Most of the Sunday group is no stranger to Klipriviersberg. We did our first ever hike there, but had only ever been around a small route. We decided this past weekend to go and explore the rest of the reserve, aiming to do around 11km or so. As we arrived to start at 8am, the heat had already started - summer is definitely here.
We started off and head up a steep path on the West side. Deciding to get the heart rate up and work the legs, we pushed up the incline at a great pace. Klipriviersberg has some really decent inclines, and by the time we reached the flat we had already had a bit of a workout. The rest of the group caught up as we meandered along, and headed further west into the reserve. As we started walking to the peaks ahead, we saw a large group of trail runners coming over the hill. This route would be a fantastic run, for sport or leisure, and a great training ground. We walked towards the first peak we saw, and had a nice view from a rocky outcrop.
We then followed the road down, further west, making a slow descent down a wide path. As we reached one of the plateaus, we saw herds of Wildebeest, Zebra and Springbok. It was truly incredible, probably around three dozen or so animals grazing away and we are in spitting distance. I had seen and run with Springbok here before, but this was definitely a welcome surprise. After admiring the beauty of these wild animals, we slowly made our way down towards the pipe bridge.
At the other end of the bridge we were back on familiar territory. As we got to a split off to the Duiker Trail, we decided to head up the East side peak. We had done this route on our initial Sunday hike, and now were doing it in reverse. This second incline, even though it wasn't as steep as the first, was still a challenge after we'd be hiking for two or so hours. Klipriviersberg is really dry at this time of year, but still beautiful. In summer this will be an especially epic hike and great place to do some runs. As we were heading around the top, we were met by a gentlemen scouting the route. He turned out to be the organiser of the Klipriviersberg Trail Run Challenge and told us about the various routes. He is a really passionate guy, and also told us about incredible ideas for long races around the south in the future. I'm really looking forward to those :)
We made our way down a fairly steep descent, taking it easy, and heading to the gate. This has been one of our longer hikes, and we were pretty beat after (if for no other reason than the blazing summer sun we were no longer used to :P). If you're ever keen for a quick trip to a great reserve with plenty of wildlife - Klipriviersberg is a fantastic choice.
