Cathedral Peak hikes - 2 days

Hey guys im new to the forum. Im busy putting together a food show and my 1st trip is a Overnight Hike in the Berg . I will be coming down from Joburg The week of the 16th of Feb and looking for a beautiful overnight hike ( That is safe) Any suggestions on what area\route ?
Many thanks
Dylan

Welcome to VE

There are some great overnight hikes throughout the range, but it is a rather big place and none of us know your level of mountain experience, what gear you have, how fit you are etc. So a few questions to help with the answer:
- Where about in the Berg will you be? E.g. Mnweni and Bushman's Nek are rather far from each other
- How fit is the group?
- Do you have tents that can withstand strong winds? For that matter, would you prefer to sleep in a tent, hut or a cave?
- How far are you looking to do on each day?

Thank you for your reply
The groups level is pretty fit some guys have done Kilimanjaro
Im pretty fit. I dont mind staying in tents we do have decent tents that can handle the winds
Im not sure on distance each day ( as long as the scenery is beautiful we dont mind the trek.
Ive only been to Royal Natal and the Amphitheater so not familiar with other areas.

we looking at 3 days max so any nice trails in that period will be great .

3 days with tents - you can pretty much have your pick of the classics with that!

It does depend where about in KZN you will be - seeing as you are coming from JHB, if you are going to be around Pietermaritzburg/Durban/Underberg/Ixopo/Kokstad area, it will be worth heading to the southern Berg. This part of the Berg is very far from Gauteng, so it is good to take your opportunities when you are close.

Northern Berg classics in 3 days or less:
- Mnweni loop, up Mnweni Pass down Rockeries
- Organ Pipes Pass at Didima, one of the most beautiful passes in the Berg. There are other passes you can loop it with, but it all depends on how good your navigation is

Central Berg:
- Gray's Pass at Monk's Cowl, it comes with dramatic views and the trail lasts most of the way. Admittedly not my favourite Berg pass due to the scree field at the top.
- Langalibalele/Bannerman loop. This is one of the easier classics, but just make sure you know how to get from the one pass to the other - it isn't as straightforward as one might think (and there is no trail between the passes)

Southern Berg:
- Rhino Peak via Mashai Pass, often done in a day, but easier to do in 2 days. There is a good trail the entire way (although everyone looses it at some point on the way up). Mashai Pass is one of very few southern Berg passes that is both easy to get to and has a good trail
- Sehlabathebe hike, Bushman's Nek escarpment by Tarn Cave Pass or Bushman's Nek Pass. There are good trail until you hit the top. The views are awesome and it is comfortably the easiest rout I have listed. Also lots of tarns that you can swim in, as well as Cedric's Pool in the small Berg.

There are writeups with photos on every route mentioned above (in some form or other) on this site.

Wow thanks for the great information .
Do you know if there any any guides that would be keen on coming with us on our trip?
Someone who has knowledge of the area ?
Could add great value for the TV Audience.

Oh - is that what you meant by food show. I thought you meant an expo.

Will the film crew use hand held cameras or is some form of helicopter assistance used? It will be quite a mission for a team to carry their gear up a steep pass (even the easy ones are still rather difficult). River crossings may also be a mission.

I know there are specific permits that are required for filming in any area outside Mnweni, but I assume you will be aware of this already.

I am doing a 2 day hike that weekend (21-22 Feb) with some friends, we are heading up Tsepeng (Lesotho's 8th highest peak) via Mashai Pass. You are welcome to come along if you like. The hike isn't particularly long, but the pass is still steep.

Otherwise if you do Organ Pipes Pass or the Mnweni loop you can hire guides from Cathedral Peak Hotel or Mnweni Cultural Centre respectively. They also have porters which may be helpful with getting gear up the mountains.

SWEET. Thanks for all the feedback.
yes a food show I am a chef tthat loves the outdoors and i want to show the world the wild side of South Africa but also brining in some gourmet food in. No helicopters for now maybe a drone , but the pipe organs sound very interesting and could be quite scenic too .

The Organ Pipes from Organ Pipes Pass (Feb 2012):


It is a wonderful part of the Berg and is very well traveled, so there are good trails in most places. There have been the occasional issues with traffic from locals, but you can read up about that and the precautions to take on various threads on this site. There are plenty of caves above the pass and I am not aware of anyone having a problem while sleeping in them.

If the team is happy with a bit of exposure you can always go up the Camel route and down the Thuthumi route for a bit of variety. Tony Marshal has done incredibly detailed writeups with photos on Organ Pipes Pass (both routes if I remember correctly). Thuthumi Pass summit is another variation you could use - i.e. go up the Camel route and down Thuthumi summit gully then Thuthumi Ridge route past the old Fire Lookout.

If you contact Cathedral Peak Hotel you can check what routes their guides recommend - they are very efficient and do this kind of thing often. Incidentally the hotel also has a reputation for producing rather good food...

Awesome thank you very much , it really looks beautiful
have s fantastic weekend

Can anyone suggest a guide for the Didima Area? Someone who is knowledgeable about the area?