HIKING TRAILS
Elangeni 2 day Hiking Trail - Mpumalanga
Elangeni Hiking trail is situated in Mpumalanga 18 km east
of Waterfall Boven on the N4 to Nelspruit. The trail kicks off in the beautiful Elangeni Holiday Resort (which is dog-friendly).
Hikers spend their first night in luxurious wendy houses and have access to
braai facilities as well as a kitchen equipped with a fridge, oven, kettle and
microwave. These overnight facilities are situated right next to the caravan
park (which hosted a camper home rally during our stay) so keep a watchful eye
on accompanying dogs as there is some traffic entering and leaving the park. Also
- if your dogs are anything like mine, the last thing you want is to compensate
somebody for meat stolen from a braai, or having to explain to an elderly couple
why there is a whippet sleeping under the blankets on their bed. Later at night the camp terrain is patrolled by guards with German Shepherds so don't let your dogs run loose.
The first day offers a 12,3 km route but beware – about half
of this will be spent on a steep climb up the mountain. This is quite
exhausting (as you will also note from comments left in the guest book) but
totally worth the effort. The top of the mountain offers the hiker an incredible
panoramic view of the Elands Valley.
From here the route follows the mountain
edge and downhill again until it reaches a mountain stream in the valley. The
hiker has ample time to relax or even swim in the stream and pools as the
overnight hut is situated close by. This stream was the one and only spot for
safe drinking water we encountered on the first day. Even though there is a
natural spring indicated on the map on the first half of the route, not even the
dogs wanted to drink from it.
The overnight facility at the end of the first day is again
quite luxurious compared to what hiking trails normally offer. Warm showers,
braai facilities, fire wood, a gas oven and gas lamps for all the rooms can be
expected. Note that there is absolutely no cell phone reception anywhere near
this overnight facility.
The route on the second day is only 8,4 km long. A short
climb follows again and the hiker is again given a stunning view of the valley
below (including the overnight hut).
This route included what would definitely
be my favorite part – a path through a tranquil pine forest (no sounds to be
heard) and then reaching Elangeni fall – a spectacular sight! Be sure to spend
some time here as the rest of the trail is not too challenging and doesn't offer any scenery coming close to these falls!
From there the route travels along a neat foot path back to the camp terrain. The amazing pool was a welcome site!
If you want to reduce the effort - Elangeni also offers a
slackpacking option: Simply pack a light day pack and they will have the rest of
your belongings delivered to the overnight hut (at an extra cost of course).
- Call administrators of a hiking trail beforehand to find out if dogs are welcome and if there are any particular parts of the route which might be too challenging for dogs (like climbing chains or cable cars).
- Find out from trail administrators if anyone else will be bringing dogs along. Take this in consideration because even though your dogs might be well socialized, it’s not necessarily true for others.
- Like most hiking trails Elangeni does have game to which hikers usually get quite close to. Can you control your dog’s hunting instinct?
- Work out your dog’s sleeping arrangement beforehand. Lilly and Stitch shared my bed (and sleeping bag!) which was probably not the best idea given the amount of ticks I found on them. Which brings me to the next point:
- Definitely invest in tick treatment.
- I packed each meal for Lilly and Stitch in separate plastic bags which I could just tear open and place the pellets on a convenient spot for them to eat – don’t waste space with food bowls.
- I carried 2 liters of water per day. This was enough for me and the dogs. It’s a good idea to invest in a dog-friendly water bottle. Such a bottle dispenses water in an attached container – this can be used to place water in at the overnight hut.
- We did the trail early September and the weather was just perfect. Temperatures do get quite hot as the year progresses into summer which might require you to start the route earlier to allow dogs enough water breaks in the shade.
- Be sure to keep a watchful eye on your dogs especially at meal times – I heard a story of a dog snatching away a hiker’s lunchtime polony as she turned her back... tempers flared and the fact that the dog’s owner started laughing didn't help at all.
For more information on Elangeni hike:
Tel/Fax: + 27 (0)13 257 7071
Cell: +27 (0)83 793 3163 (Werner)
Cell: +27 (0)83 797 7505 (Adam)
email: elangresort@mweb.co.za
N4 Sycamore, Elands Valley, Mpumalanga,
South Africa
PO Box 252, Waterval Boven, 1195,
South Africa
www.elangeni-resort.co.za
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