Drakensberg Mountains Offer Some of the Best Hikes In South Africa

Photo by Mark Harpur on Unsplash

South Africa attracts millions of tourists a year. This beautiful country has famous sights such as Kruger National Park, Cape Town, and the Garden Route. While these are all incredible attractions, one place which doesn’t get as much attention as it should is the Drakensberg Mountains.

Located only 5 hours from Johannesburg, this mountain range is the biggest in South Africa and is the biggest watershed in the country, along with being the source of the beautiful Orange River. With mountains towering over 11,000 feet and snow-covered peaks in the winter, there are great views all year round.

Cathedral Peak and Monk’s Cowl are two of the famous hikes. There are many overnight hikes to do as well including sleeping in caves, water hikes, and looking at cave writings dated back thousands of years.

Tugela Falls is the highest waterfall in Africa and some say is the tallest in the world other than Angel Falls in Venezuela. There are many organized day trips here or you can brave the 13 km hike yourself!

The mountain range is part of the Zulu nation’s land and has many interesting local villages to see. Battlefields from the Boer Wars in the late 19th and early 20th century took place here as well and there are many great hostels and campsites to stay at.