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Great areas for Walking in South Africa
South Africa is a wonderful country for walking – a land of staggering natural beauty yet varied in terrain with classic mountain hikes, coastal trails, even desert walks. It’s sparsely populated with a climate conducive to outdoor pursuits.
Unlike most of Africa, South Africa is quite mountainous. The country divides into two distinct regions: the vast interior highveld plateau and the narrow coastal and 'lowveld' plain. The highveld is savannah grassland, whilst the lowveld of Transvaal and KwaZulu Natal is subtropical bushveld. Between the two lies a necklace of rugged mountains, the awesome Drakensberg. In the Cape, the Cape fynbos vegetation is separated from the Karoo semi-desert by the Outeniqua, Tsitsikamma and Cedarberg mountain ranges.
• The dramatically coloured and weathered mountains of the Cedarberg Wilderness area are only two hours from Cape Town and are ideal for the cooler months of April to October. This is mountain country with the added attractions of pristine mountain fynbos and ancient San (Bushmen) rock art. The largely dry and sunny climate of the Cedarberg make is ideal for visitors all year round but don’t plan a serious walking tour for mid December to February. It is simply too hot! Why not combine some walking in the Cedarberg with the wild flower season from mid August to mid September?
• The Drakensberg Mountains offer superb mountain scenery, lush green in summer with spectacular waterfalls, woodland and crystal clear streams. There’s a range of walking trails from easy riverside walks to challenging mountain peaks, and it’s easy to combine with the cultural, wildlife and historical sights in KwaZulu Natal. If you are keen on walking we recommend staying at least 3 nights and preferably 4 at one of the Mountain Hotels such as Cathedral
Peak Hotel or Montusi Mountain Lodge
• For coastal walking - the Garden
Route offers superb coastal trails as does Hermanus, and also Cape Point on the Cape Peninsula. All of these areas are easy to combine with more general sight-seeing and have a temperate Mediterranean climate. Cape
Town also offers superb mountain walking on and around Table Mountain itself, with wide variety of trails to suit all tastes.
• Further to the east is the magnificent Wild Coast with its lush vegetation and African cultures. The Garden Route and Wild Coast offer a number of organised walking trails where guests walk.
• For something different - try the Richtersveld or Augrabies
National Parks in the Northern Cape for dramatic desert scenery and rock formations. |
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