Undertaking a monster peak for the first real hike of the year (real, as measured by the “Mountain Richter” scale) was always going to be a risky venture. At the tail end of Summer in the Klein Swartberg there is a high probability of a “Baptism of Fire” or a “Waterlogged Christening”.
7 days before D-Day and smoke signals were emanating from the direction of Cape Town. The forecasters were threatening a very sodden weekend. Due to long weekends, approaching school holidays and the Easter Break there was little room for flexibility. And in any case if truth be known after nearly three months of inactivity the organiser was keen to see if the working parts were – well – still working and hadn’t seized up completely.
L-R Front: Mimi Kay-Shuttleworth, Liza Serfontein, Jacolise Joubert
L-R Back: Som Kruse, Ed Kay-Shuttleworth (Leader), Dennis Lange, Hugh Sussens, Pierre Kruse
It was now or never – so with 48 hours to go the whole weekend was advanced by 24 hours as there appeared to be a clear window on the Saturday. Those traveling from afar packed frantically and hit the high road arriving at the Aristata cottages in the middle of the Seweweekspoort on the Friday afternoon / early evening. Rather than a late-night drive others opted for a 0330 alarm and by 0730 all eight combatants were assembled at the resort ready for our group photo and whatever else this mountain (unmarked on the OS map but generally referred to as Peak Aristata) had ready to throw at us.
Last time our section climbed this peak was back in 2016 – in the intervening years our weekends accommodation has undergone refurbishment and been largely closed to the public. If after reading this account, you still wish to pick up the gauntlet and tackle Peak Aristata, then I would strongly urge you to base yourselves here. It’s a gem, nestled amongst the towering walls of the Poort and the climb starts and potentially ends from the doorstep of your cottage. And so, it was with a feeling of “Come Hell or High Water” our climb began. The sun was hidden behind the skyline for the first couple of hours and there was a strong wind gusting through the Poort which kept us from overheating.
A friendly (?) critter we nearly bumped into on the way up! Common Garden Orb Web Spider Argiope australis
Aristata cottages from above
Blue sky adventure
After a couple of hours one of our team suffered “hat disconnect”. This resulted in a brief chase down the mountain to reconnect with the lost garment which then resulted in a “mountain disconnect”, a short airborne sail and a Grade 1 ankle sprain. Sadly, that was the end of two of our team’s day on the mountain barring a rather tortuous and painful 3-hour descent back to the start.
Group still intact before split
Up and up the rocky staircase
Our ascent was watched over all the way up by “His Majesty” Seweweekspoortpiek
One of many pit-stops
The summit as marked by the large cairn
Undeterred the remaining 6 continued to climb and climb and climb. Up and up the wind-swept heights we went, chasing the shouting wind in search of the delirious blue above. Sunward we climbed towards the wind-swept clouds tumbling around in all their mirth.
Behold – is that a Rock-star I see before me?
I think I speak unanimously for our group when I say that whilst a long and tough climb it was a joy. Plenty of ridge climbing and quite a slow pace as we picked our way up what at times looked undoable. But around each corner was a new opening and at no point did we feel that we were going to be defeated. After about 5 hours and with a couple of hundred meters still to ascend we paused and surveyed the scene below. Across the Poort was Seweweekspoortpiek sitting smug and superior in all its majesty. Way down below we could see the road through the Poort twisting and turning like a brown snake. Up ahead lay the peak but as we crested the brow, we all thought – but which peak? An extensive plateau unfolded before us with several minor bumps each pretending to be our target. We opted for the one and our guess was confirmed as correct by the amount of technology housed there and an enormous cairn.
We soaked up the moment, enjoyed our second lunch of the day and our thoughts drifted to the matter of our descent. On the way up we had been eyeing a long ridge that appeared to offer a simple and somewhat easier way down albeit it slightly longer. The farmer on the North side was apparently not very receptive so rather than end up looking down the barrels of a shotgun or trying to retrace our upward trajectory we decided to be adventurous. It started off well if rather mundanely and from there it was a slide into – yes – you guessed it – Hell! I won’t go into all the gory details as that will sour your impression of the first half of the day. Suffice to say that most of us by the end were running on empty but to give credit where credit is due, we all stuck together and with a concerted effort we made it to within sight of the road at the bottom. With only a 30-metre waterfall between us and the end we were so close but so far!
Descent stage 1 – looking good
Descent stage 2 – getting trickier
Descent stage 3 – did we get down that?
By now the sky above was boiling with a swarm of locusts. The clouds were also starting to build up offering some relief from the blinding sun. The bottom of the barrel was scraped, and a final sliver of energy allowed us to cross a final kloof and descend to the road. The twenty-minute walk along the dirt road through the Poort back to our base at the cottages was like floating along a magic carpet after our afternoon descent.
45 minutes after our arrival back as were still contemplating our evening braai the silence was broken by a gigantic thunderstorm and the heavens opened. Nothing remained to do than retire for an early night and much needed recuperation.
Home sweet Home! Oh, so sweet!!
The Vital Stats
Ascent (yellow track) – 5 hrs 34 mins – 4.88 Kms
Descent (purple track) – 5 hours 7 mins – 7.64 Kms Elevation difference – 1225 metres
Distance Total – 12.52 kms
Peak Aristata – 1990 metres
Somewhere amongst the pantheon of South Cape Section hikes lie the infamous “Derek Specials”. I think consensus amongst this weekend’s hikers suggests a new category can now be added – An “Ed Epic”!
Thanks Liza for many of the above photos, strapping the wounded together and for sharing your navigational skills !
– Photo credit: Liza Serfontein.
Meet Leader ~ Ed Kay-Shuttleworth