This hike by the non-climbers was postponed to the Sunday due to the bad weather on the Saturday. This was a wise decision and resulted in a very enjoyable outing by 4 members and two guests. We started at 0830 at the lowest point of the trail which is on the Die Hel road. The first half takes you up al the way to the top of the Swartberg pass and then continues a bit higher still before descending back to the start. Although it was sunny there was a sharp nip to the breeze which necessitated finding shelter from the wind when we paused for breaks.
The whole trail is 7.7 kms in length and at a very leisurely pace took us just over 4 hours to complete. It is worth adding that this is possibly the best marked Cape Nature trail that I have seen and generally seems to be very well maintained.
(L-R) Mimi Kay-Shuttleworth, Nelia Parma, Som Kruse, Stuart Neil, Pierre Kruse (Photographer: Ed Kay-Shuttleworth)
After the top of the Swartberg Pass the hike continues higher towards the ridge top
Looking down onto the top of the pass
The highest point at 1890 metre
Alternative hike to Swartberg Pass Rock-climbing | 7-9 May 2021 | Led by ~ Ed Kay-Shuttleworth