Tag Archives: exploration
Giants and Dragons: The Double Giants Cup
For many years I have had a strange obsession with the Giants Cup Trail. It is a gem that somehow remains largely unknown. It is one of the few hutted trails in South Africa, and yet, unlike the others, you generally don’t have to book it months in advance. In most cases, you could probably […]
Didima mini-traverse: Camels and Elephants
I often say that the most beautiful part of the Drakensberg is the part you are in at the time of answering the question. The logic is simple – anything else is just a photo. Sadly no photo will ever do any justice to a mountain. The Didima region of the Northern KZN Drakensberg has […]
Giants Cup Trail in a day
The Giants Cup Trail is a 60km long trail from the Sani Pass Road to Bushman’s Nek, usually completed over 5 days. Now how about doing it in a day!
Drakensberg Northern High Traverse in a day
The Northern High Traverse is probably the most widely known route in the Drakensberg Mountains. For that matter, it is probably the only multi-day hiking route in South Africa to appear on various lists of the best hikes in the world, with Walkopedia rating it the 7th best globally. I am not a fan of […]
Gear review: Hi-Tec Tunis Shorts
Hi-Tec recently sent me a pair of their new Tunis shorts to test. Before this review continues – it is important to note that these are running shorts, not hiking shorts. The distinction might be subtle, but the difference is huge. My testing of these shorts included a fair amount of hiking and some running, […]
Mnweni Needles Traverse: Threading the Needles
A 3 day epic at Mnweni with a lot of climbing gear and no climbing!
Some tips for climbing Kilimanjaro
Kilimanjaro is one of the most popular big mountains around, and is one of the most summited 5000m peaks on Earth. It requires little in the way of mountaineering experience, but is one of those mountains that everyone has heard of. Even Toto, in their song “Africa”, said “sure as Kilimanjaro rises like Olympus above […]
Climb Every Mountain – Drakensberg Grand Traverse 2015
Bagging 67 different summits on a 2 week hike in the Drakensberg – a sufficiently epic trip!
Hi-Tec Speed-Life Breathe Ultra
Whenever Hi-Tec is sending me a pair of their latest trail running shoes, I am always excited to see what they have put together. Back in 2015, the Hi-Tec Flash Force arrived, and probably got the best review I have ever given gear. So when I was told a pair of Hi-Tec Speed-life Breathe Ultra’s […]
The Thumb that spured us on
Thumb Spur Peak It feels strange to return to the dragon after GT2012. “We meet again my old friend” I think to myself. The weather looks perfect – clear, not very cold and no wind. The hike is off to a promising start, with an eland standing by the side of the road […]
Ghaznavid Hiking 
Recent Comments