Overnight Berg hikes with kids

My 5(girl) and 6(boy) year old was way tougher then i thought they would be on our Easter hiking trip -even through heavy rain they kept up - in fact they kept telling me to walk a bit faster. We never made it to the cave and ended up having to pitch a tent in the rain but the minute we were all dry and cosy they got their second wind. The only reason why i would not even think of taking them on longer trips now is because I will have to carry so much more stuff. My pack was super heavy on the last trip (they carried most of their clothes and a few snacks – (they ate a lot lol)).

We did Lower Injasuti Cave with my two boys when they were 4 and 6 - the 6 year old was fine, and the 4 year old almost made it the whole way there and back, save for about a 2km section where he got a lift in the chair and an energy rejuvenation. I carried the gear and my wife took the baby carrier for just that reason. They are fit and active.

They are now 10 and 8 - and I plan on taking them up to Giants Castle Area to Giants Hut and contour across to Bannermans Hut or Centenary Hut for a 3 day overnight experience

But I am still going to wait until I take them to the top of the escarpment until the youngest is 11 and the oldest 13 or maybe even 12/14 - mostly because I wont be able to carry all their extra stuff by myself. I think they will be able to make the top only carrying their water/food and sleeping bags - but if things get nasty up there, I need to know they will still be ok with their packs and we have all the necessary stuff to survive the night if the weather turns ugly.

Ryan wrote: I plan on taking them up to Giants Castle Area to Giants Hut

Giants Hut lacks a roof right now. You will need to take tents along if you want to use that hut.

thanks for the feedback, appreciated.

You will find that (generally) the smaller they are the more gear you will have to carry for them. Our clothes selection criteria for the kids were durability which meant that it was not lightweight, so carrying their bulky and heavy clothes with a tent (oh, and some of their food)meant a fairly heavy backpack for me. And I had to leave the lightweight stove at home as well, instead taking the 1.7L Jetboil Sumo. The net effect was that I packed my 75L pack to capacity. Once they are a bit older (and stronger) they can start carrying their own gear, but when young you will have to do the hard work for them.

Point of interest: I found that I actually underestimated my daughters appitite, we nearly ran out of food because of her. My son is slightly chubby but my daughter has virtualy no fat on her, so in order to fuel her engine she ate a lot. When I mean a lot I really mean a lot. She easily ate more than me, so if you have a child with a fast metabolism remember to factor this in. It will be even worse when it gets colder.

Hi Everyone, decided this long weekend to take my 9yr old son on an overnight hike and cave sleep out, The plan was to take him to the Southern Berg area as this is one of my favorite places to go, my original plan was to try get him up to Thamathu Cave at Bushmans Nek but under advice from a well known Underberg mountain goat he suggested I take Liam to Engagement Cave just above Sleeping Beauty Cave as there was plenty of water nearby and lots to explore around the area.
So we set off around lunch time on Saturday at a very steady pace, I had packed his K-Way 50L backpack with the bare minimum ( sleeping bag, mattresses roll,change of clothes, water bottles, jacket and gloves). It was unusually warm on Saturday and 2km into the hike both of us were sweating up a storm and decided that there was no rush to get there so we took several short breaks to rehydrate and snack.
We passed several families who were all on day hikes to Sleeping Beauty Cave.
One forgets that when your child is only 9 and carrying a backpack how demanding the slog from the last river crossing at the bottom of the ridge up to Sleeping Beauty Cave is, luckily there was still some remanence of the snow fall from 2 weeks ago as that kept him going because every time we went past some snow he took great delight in making a snowball to hit dad with.
Once at Sleeping Beauty cave Liam quickly realized that we still had a little further to go, with a quick reminder that sometimes the best views are worth the slog he hop footed his way up to Engagement Cave, this is the first time I've stayed at this cave and it was very pleasant, close to water and perfect for him and I for the night.
After a relatively decent nights sleep we woke up to a glorious morning in the Sleeping Beauty Valley but the wind was howling, we decided to explore the ridge opposite the cave, climbed up and were treated to spectacular views of Bollard Pass ( a pass that has defeated me properly I might add)
Liam decided that while looking out of the cave there was a possible cave across on the opposite ridge which he nicknamed Rapunzel's Castle as the shape of the rock looked just like a castle.
We climbed down from the ridge as the wind was actually blowing so hard Liam was battling to stand up.
We picked up our packs which we had stashed behind a rock and headed back to the car park.
We must have passed 12 different couples all heading up for a day hike to sleeping beauty cave, I have to love my sons sense of humor as he quickly remarked after the 3 or 4 couple passed us "Dad, sleeping beauty cave is like Gateway Mall on a Saturday!!"
Once back at the car park Liam and I decided that our next berg adventure would be to The Hidden Valley.
It excites me that my son shares the same passion for the mountains as I do, long may it last!

