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Cobham

Cobham is situated in the Southern part of the Maloti-Drakensberg Park, and is approximately 150 km from Pietermaritzburg. Dominated by Hodgson's Peaks which enclose the Giants Cup, Cobham is a 52,000 ha section of the Maloti-Drakensberg Park in the southern 'berg adjacent to Himeville Village.


Amakehla Pass (Lakes Cave)

Amakehla Pass (Lakes Cave)

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Amakehla Pass is a fairly easy pass to hike. It can be accessed in two ways: from Pholela Cave or by starting on the connecting path between the two caves.
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Amakehla Pass (Pholela Cave)

Amakehla Pass (Pholela Cave)

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Amakhela Pass from Pholela Cave which is located in the Cobham area of the Drakesnberg.
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Amakehla Pass (Ridge)

Amakehla Pass (Ridge)

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Amakhela Pass via the ridge route which is located in the Cobham region of the Drakensberg.
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Amakehla Peak

Amakehla Peak

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Amakhela Peak is in the Cobham region of the Drakensberg.
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Bath Plug Cave

Bath Plug Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Bath Plug Cave is located in the Cobham area. It's a large cave with bushman paintings, thus no camping is allowed. The cave is 4km from the Cobham Reserve. The cave name comes from the large hole in the cave through which the water disappears into. The images in Bath Plug Cave are very eroded as a result of natural ...
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Boundary Rock

Boundary Rock

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Boundary Rock is just over 4km from the Cobham Reserve and a stunning pool for swimming is near by. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: A large indeterminate human is depicted bending over a group of sitting people. This image links to the trance dance, since the bending forward posture is part of this dance. After exc ...
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Chameleon Cave

Chameleon Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Chameleon Cave is near Venice cave. The overhang is high and not very deep making the cave very vulnerable to the wind and rain.
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Cobham Nature Reserve

Cobham Nature Reserve

PO Box 168, , KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Cobham is situated in the Southern Maloti-Drakensberg Park, South Africa’s first cultural and environmental World Heritage Site, and is approximately 150 km from Pietermaritzburg. The exceptional natural beauty of the Maloti-Drakensberg Park World Heritage Site is evident in its soaring basaltic buttresses, golden sand ...
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A fun family day outing to Cobham and a short easy walk along the Pholela river. The distance is your choosing, from 1km to 5km in total. As you wind your way along the river choose one of the many pools to have a swim in and have a picnic lunch. This is a great way to introduce your kids to the Drakensberg without it ...
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A stunning 3 day hike. If you want a moderately easy hike, enjoy seeing Bushman Paintings want the luxury of a Hut on night 1 and enjoy caves as your accommodation on night 2 this is the hike for you. The sunrise from Lakes Cave is brilliant and the colours of a sunrise on the berg mountains are brilliant. The Hut ca ...
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Eagle Rock

Eagle Rock

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Viewed from the Garden Castle road and can also be seen from Mzimkhylwana Hut area in Cobham.
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Emerald Dome

Emerald Dome

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Emerald Dome can be seen from the Cobham Parking area.
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eSiphongweni Peak

eSiphongweni Peak

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

eSiphongweni Peak is located in the Cobham Reserve and can be seen from the campsite. Near the top is Siphongweni Cave and Mpongweni North Shelter which has many well preserved bushman paintings well worth a visit.
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Fingall's Rock

Fingall's Rock

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

When hiking up Masubasuba Pass you have the option of going up along the Pholela River or via Fingall's Rock. This stunning rock feature makes this route option a great option.
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Giant's Cup Trail Hike

Giant's Cup Trail Hike

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The Giants Cup trail is the only established trail in the Drakensberg. The hike is over 5 days (and 5 nights accommodation in the Drakensberg) and is 58.9km's in total. The first day is 12.8 km's and you stay in Pholela Hut. Day two is 8.8 km's and you stay in Mzimkhulwana Hut. Day 3 is 12 km's and you stay in Winterho ...
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Glade Cave

Glade Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Glade Cave is after Weavers Cave and offers plenty water from the Mzimkhulwana River nearby.
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Good Hope Shelter #1

Good Hope Shelter #1

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Good Hope Shelter #1 is in the Cobham area. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: Men on horses are depicted here. In the Southern Maloti-Drakensberg Park World Heritage Site, paintings are mainly narrative and can be explained with ease, while rock art in the Central and Northern Maloti-Drakensberg Park World Heritage S ...
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Good Hope Shelter #2

