The dramatic mountain range of the Drakensberg - the ‘Dragon Mountains’ in Afrikaans, or uKhahlamba ‘Barrier of Spears’ in Zulu, curves around the border between KwaZulu Natal and Lesotho. They are the highest mountains in southern Africa, with Thabana Ntlenyana at 3,482 m. They are located in the west of KwaZuluNatal, and run generally southwest to northeast. There are two main protected areas within the mountain range: Royal Natal National Park and uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park.
It is wild and rugged here, with spectacular scenery and it is a paradise for hikers. There are towering peaks, cascading waterfalls and lush forests carpeted with ferns. Caves scattered throughout the mountains are decorated with San Bushman rock paintings, some painted 800 years ago, the more recent ones featuring men on horseback, indicating the presence of white settlers towards the end of the 19th century.
The largest animal found in the area is the eland, which gather in herds in the valleys. The peaks themselves are inhabited by baboons and klipspringer, small antelope who gallop across precipitous rock faces with astonishing sure-footedness. There are numerous raptors found, including the rare bearded vulture, or lammergeyer.
Royal Natal NP
In the northern Drakensberg, the small separate enclave of Royal Natal National Park offers awe-inspiring mountain scenery, including the Amphitheatre and Tugela Falls, where the river drops 500m over the rock face. The Amphitheatre is a crescent of 1000m sheer basalt cliffs, which stretches 4km between the Sentinel (3165m) and Eastern Buttress (3047m). A number of domes rise from its relatively flat summit plateau, such as the Mont-aux-Sources which is the largest. It is a great area for hiking with a choice of short walks such as the six-hour Tugela Gorge walk, or the popular 2-day hike up Mont-Aux-Sources.
uKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park
The southern and central section of the mountain range is part of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg National Park - a World Heritage Site. This is a huge park, encompassing many famous areas and beautiful area such as Sani Pass - a road of hairpin bends taking you over the escarpment into Lesotho, Champagne Castle - the second highest peak in South Africa, Cathedral Peak - a rock pinnacle on a basalt ridge, and Giant's Castle Game Reserve.
The Giants Castle Reserve is a huge protected area of mountain in the Central Drakensberg named after the central massif which dominates the horizon - Giant's Castle (3314m). It was originally set up to protect the threatened population of eland, but is also home to oribi, grey rhebok, mountain reedbuck and bushbuck. There is no road system within the reserve making a place for walking and hiking. One of the main attractions is the Lammergeyer Hide from which you might not only see rare lammergeyers, but also Cape vultures, black eagles, jackal buzzards and lanner falcons. The reserve also has a major rock-art site where you can see over 500 San Bushmen rock paintings.
