Centenary Hut was built by the Mountain Club of SA (KZN section) in 1991 and is situated in the foothills below the Trojan Wall and Triplets in the Injisuthi area. The views from the hut are amongst the most magnificent in the Drakensberg and I have always loved going there. It does however require a bit of work to get there, but the effort is well worth it!
Sadly, it has fallen into disrepair over recent years. When I heard that a group of Engineering Students from Pretoria University had taken on the repair work as a project, I was very keen to revisit and see the hut restored to some of its former glory.
KZN was in the middle of a heatwave, and it was also my first hike after the Christmas break, so we took it easy on the way up. We elected to take the route via the Game guards' accommodation and then along the jeep track to avoid the infamous ‘Heartbreak Hill’ – no prizes for guessing how it gets its name! There was not a cloud in the sky and the heat was intense, fortunately we received the benefit of a gentle breeze now and then. After stopping for lunch under a small tree (the only shade around) we continued on and were quite excited to see the roof of the hut coming into view.
We noticed that the cladding around the door had collapsed, presumably since the students were there and although the roof had been repaired, it did not extend over the veranda like it did in the past. There were old gas canisters and discarded cans and rubbish left by hikers presumably which was very disappointing. But worse was to come! On entering the hut, we found pigeon droppings all over the place. Judging by the depth, they have been here for some time, and we soon discovered that they were getting in through a couple of small holes directly under the roof. The sink had been left in a terrible filthy state and was black with who knows what. The worst damage however was the floor that was still damp in places, even after a week with no rain, and it was breaking up and crumbling away. On examining the roof above, it was clear that the rain had been pouring in through little holes and that it appeared that the rivets used had not been sealed. I had seen photos of the floor that had been completely redone so this was immensely disappointing and sad to see. The hut was renovated in July last year and it has taken just 6 months to get to this state. The windows were however still in an excellent state and a good job was done here. We also blocked up the holes with rocks so this will keep the pigeons out for the time being.
As it was impossible to sleep inside with all the mess, we decided to sleep under the stars that night – fortunately the weather was fine. I am not sure what we would have done if it was raining!
I have contacted MCSA and they have been in touch with the students - hopefully something will be done to sort out the problem – it would seem a huge shame if all the effort involved in restoring this much-loved hut were for nothing.
We made our way back to camp via Heartbreak Hill the following morning - it was a scorcher of a day and we were pleased to get to the shade where the car was parked - I am happy to see that the beautiful old trees around the office and chalets still stand, so perhaps the powers that be have spared them from the 'exotic trees' scourge!
The infamous Hilton Pass