Good Hope Shelter #2

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Good Hope Shelter #2 is in the Cobham area. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: Men on horses are depicted here. In the Southern Maloti-Drakensberg Park World Heritage Site, paintings are mainly narrative and can be explained with ease, while rock art in the Central and Northern Maloti-Drakensberg Park World Heritage S ...
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Gorge Cave

Gorge Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Gorge Cave is near specatcle cave, its very small.
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Gxalingenwa Cave

Gxalingenwa Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

A stunning cave with magnificent views offering great protection even in the severest storms. Plenty water is available in the stream below and next to the cave in the summer months.
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Gxalingenwa Cave Circular Route

Gxalingenwa Cave Circular Route

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

12.5 km's (5 hours) via Pholela Hut on the way to Gxalingenwa Cave and 11.5 km (4 hours) return via Pinnacle Rock. The hike is good for bird watching and game viewing. It follows the Emerald Stream, past indigenous forest to a spectacular waterfall with pools suitable for swimming on the way back form the cave. The hi ...
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Gxalingenwa Cave via Pholela Shelter

Gxalingenwa Cave via Pholela Shelter

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

12.5 kms (5 hours) via Pholela Hut and an elevation gain of 530m. The hike via Pholela Cave follows day 1 of the giants cup trail in reverse for the first  7.25km's and then you turn left (continue straight) and follow Gxalingenwa River up the valley. The cave is a real cave with great views into the valley. It' ...
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Gxalingenwa Cave via Pinnacle Rock

Gxalingenwa Cave via Pinnacle Rock

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

11.5 km (4 hours) via Pinnacle Rock and an elevation gain of 432m The hike is good for bird watching and game viewing. It follows the Emerald Stream, past indigenous forest to a spectacular waterfall with pools suitable for swimming on the way back form the cave. The cave is a real cave with great views into the vall ...
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Gxalingenwa River Trail

Gxalingenwa River Trail

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

13 kms about 4 hours. The hike is good for bird watching and game viewing. It follows the Emerald Stream, past indigenous forest to a spectacular waterfall with pools suitable for swimming. It begins on the Sani Pass Road and has good views of Giants Cup. It leads to Gxalingenwa Cave.
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Hodgson's Peak (North)

Hodgson's Peak (North)

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Hodgson’s Peaks is in Lesotho and near Sani peak. It is considered as an easy hike.
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Hodgson's Peak (South)

Hodgson's Peak (South)

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The hike up to Hodgson's Peak (South) is described as moderate. From the top you can see into the KZN midlands and Lesotho.
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Hodgson's Peaks Hike

Hodgson's Peaks Hike

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

A severe 2 - 3 days hike (19 kms) The hike starts at Cobham Camp and follows the main Polela River towards the escarpment, the path becomes less clear and the Masubasuba Pass is long and difficult.
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Ikanti #1

Ikanti #1

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Ikanti #1 is in the Cobham area. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: This panel is also called the “Marching Men” panel. The procession is made up of men only, carrying bows, arrows and quivers. Since they are migrating east, to the sea, this panel can be interpreted as seasonal migration of the Bushmen during winter t ...
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Ikanti #2

Ikanti #2

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Ikanti #2 is in the Cobham area. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: In this image two tall figures are painted above smaller humans. During trance or altered state of consciousness, shamans felt as if they are “growing taller”. This is the result of psycho-somatic hallucinations experienced during trance.  
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Ikanti #3

Ikanti #3

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Ikanti #3 is in the Cobham area. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: The painting shows a large herd of eland. The Bushmen mainly painted eland in large herds while rhebuck were painted as being part of smaller family groups. Symbolically, eland herds represent the aggregation phase of social life, when small Bushman b ...
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Lake District Hike

Lake District Hike

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

A moderate 8 hrs - 2 days hike. There are many caves in the in the area. A network of parts connects the caves and places of interest and allows hikers to amble around the section of the Little Berg. Hikes begin from the Cobham Camp. Cobham State Forest area, which is situated close to Himeville.
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Lakes Cave

