vertical-endeavour.com

I have read that there are about 170 Khulus in the Berg (being defined as SA peaks over 3km, with some other requirements). I have been trying to compile a full list of them, but I'm currently stuck on 104 of them. The list is based on the Vertical Endevour list of Khulus over 3300 and the list of peaks in the back of a book about the berg (Best Hikes of the Drakensberg), I also got some peaks from maps. Does anyone know of any peaks which are missing from my list, I need the name, altitude and area. It would be pretty cool to have a list of all Khulus in the Berg, and I know that not all peaks are marked on maps. Gaepateus Point is marked on a map, but there is no height for it on the maps.

3451 Mafadi Injisuthi
3410 Injasuthi Dome Injisuthi
3377 Champagne Castle Monk's Cowl
3375 Lithobolong Peak * Injisuthi
3366 kaNtuba Peak * Vergelegen
3354 Trojan Wall Injisuthi
3344 kaNtuba Buttress * Vergelegen
3338 Yodler's Peak I * Didima
3338 Yodler's Peak II * Didima
3337 Pampiring Didima
3337 Red Wall Peak * Injisuthi
3333 Botlolong *(/ Thaba Tsoona?) Monk's Cowl
3331 Popple Peak Injisuthi
3325  Ships Prow Monk's Cowl
3324 Sehonghong * Vergelegen
3318 Nkosazana Peak * Monk's Cowl
3318 Champagne Castle Ridge Peak * Monk's Cowl
3316 Giant's Castle Lotheni
3313 Mashai Garden Castle
3310 Mohlesi Vergelegen
3309 Mlambonja Peak Garden Castle
3309 Redi Lotheni
3306 Walker's Peak Garden Castle
3305 Mhlwazini Peak * Monk's Cowl
3301 Yodler's Ridge Peak * Didima
3301 Sanqebethu * Giant's Castle
3294 Mount Durnford Giant's Castle
3290 Icidi Buttress Mnweni
3282 Matebeng Garden Castle
3282 Mont-aux-sources Royal Natal
3280 Terateng Lotheni
3277 Cleft Peak Didima
3276 Mqatsheni Vergelegen
3275 Namahadi Peak
3267 Litseketseke Spur Lotheni
3257 Hodgeson's Peak South Cobham
3257 Long Wall Giant's Castle
3257 Namahadi Ridge
3255 Wilsons Peak Garden Castle
3248 Champagne Castle Butress Monk's Cowl
3244 Hodgeson's Peak North Cobham
3239 Stimela Peak Mnweni
3235 Bannerman Face Giant's Castle
3234 Monk's Cowl Monk's Cowl
3233 The Bollard Garden Castle
3224 Black and Tan Wall Mnweni
3220 Lithabeneng Lotheni
3219 Ifidi Peak Mnweni
3212 Lesser Injisuthi Buttress Injisuthi
3206 Ndumeni Dome Didima
3205 Mzimude Garden Castle
3202 Greater Injisuthi Buttress Injisuthi
3197 The Judge Giant's Castle
3195 The Corner Giant's Castle
3190 West Injisuthi Triplett Injisuthi
3188 Mount Newman Giant's Castle
3179 Didima Buttress Didima
3177 Mponjwane Mnweni
3175 Rwanqa Mnweni
3165 Sentinal Royal Natal
3161 Cockade Didima
3154 Carbineer Point Giant's Castle
3153 Saddle (North) Mnweni
3152 Crow's Nest Royal Natal
3150 East Injisuthi Triplett Injisuthi
3149 Cathkin Peak Monk's Cowl
3148 Bond Giant's Castle
3143 Mount Amery Royal Natal
3141 Tent Lotheni
3141 Potterhill Giant's Castle
3135 Dragon's Back Monk's Cowl
3121 Ampitheatre Western Buttress Royal Natal
3120 Mbundini Buttress Mnweni
3118 Saddle (South) Mnweni
3109 Elephant Didima
3101 No Man's Peak Garden Castle
3099 Mnweni Outer Buttress Mnweni
3099 Mnweni Pinacles II Mnweni
3096 Mnweni Pinacles I Mnweni
3090 The Hawk Lotheni
3085 Erskine Giant's Castle
3084 Thaba Edanyazana Mnweni
3076 Didima Dome Didima
3076 Katana Giant's Castle
3075 Little Saddle Didima
3071 Windsor Castle Didima
3064 Andre's Knob Garden Castle
3062 Witch Peak Monk's Cowl
3055 The Thumb Giant's Castle
3053 Castle Buttress Didima
3051 Rhino Peak Garden Castle
3047 Devil's Tooth Royal Natal
3045 The Molar Injisuthi
3044 The Ape Injisuthi
3044 Inner Tower Royal Natal
3028 Thaba Ntsu Bushman's Nek
3023 Mitre Didima
3009 Ampitheatre Eastern Buttress Royal Natal
3007 Mlambonja Buttress Didima
3005 Inner Horn Didima
3004 Cathedral Peak Didima
3004 Outer Horn Didima
3001 Ben Macdhui Eastern Cape
3000 Thaba Phinong Vergelegen

