lets do it again!

There was a long weekend in August and we decided to revisit two passes in the Mnweni area, Manxome Pass and Ledges Cave Pass, both of which I have done before.  Manxome was some 5 years ago and I think the memories as to its steepness had long faded.  As for Ledges Cave pass, we had ascended it previously whereas this time we would descend - how difficult would that be?……as usual the Berg reminded us yet again that its never wise to underestimate anything!

Christine, Stephan, Farouk, Kate,  Ingrid and I spent the night at the Mnweni Cultural Centre and were joined by Thora the following morning. Its about 15km to Chi Chi bush camp which is near the base of Manxome and we knew it would be a long day.  We stopped at Shepherds Cave and had lunch before pushing on.  This last section to the camp is always tough as its a steady incline all the way, always hard work on tiring legs.  We cut into the river bed a little early so had some boulder hopping and bush whacking to do before we finally put up our tents.  Chi Chi is very rough as its literally situated amongst boulders of the dried up river bed and the camping spots require a bit of scouting around. We were quite relieved and surprised to arrive there first and stake our respective claims, as another ( much younger)  group was also headed there.  They got in quite a bit later and were fortunately able to find tenting spots as well.  The wind came up that evening, and we hoped  that the forecast for the following day would be incorrect - gale force winds on top!

The two groups parted ways in the morning, the youngsters went up Mnweni Pass whilst we boulder hopped up the river bed and past the base of Pins Pass on to our first obstacle which is a very steep hill that needs to be negotiated to avoid the waterfall that guards the entrance to Manxome Pass.  It was easier than our first attempt 5 years ago as it had not been burnt and we had some grass to hold on to.  But we still crawled up using our hands to grip on to the grass - it was that steep.  After descending steeply down to above the waterfall, we took a short break, and readied ourselves for the long and sustained climb up Manxome. We could  see the clouds racing along above us, evidence that the wind was already pumping on the escarpment.

I was sharply reminded that this pass is properly steep - its about a 45 degree angle the entire way and it is unrelenting!  However, it is hugely rewarding as the views are absolutely magnificent.  We stopped at the view point and just drank in the amazing scenery around us before plodding ever upwards. As we approached the top the wind became very evident and we knew we would have to make a decision as to where to spend the night.  The plan had been to tent in the Hanging Valleys, but if the wind was too strong, we would have to bail on this and head for Ledges Cave.  None of us were too keen on this as it was another 6km to get there, so as we headed down in to the valley, we first of all had to find water, and after that, make a call.  We did find a large pool of water and the wind, although strong and gusting at times, was bearable and we felt that our tents would be up to it.  We set up our tents and settled down for a cold, windy, night.  And cold it was!  Temperatures were estimated to be at least minus 7 degrees and there was ice on the river in the morning.  After packing up tents with cold and numb hands and putting on lots of warm clothing, we set off for Ledges Cave.  Kate and Ingrid left us to go down Mnweni Pass as they were to meet up with friends who had come down another pass , and we  continued onwards.  After an early lunch we started our descent. Ledges Cave is just that - a cave on a ledge, and great care and a cool head is needed to get down into the cave from the entrance on the  escarpment and also to traverse the ledge leading out the cave towards the gully.  We were a bit taken aback to find a simple cross that had been erected here and wondered whether this poor soul had met his end whilst leaving the cave?  Sobering thought and we edged our way to the gully even more carefully. The immediate descent down the steep grassy gully was slow going and then we arrived at the crux, which is a very steep scramble downwards.  Stephan took our packs here and helped us down this section.  Quite scary, although it looks rather tame in the photos!  Once past this, it was steep downward boulder hopping for some time on very rough terrain.  We eventually found the spot where we needed to traverse to get on to the ridge which would take us all the way to the bottom.  We were homeward bound, but I don’t think I have ever experienced such a sustained downhill, and my knees and legs certainly let me know about  it.  I had also not eaten a very big lunch and this, together with the physical effort resulted in legs like rubber that could hardly support me once we did get to the valley below.  I have never experienced this before.

Our camping spot opposite Shepherds Cave had been burnt in the previous weeks so it was not ideal, but it was the best we could find, and we were only too glad to put up our tents and relax for the remainder of the afternoon.  It had been three very tough days.

After a good nights sleep we were up and ready to walk back to the Mnweni Cultural Centre.  We had arranged for a lift but this never materialised - we resigned ourselves to the last 4km trudge on the road but the hot shower once we arrived, made up for this.  How wonderful to be clean again!

Its been three days since the hike, and I am still very stiff and sore - signs of two tough passes or just signs of advancing years……I’d like to think the former!