This is an excellent thread thank you. My 4 year old has done numerous day outings on fairly easy trails and without a pack he manages up to 6km on easy trails before daddy gets asked to houst him onto the shoulders.

He is a small kid (like his dad without the boep) but fit and eager. Last week I took him on his first lower berg trip around Injisuthi. He walked all the way to Cataract Valley from camp and we had a jol at the river. I ended up supporting him with the odd lift on the way back. Kids are amazing...

Yet to take him cave camping but he is only 4 so no doubt lots of exploration ahead. If you are willing and able to carry everything (and occasionally them) it is well worth getting the youngsters exposed.

I remember guiding a group of Korean kids years ago in the Outeniquas. They were aged 6 - 11 and could not speak or understand any english. In a foreign country without their parents (long story) and they spent 6 days in the hills with me. Yet they hiked, abseiled, canoed etc. and loved it. I guess if you display confidence and set a positive example the kids will follow (and surprise us). It is up to us to be sensible.

Have fun...

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Hi everyone

Myself and Iona from MCSA KZN are running an overnight hike to Ngenwa Cave at Cobham on 3-4 October. The hike is for parents to bring their kids on. Parents are responsible for looking after their kids, making sure they can handle the 9km each day etc. You don't have to be an MCSA member to join.

The choice of cave is largely due to the nearby rock pool - Ngenwa Pool - one of the best Berg rock pools I have ever been to.

Space is limited to 12 people, so if you are keen, please message me asap.

If you would like to join, please pm me your email address.

Ngenwa Pool:

As a first cave experience Grindstone definitely gets my vote. However it is a steep gradient and takes about 2-3 hours to get there. (For 12 year old kids with backpacks)

As caves go It gets a high rating, perfect waterfall through the center of the cave. Plenty of room for 12 people, lots of toiletry space, and awesome view of Monk's Cowl and Champagne's.

There is a lovely yellwood forest in the valley in front of the cave which is excellent to explore. You also have a waterfall to walk to up the valley and bushmen paintings in the area if you keep your eyes open.

But please if anyone can find a cave like Grindstone with the ease of the hike up to Pillar cave you will have the best cave for lighties.

I would just like to say to you all who said that hiking to Lower Injisuthi Cave and Marble Bath Cave was a short easy hike … YOU ALL LIED!!!
Over Easter we did the hike to Lower Injisuthi Cave with my 5 and 6 year old. It took us nearly 6 hours and we never even made the cave due to heavy rain and fog. Thanks for the advice about taking a tent – came in handy.
So we decided to take another hiking trip to Marble Bath Cave over the long weekend in September- seeing as you all keep saying how easy it is. IT WAS NOT EASY!!, and my word the uphill’s. I nearly died. It took us 6 hours and I packed the bare necessities (learned my lesson after the Easter trip) and kids being a few months older carried their own sleeping bags and some of their clothes. Wooohoo we made it to the cave this time – Kids had so much fun swimming. And again the people we met were just supper awesome and so friendly. That made up for the NOT SO EASY hike. Really all you supper Olympic fit people making it sound so easy ….. I thank you because it’s the second time this year I have lost a toe nail. Haha and it looks like I’ll be losing another one over December doing another easy (NOT) hike.