the group up and around the western gorge rock mass, onto more uphill narrow paths before coming back down to the Tugela riverbed. The views here would have been spectacular with the Amphitheatre wall right in your face, from the Eastern Buttress and Devils’ Tooth in the east to Beacon Buttress and the Sentinel in the west, had it not been shrouded in mist.
After lunch, as the sun tried to melt the mist, the group descended and started to make its way back to the car park. In total, a solid eight-hour, 15 km hike which was exhilarating, energetic, challenging and deeply satisfying, not forgetting to mention the herds of well-fed Eland we were blessed to see on our return to the car park. A great hike, Kevin, thank you.
The day was concluded with a braai, blanket-clad hikers and some Drakensberg stories by our hike leader.
Sunday: Cascade Falls
Sunday brought the most stunning clear blue skies and glorious views, and the group decided to take a morning hike past the Cascades falls and out to the Look-Out Rock, with a circular hike through iGudu Forest back to the camp. Unlike the previous day, this was a relatively gentle and easy walk which gave us the most spectacular views of Dooley Mountain, iGudu Falls, Ploughman’s Kop, the surrounding mountains and valleys and a glimpse of the Amphitheatre in the distance.
We felt privileged to be there and to have experienced such serene and beautiful views.
Once again, I express my deep gratitude to our hike leader and the group for two days of wonderful walking, hiking and companionship.