Lakes Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Lakes cave is 12km from the Cobham Reserve. The cave is spacious but can only sleep 8 max (2 would need to sleep on the top ledge). A river is below the cave and the views are excellent. Sunrise from above the cave is amazing with view of both the small and big berg on a clear day. If raining and windy the bottom sec ...
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The sunrise from Lakes Cave is brilliant and the colours of a sunrise on the berg mountains are brilliant. This 12km hike from Cobham will take 4 to 5 hours, the hikes starts off pretty flat  and get steeper after 6km's, the last 2km's after Nutcracker Cave being the steepest.  The total elevation gain is 49 ...
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Little Bamboo Mountain

Little Bamboo Mountain

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Viewed from the Garden Castle and can also be seen from Mzimkhylwana Hut area.
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Masubasuba Pass

Masubasuba Pass

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The Masubasuba Pass is the most direct way to climb the Hodgson's Peaks. The approach to the pass is spectacularly scenic. The hike up this pass is along the Pholela River Valley and then via Fingall's Rock.
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Minaret

Minaret

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

The Minaret is in the Cobham, next to Minaret Pass.
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Minaret Pass

Minaret Pass

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Along Minaret Pass, rockfall might be an issue. The pass is best accessed from Lakes Cave. Minaret Pass is located south of Hodgson's Peak.
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Mpongweni (Sipongweni) North Shelter

Mpongweni (Sipongweni) North Shelter

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Mpongweni (Sipongweni) North Shelter is in the Cobham area. Mpongweni North Shelter is a must visit if you are interested in Bushman Paintings. It's a long uphill hike of about 6 hours to the site but well worth the visit. Probably best to overnight and make this a 2 day trip. Interpretation by Celeste Rossouw: Women ...
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Mpongweni (Sipongweni) South Shelter

Mpongweni (Sipongweni) South Shelter

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Mpongweni (Sipongweni) South Shelter is in the Cobham area. Paintings on the exterior walls of the Shelter are barely visible due to weathering. It's a steep 250m in altitude climb and about 400m from Mpongweni North Shelter below. Due to the weathering of the paintings it may be better to save your energy for other b ...
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Mvuleni (Bamboo) Mountain

Mvuleni (Bamboo) Mountain

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Viewed from the Garden Castle road and can also be seen from Mzimkhylwana Hut area.
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Mzimkhulwana Hut

Mzimkhulwana Hut

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

This hut is in excellent condition and sleeps up to 30. The Hut is day 2 of the Giants cup trail. From the Cobham Reserve its an easy 8.6km hike to the hut. The hut is in a valley and can thus be quite chilly at night, take an extra jacket with. A lovely pool can be found below the hut to swim in, make sure you are a ...
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This is day 2 of the Giants Cup Trail hike. Its an easy hike of 8.6km to Mzimkulwana Hut. On the way you pass Bath Plug Cave which is a good spot for lunch. The Hut can be quite cold as in a valley near a river so do take some warm clothes along also.
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A 9.2km hike mostly uphill with a detour to Siphongweni Cave, the highlight of any trip to Cobham. The bushman paintings 100m from the Cave are some of the best you will ever see in the Drakensberg. After Siphongweni Cave you pass The Policeman, an often photographed feature of the Drakensberg. Lakes cave offers good ...
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Ngenwa Cave

Ngenwa Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Ngenwa Cave is in the Cobham region on the Gxalingenwa River. The cave is passed while doing the Giants Cup trail on Day 1.
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Nutcracker Cave

Nutcracker Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Nutcracker cave is in the Cobham area, its 7km from the camp. The cave has a sloping floor and offers good shelter from storms. In summer it is quite damp in the cave. Lakes cave is a further 2 km up and is the best alternative for an overnight camp if in this area of Cobham.
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Ouhout Trail

Ouhout Trail

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

This trail leaves from below the campsite, where one crosses the swing bridge. It follows the Pholela River upstream for about a kilometre, passing a number of pools suitable for swimming, before it crosses the river again. It then heads back towards the campsite, passing through sections of indigenous Ntshishi (Ouhout ...
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Phinong Bitso-Lebe

Phinong Bitso-Lebe

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Phinong Bitso-Lebe is in the Cobham area.
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Pholela Cave

Pholela Cave

KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Pholela Cave is in the Cobham region near the Pholele river. It's a large cave with a relatively level floor and good shelter in bad weather. Spectacle and Gorge cave are nearby and worth visiting.
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