Mqatsheni Pass
05 Apr 2019 21:20 #74874
by intrepid
Take nothing but litter, leave nothing but a cleaner Drakensberg.
Mqatsheni Pass was created by intrepid
This is the official thread for Mqatsheni Pass, Vergelegen.
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Members are encouraged to add write-ups and photos.
Take nothing but litter, leave nothing but a cleaner Drakensberg.
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02 Apr 2020 10:44 - 02 Apr 2020 10:47 #75798
by ghaznavid
Replied by ghaznavid on topic Mqatsheni Pass
Mqatsheni Pass has always been a bit of a mystery pass for me. Dave G's website has a GPS track and photos for the south gully, but that isn't the pass marked on the maps.
On doing the main (north) gully - we found there are actually 4 gullies. Based on a view from below, it looks like all 4 gullies go.
North gully - the marked one, and one we did:
North Middle Gully:
South Middle Gully:
South Gully - one on Dave G's website:
The route starts off quite steep. We approached it from the Sani lower border post, not a route I recommend as there is a lot of very painful side slope traversing to get there.
We followed the grass ledge next to the river till we hit the waterfall in the gully. Seeing as I knew nothing about the route before attempting it - I hadn't even seen a photo of it, I had been taking high zoom photos and planning our route from early on. So I knew there was a ledge to the left that we could use to bypass this obstacle.
The ledge started off fairly easily. Some spectacular views of the cliffs above.
It eventually hits a steep side gully, with a very easy scramble near the top.
It then does an undulating traverse back into the gully.
The top of the pass is a steep grassy slope - nothing too tricky.
Overall I underestimated the pass difficulty. I rate it similar to Fangs, maybe slightly easier than Rwanqa. Scenery on it was well worth the effort. Actually a really nice pass - possibly my favourite of the marked passes at Vergelegen.
It is notable, unlike the 3 other gullies that top out in the Sani Valley, this one tops out near the top of the Mqatsheni Ridge, technically just on the Ntshintshini side. It tops out fairly high - which is part of the difficulty of the route.
Full story at this link .
On doing the main (north) gully - we found there are actually 4 gullies. Based on a view from below, it looks like all 4 gullies go.
North gully - the marked one, and one we did:
North Middle Gully:
South Middle Gully:
South Gully - one on Dave G's website:
The route starts off quite steep. We approached it from the Sani lower border post, not a route I recommend as there is a lot of very painful side slope traversing to get there.
We followed the grass ledge next to the river till we hit the waterfall in the gully. Seeing as I knew nothing about the route before attempting it - I hadn't even seen a photo of it, I had been taking high zoom photos and planning our route from early on. So I knew there was a ledge to the left that we could use to bypass this obstacle.
The ledge started off fairly easily. Some spectacular views of the cliffs above.
It eventually hits a steep side gully, with a very easy scramble near the top.
It then does an undulating traverse back into the gully.
The top of the pass is a steep grassy slope - nothing too tricky.
Overall I underestimated the pass difficulty. I rate it similar to Fangs, maybe slightly easier than Rwanqa. Scenery on it was well worth the effort. Actually a really nice pass - possibly my favourite of the marked passes at Vergelegen.
It is notable, unlike the 3 other gullies that top out in the Sani Valley, this one tops out near the top of the Mqatsheni Ridge, technically just on the Ntshintshini side. It tops out fairly high - which is part of the difficulty of the route.
Full story at this link .
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Last edit: 02 Apr 2020 10:47 by ghaznavid.
The following user(s) said Thank You: Serious tribe, elinda, tonymarshall, Richard Hunt, Christinejvr
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