Yay, one of my favourite topics! There are a whole bunch of unnamed peaks not listed there, and quite a few in the Free State part of the Berg too. At some point I'll get around to listing more on this site (did start working on the 3200-3299m ones a while back) but I simply don't get around to everything. If you can get your hands on the 1994 MCSA journal, an original list by Cliff Murch can be found there. My own lists differ slightly but he was the guy that got the whole thing officially started.

How would I go about getting this journal? I have looked on the MCSA website with no luck (but I'm not a member of MCSA, so I just might not have access to that part of the site).

How do unnamed peaks obtain names, is there an official process for a peak to be named?

Based on the city you live in, contact the KZN section. Many of the committee members of that section live there too. If they don't have a copy for sale, they should at least have one in their library. And note that it is in fact the 1994 journal, not 1995 as stated earlier.

I will try and scan in Murch's article and do a text recognition to get the basic list of names out. Don't want to publish too many details though because if copyright issues.

As far as naming goes, the MCSA does have some guiding principles and this would probably be trashed out in committee meetings. But they are not the only party that plays a role in this, and I'm not sure that there is a clearly developed legal procedure for naming of peaks. In fact in the recent controversy over the proposal to rename Sterkhorn or Cathkin to Mount Mandela, the initial dialogues where done through various press statements, speaches, letters to editors and various emails.

For the purposed of this site I don't care too much to get official naming done of peaks, passes and caves. Where the "going name" exists, it is respected and used here, and if there is none, an attempt at using an appropriate, temporary one is made, typically using names of nearby rivers, peaks or passes. To get the unnamed Khulus officially named, one would first have to agree on which ones are the Khulus, and this debate could take forever and would need more interest from people than currently exists. For now it is much more fun to rather be out there climbing them.

Do you have any idea how high Gaepateus Point is? The maps don't show its height, and based on looking at it from the top of Bannerman Pass , I can't see a reason why it would not constitute a Khulu. My estimate would be around 3100m, but that is based on the pass topping out at 3050m and the ridge at the top of the pass and the cairn being 3100m, Gaepateus point doesnt seem to be too much higher than the ridge.

Would be interested to know how many people have actually climbed it, it would have an awesome view of Bannerman Face and the central berg, if I knew the weather was going to clear up when I was last on top of Bannerman Pass, I would have climbed it.

Back when peak-bagging was higher on my list of priorities, we set a goal of trying to summit 50 berg "peaks" during our first Grand Traverse. We only got to about 30-something over those 15 days and Gyapaetus Point (sp?) was one of them.

Unfortunately, I don't remember much about the view (this was 7 years ago) as it was literally a dash up and down while the sane members of our party continued plodding along the valley!