Summer Holiday Trip (1 of 3) – Glamping Without the Glam in the Drakensberg Mountains

With December 23rd marking the official start of “summer break” in South Africa, we commenced our 4-week hiatus from the lifesaver that is childhood daycare, by embarking on a 3-part journey around the nation the world officially now refers to as the “birthplace of canceled travel plans”:

• Drakensberg Mountains (12/24 – 12/27) – Hiking, hiking & maybe some more hiking
• Kruger National Park (12/28 – 12/31) – Animals, animals & maybe some more animals
• Hermanus / De Hoop Nature Reserve (1/12 – 1/19) – Channeling my inner 8-year-old and attempting to convince Julie our destination is pronounced “’Herm’s Anus”

Even though our 8-person itinerary would now only be partaken by a group of 4 (thanks Omicron), we set off on what would be an epic 1-week, road-filled adventure, spent predominantly attempting to find different ways of answering the age-old question of “are we there yet?” (NOTE – Sarcastically saying “yes” halfway through your drive is almost impossible to rationalize to a now-franticly-confused 4-year-old).

And what better way to start off our journey, then by partaking in a 12-hour travel day, inclusive of the following highlights:

• 2-hour flight from Cape Town to Durban, spent primarily glaring at the women next to me who felt her mask was best suited not covering her actual face
• 2-hour supply run, timed perfectly on Christmas Eve, with about 200 other poorly-prepared souls, hopelessly searching through an array of partially-stocked shelves… during a thunderstorm (hurray for soaking wet off-brand groceries!).
• A 20-minute hailstorm, timed perfectly just at the start of…
• 178 unmarked-and-impossible-to-see speed bumps on a 55 MPH road

After carefully navigating 177 of 178 speedbumps (#83 re-enactment), we finally arrived at our first destination – Thendele Camp at Royal Natal National Park in the uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park (gold star to anyone that manages a 60% pronunciation accuracy) – A site previously visited on our honeymoon, 83 years ago (in dog/marriage years).

In order to provide a proper depiction of the wonder that is Thendele Camp, I need those of you who have yet to skip to the photo section (insert polite golf clap), to envision one of the most stunning landscapes you have ever witnessed. Whether be the towering snow-capped mountains of Yosemite Valley captured by Ansel Adams, or even any of the palm-tree laden beaches visited by the genetic lottery winners now known as Instagram Influencers. Now, maintain that visual image, and proceed to drop a Motel 6 right smack dab in the middle of it. And that would be the closest equivalent to Thendele Camp - A collection of self-catering chalets, unmaintained since their construction back in the 1950s, sitting at the foot of the crown jewel of the Drakensberg Mountains – A 10,000 foot, 3.1 mile long curved wall known as The Amphitheater.

With each chalet having an obstruction-free view of The Amphitheater (as well as the 2nd tallest waterfall in the world which it happens to host), it is easy to forget that in order to be awed by the view from your back porch, you first must walk across a carpet that is comprised of more stains & cigarette burns than actual carpet, and then carefully avoid the shallow lake of water that is coming from the fireplace, which thoroughly diverts rain water into the living room. All while attempting to open the sliding glass door, which has been cracked since 1983, and doesn’t fully close, similar to most every window in the entire unit. But, that view. Oh, that view.

And while we would have loved to have spent as much time as possible in the confines of our glamp-free glamp-pad, we instead decided to explore one of the most picturesque parks in all of South Africa, taking in the following summary-heavy hikes:

Hike #1 – Thukela Gorge Trail

• Overview – As one of the most popular hikes within the Drakensberg Mountains, the path along Thukela Gorge takes walking-stick-sporting adventurers from Thendele Camp all the way to the foot of the 2nd tallest waterfall in the world (aptly named, Thukela Falls)
• Total Distance - 15KM (out-and-back)
• Actual Distance Hiked Due to the Small Child Factor - 4.5KM (Out-and-Back)
• Highlights Witnessed – The start of the trail (i.e. a single-track section of tall grass & weeds that smacked Lincoln in the face for 80% of the hike)
• Highlights Missed – Most of the trail (i.e. chain-ladders, rushing water crossings, giant boulders… pretty much the exact opposite of kid-friendly hiking)
• Overall Rating = 9/10

Hike #2 – Lookout Rock via Cascades

• Overview – While technically part of the greater “Tiger Falls” trail, the path to Lookout Rock is the perfect ½ way point to stop for a snack, and rest your jello-esque legs, wobbly from carrying what-feels-like an 80-pound child on your back for the past 2 days
• Total Distance – 5KM (Out-and-Back)
• Actual Distance Hiked Due to the Small Child Factor – 5KM (Out-and-Back) – Boom!
• Highlights Witnessed – Lookout Rock (i.e. large rock, from whence one can, look out), a number of waterfalls in the distance
• Highlights Missed – Tiger Falls, swimming in the Cascades (due to the COVID-19 super spreader conditions - i.e. assload of people, not an assload amount of space)
• Overall Rating = 8/10

 
After two days of fairly-taxing hikes at almost 5,000 feet in altitude, any semblance of comfort was more than welcome for our weary legs (even if said comfort had a musky smell from time-to-time). And despite the sad state of affairs of Thendele Camp, it is still one of the most amazing places we have ever stayed. And to be perfectly honest, for a family of two young children, it was quite a relief to give, as they say, “two shits” about spills, accidents or general raucousness that accompanies those of a toddler age. As any damage only adds to the “allure” of the accommodation, which for $165/night, is an absolute steal for the location in which it resides - One of our favorite places in all the world (sorry Plugerville, you just missed the cut).

​We will be back.

Onto the pics: