Dogs by Nature

FARMS AND RESERVES

Wolkberg Wilderness area

Wilderness area implies intact and undisturbed natural areas

Wolkberg Wilderness Area is an enormous 24 000 hectare mountain reserve situated about 80 km south-west of Tzaneen. It is roughly a 350 km drive from Pretoria and takes about 4 hours to reach. We stayed in North-eastern part of the reserve in the Wolkberg Mountain hut (24°00′09.05″S 30°03′52.29″E) which is apparently the only overnight man-made structure in the reserve, and this took us an additional hour to reach from the official Wolkberg entrance near the Serala Forest Station. 

The route up the mountain is very challenging and not to be attempted with anything other than a Low Range 4x4.  

Wolkberg hut is part of a small property owned by Johannesburg section of the Mountain Club of South Africa (MCSA). Although this hut is situated on privately-owned land and no private vehicles are permitted, a servitude allows permit-holding visitors access. This has to be arranged beforehand with the land-owner JP (082 792 2779).

The hut is surrounded by the Devil’s Knuckles Mountains in the South and the Serala Mountain (not only the highest peak in the Wilderness reserve, but in the whole of Limpopo) can be seen to the West. The hut offers a loft – and downstairs sleeping area as well as a kitchen which is equipped with lamps and some basic cutlery. There is a cozy fireplace and 2 dining areas with a beautiful large veranda. 

There are some long drops but the “shower” facilities is the most amazing rock pool with a waterfall, just a few meters from the hut where guests can have some true Palmolive-moments as Hermien would say!

Hermien Venter, a member of the MCSA is the person who made this trip possible. She kindly organised the whole weekend and not only went through the effort of booking the hut, but also marked the path with reflector tape and red ribbons, without which we would surely have been lost in the monotonous pine and eucalyptus plantations. 

Hermien was an excellent host by providing so much interesting facts and information regarding the breath-taking mountains and forests we were surrounded by and showing us the hidden treasures that these surroundings had to offer. 

Even though the hut does offer sleeping space, we decided to make camp outside. This area is not called Wolkberg for no reason and a waterproof tent is a non-negotiable!

On Saturday morning our first adventure was a strenuous and steep descend into a valley. The amazing scenery was ten times worth the effort!

In the heart of the valley we were met by a refreshing mountain stream. This provided cool relief after the long hike. For the rest of the day, we hiked upstream, walking barefoot in the cool water. The dense vegetation on the riverbanks forced us to stay in the stream. 

This was an incredibly scenic route that ended at a spectacular waterfall. We only ever walked waist-deep in the water, but the fact that the dogs refused to swim forced us to place all our valuables in a dry-bag and carry them. The rocks were slippery as snot and it felt like an impossible mission!

Another impossible mission was trying to have lunch:

Hermien lead us to what she calls the bum slide which is the stream running over a broad and solid rock bed until it pours into a deep rock pool. So the idea of the bum slide is to sit in the stream an let it carry you down the rocks for a good 20 meters until you tumble into the rock pool – great fun! 

On the Sunday we partly drove around Devils Knuckes and from there hiked around the extra few kilometers up and around the slope until we reached these breath-taking  cliffs. We could not resist walking around the abyss to view them from the other side as well.

While waiting for the rest of the group to catch up we met a hiking family with their adorable township rescue dog – Beetle. Coincidentally the woman in this picture is the daughter of the late by Dr. Louis Clifford Thompson (1920 – 1997) who was the driving force behind the Wolkberg hut project. 

Although we used the MCSA hut as a base camp and set out exploring from there, another option is to hike out and pitch a tent at a suitable overnight spot. This however requires careful planning and should only be attempted in a group with an experienced hike leader. The fact that the MCSA hut and surrounding mountains are used as practise grounds for search and rescue operations should say a lot. Wolkberg Wilderness area is also habitat to the potentially lethal  Southern Vine Snake as well as Berg Adder - the latter being responsible for the most bites among hikers and climbers. A taste of just how interesting a Wolkberg hike can get, is offered by a blog called Our Outings by Thinus Botha. 

This was definitely a very memorable weekend and we would love to return as soon as possible. 

I am not exactly sure if the MCSA hut would be available for non-members (we went as prospective members), but the MCSA Jhb section contact details are as follows:

Tel: 011 807 1310 (8am-10am weekdays) 

Fax: 011 807 1310,

Email: admin@jhb.mcsa.org.za

Alternatively contact Hermien Venter – who annually organises a few trips to the Wolkberg hut and in-between she is planning other get-aways as well (so in short: she is constantly planning some sort of adventure). 

Hermien Tel: 084 823 8392

E-mail: mienaupholstery@gmail.com

For more Wolkberg reading, visit:

TUFFSTUFF Environmental Matters: Wolkberg Wilderness area

The Exploration Society of Southern Africa : Wolkberg Hike

Mountain Club of South Africa Johannesburg section

Wikitravel: Wolkberg Wilderness area