There was a three day weekend coming up so I was keen to get out into the mountains again. This hike involved a pass that I have not done before so there was no question with regard to signing up!
The forecast was for a bit of rain over the first few days, so we had the usual weighing up ( literally) as to what form of raingear to take. As any hiker knows weight is everything! We are also moving into Autumn now and with one night on the escarpment, it was time to get out my Winter sleeping bag.
We were 9 on this hike, a mix of old and new hiking acquaintances. We had some rain just after lunch , just enough to haul rain gear out and then it stopped – most of it appeared to be falling to the north of us. Whytes Cave is easily my favourite cave in the Berg and always a very special place to experience. We spent a pleasant afternoon and settled in for an early night as we planned for an early start the following day. We were all up at 5.00am although it was still very dark and on our way just after 7.00am. The sun was out and we all worked up quite a sweat getting up the first big hill just outside the cave. By the time we got to the foot of the climb up Walkers Pass however, clouds and mist were closing in fast and it seemed that these conditions would remain for the rest of the day. The climb, of which there were several sections, was steep, with a lot of ankle twisting contouring in between. There were no views to be had of course which was a shame, although maybe it was better not to see where we still had to climb to! We had our lunch just below Corn Cob Cave and the plan was for Dave and Thinus to stay there, whilst John and Jeanette tented nearby and the rest of us would continue on to Mzimude Cave. However when we had a look at Corncob Cave it was an absolute mess. Local shepherds had moved in and the entire area outside the cave was thick with sheep dung, whilst the cave itself had been rearranged with low stone wall beds and filled with heather and various items strewn around as well as a baboon skin that looked pretty recent. A far cry from the cave that I knew and it was clear that we would not be able to stay there. We all carried on to Mzimude Cave, and this involved yet another very steep climb up to the top of Walkers Ridge and then down the other side to Mzimude. We found a similar scene at this cave, the low stone wall in front of the cave had been moved back to form a small cubicle, again with a bed behind it and the cave was now far smaller. Fortunately there is another cave further along which had not been touched and could sleep another 4. So we split up and spent the remainder of the afternoon making our respective sleeping areas more comfortable. We were relieved to find a small pool at the top of the pass where we could collect water which saved us having to trek back down into the valley. At this stage I couldn’t wait to get settled and warm with a hot drink inside me. Another early start was planned for the next day as it was going to be a long walk out, some 18km. During the night an icy wind blew into the cave and I was happy I had brought my warmer sleeping bag.
We were on our way by 6.45am with a climb up to Walkers Ridge again before descending Isacatula Pass and thereafter Saddlenek Pass. We had started the morning wearing a lot of warm gear as it was cold, frost and ice being evident on the escarpment and that same cold wind was still blowing. By the time we got to contour path level, it had warmed up considerably and the day was lovely and sunny.
We descended a long ridge which involved some bundu bashing and contouring above steep grassy slopes before having our lunch at the river. From here it was a long march back to Bushmans Nek border post, arriving at 3.00pm. A tough but memorable hike.
