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Walking in the Drakensberg

75 walks in the Maloti-Drakensberg Park

This guidebook presents 75 day walks of 1 to 26km in South Africa's Maloti-Drakensberg Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in KwaZulu Natal and easily accessible from Johannesburg, Harrismith, Pietermaritzburg and Durban, the region boasts dramatic cliffs, gorges and waterfalls, abundant wildlife and 2000 year old rock paintings.

Seasons

the walks in this book can be undertaken at any time of year. The limitations imposed by adverse weather conditions can occur in any month. However, snow is most common in June and July and there are frequent and sometimes severe thunderstorms in summer.

Centres

The key centres for the walks are the entrances to the individual areas of the Park and usually have nearby accommodation of all types. They include the Royal Natal National Park, Cathedral Peak, Monk's Cowl, Injisuthi, Giant's Castle, Highmoor, Kamberg, Lotheni, the Himeville and Underberg districts, plus Bushman's Nek.

Difficulty

These are all day walks from 1km to 20km, easy strolls to strenuous day hikes. A simple classification of difficulty is used which takes into consideration distance, height gain, expected duration and any physical issues such as scrambling, ladders and exposure.

Must See

A dramatic, exciting and unique mountainous region of South Africa nestling on the eastern side of Lesotho. Stunning scenery, towering basalt cliffs (eg the Amphitheatre), 3000m mountains (eg Cleft Peak), deep gorges (eg Thukela with the second highest waterfall in the world); abundant wildlife; 2000-year old Bushman rock paintings.
ISBN
9781852848811
Availability
Published
Published
18 Apr 2017
Edition
Second
Pages
256
Size
17.20 x 11.60 x 1.45cm
Weight
280g
Overview

A guidebook to 75 walks in South Africa’s Maloti-Drakensberg Park and Royal Natal National Park. Graded from easy to strenuous, the routes explore the dramatic scenery of this stunning UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Walks range from 1 to 26km (1–16 miles) and can be enjoyed in 1–10 hours. Highlights include Giants’s Castle, Cathedral Peal, Monk’s Cowl and 2000-year-old Bushman paintings.

  • Clear route description illustrated with 1:50,000 sketch maps
  • Safety advice and information on specific challenges that may be encountered, such as navigational difficulty, exposure and chain ladders
  • All you need to know before visiting the parks: getting there, accommodation, permits, etc
  • Notes on the region’s rich geology, history and wildlife

Table of Contents
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Jeff Williams Cicerone author JWILLIAMS

By Jeff Williams

After a short commission in the Army, Jeff Williams trained in paediatric medicine and worked as a consultant paediatrician in North Wales for 30 years. During that time he wrote walking and climbing guides for the Stubai, Silvretta and Ötztal Alps, as well as Cicerone's 'Walking in the Drakensberg'. Jeff also trained as a safari guide in South Africa and currently teaches new guides and lectures in North Wales on safari guiding and walking.

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