Author Archives: Ghaznavid
Makheka
Heritage Day in South Africa is celebrated on 24 September each year. It is commonly celebrated by a good traditional South African braai (barbecue). I prefer to celebrate South Africa’s mountain heritage over this weekend. While South Africa might not have the highest mountains, there are plenty of interesting ones that are well worth the […]
Gear review: Hi-Tec Altitude V Ultra I WP Wide
Over the years I have tested many different Hi-Tec hiking boots. To date I am yet to try a pair I didn’t like. When I booked my November 2022 trip to Nepal, I asked Hi-Tec if they would like me to test a boot for them on this route, and they sent me a pair […]
Marakele
One of my ongoing projects is to attempt to climb all 24 mountains in South Africa with at least 1000m topographic prominence. The list contains 18 Western Cape peaks, 3 Eastern Cape Peaks and 3 Limpopo peaks. The closest peak to my house is the high point at Marakele National Park. The official Government Survey […]
Makoaneng
Much like most of my writeups, this one starts with me studying a map late on a Saturday night in October 2015. I had been looking at a list of peaks above 3400m in Lesotho – with nothing above 3300m on the Middle and Western Ridges, these peaks are generally shown on the Geoseries Hiking […]
Mauritius hiking
While generally not considered a hiking destination, Mauritius actually has a reasonable number of established hiking routes. The weather tends to be hot, and routes don’t have usable water – but with most hikes being reasonably short, this isn’t an issue if you are prepared. While tourists are rarely found on hiking routes, every hike […]
Simonsberg
At 1399m, Simonsberg may not be one of South Africa’s higher mountains – but it is one of only 24 in the country with 1000m topographic prominence. It is also a definite contender for SA’s most beautiful mountain. It is also one of very few mountains that I consider to be genuinely freestanding. I had […]
Mafadi
At 3451m, Mafadi is the highest point in South Africa. It is a large flat summit with some small rock pools on top. The origin of the name is uncertain, as the people who live in the area call it “Ntheledi” – which is Sotho for “makes me slip”, referencing the summit pools. Statistically the […]
Gear review: Hi-Tec Geo-Trail Pro shoes
As someone who goes hiking multiple times a month, I tend to destroy trail shoes fairly quickly. The most distance I have ever managed to get out of a trail shoe was my first pair of Hi-Tec Flash Forces back in 2015 – which I got 753km Drakensberg distance out of before having to retire […]
Camel/Organ Pipes day hike
There are seven Drakensberg passes that I have rated five stars in terms of quality – four of which are at Didima. So when I am asked what my favourite Drakensberg region is, I don’t think it comes as a surprise to anyone when I respond Didima. With work sending me to Pietermaritzburg for a […]
Mount Hanang (Tanzania)
Anyone who reads my blog from time to time will likely have noticed my obsession with topographic prominence. There are just over 1500 ultra prominence mountains (a mountain with at least 1500m topographic prominence) on earth. The number depends on the list you refer to, with most of the higher counts being based on lists […]
Ghaznavid Hiking 
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