Golden Gate Highlands National Park Hikes and Area Guide

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Last Updated on: 19th April 2024, 04:26 pm

Golden Gate Highlands National Park is in the north-eastern Free State Province, just north of Lesotho.

The main focus of Golden Gate is the sandstone formations, including outcrops, cliffs, and caves, with their varied hues of ochre. There is a public road, the R712, that runs through the park. You can see many of the weathered sandstone formations from the road, but it is even better to get up close on a hike.

In order to hike or to do the drives, get your permit by paying the Daily Conservation Fee at the Glen Reenen Information Office.

Fees are as follows: https://www.sanparks.org/parks/golden_gate/tourism/tariffs.php

There is an abandoned toll gate on the road from Clarens to Glen Reenen Camp.

If you are not a trail runner you may wish to avoid the park at the time of the annual Golden Gate Challenge race (month varies).

Golden Gate Highlands National Park self-drive routes

From a wildlife perspective, you won’t see the “big five” at Golden Gate, but there are 10 species of antelope in the park: eland, red hartebeest, black wildebeest, blesbok, springbok, mountain reedbuck, grey rhebok, common / grey duiker, steenbok and oribi.

There are two short tarred self-drives routes:

• Blesbok Loop (6.7 km): A lovely drive that takes you into nature.
• Oribi Loop (4.2 km): On a clear day there are great views of the northern Drakensberg in the distance to the south. You can also stop at the Vulture Feeding Project and hopefully see bearded vultures (lammergeiers) and Cape vultures. The feeding takes place on an unscheduled basis.

Dinosaur Interpretive Centre

Golden Gate Highlands National Park is a palaeontologist’s paradise. Many dinosaur fossils have been found here including nests of eggs with some of the world’s oldest fossilized dinosaur embryos.

The Dinosaur Interpretive Centre has special brickwork that represents dinosaur scales, and the building has been designed to blend in with the landscape.

As at April 2024, there is no date set for when it will open.

Half-day hikes in Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Please see the official SANParks Golden Gate Hiking Trail Guide.

Cathedral Cave Trail

This trail is a guided trail that must be booked in advance and requires a minimum of 5 participants. The fee in 2024 is R182 per person.

The southern bald ibis breeds at the cave and the trail is closed during the breeding season.
The SANParks gghnp-activities.pdf document states that the trail is open from December to October – this is incorrect. Our guide said that the trail is closed July, August and September each year, however when I followed up with the Information Centre, they said that the trail will be closed from May to August 2023. When I called in April 2024, they said that the trail will be closed from May to October 2024, though there is a possibility that they may decide to open it before October.

This is an easy walk: we started near the stables, and it is a 3 km walk outbound with an elevation gain of about 100 m and a 3 km return.

The roof of the cave has partially eroded. A waterfall falls into an upper pool with a smaller waterfall into the lower pool. You can swim across the lower pool to a chain ladder to climb up to the upper pool. The people who went ahead of me said getting to the upper pool was very slippery, so I decided not to take the risk.

If you prefer to stay dry, there are wooden ladders which take you high up to a bridge from where you can view the upper pool. As at April 2024, these ladders are still broken and unsafe to use.

Mushroom Rock Trail, Echo Ravine Trail, Boskloof Trail, Brandwag Buttress Trail

These are all short trails which have a common starting point across the road from the Glen Reenen Information Centre. Cross the little bridge and follow the signs.

Our gps recordings for these trails indicate elevation gains of about 20% less than those shown on the AllTrails maps. Subjectively, the elevation gains also felt less. It is however difficult to be sure of the actual values owing to the cliffs obstructing gps signals and the maps not accurately reflecting the terrain.

Mushroom Rock Trail

This trail can be done as a loop, but the disadvantage is that the last section is along the road.
Distance: +- 2.2 km
Cumulative elevation gain: +-100 m

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Mushroom Rock Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Echo Ravine Trail

Out-and-back trail.
Distance: +- 2 km
Cumulative elevation gain: +- 160 m

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Echo Ravine Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Boskloof Trail

Boskloof was a bit underwhelming for me.

Out-and-back trail.
Distance: +- 2 km
Cumulative elevation gain: +- 130 m

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Boskloof Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Brandwag Buttress Trail

This trail can be done as a loop, but the disadvantage is that the last section is along the road.
Distance: +- 3 km
Cumulative elevation gain: +- 190 m

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Brandwag Buttress Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Golden-combo Loop

We combined all the above trails into one hike.

Distance: +- 5 km
Cumulative elevation gain: +- 390 m

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Golden-combo Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Holkrans Trail

(Still to be reviewed)

This looks like a worthwhile short hike with a visit to a sandstone cave. The trail starts behind the Golden Gate Hotel.

Distance: 2 km

Cumulative elevation gain: +- 130 m

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Holkrans Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Wodehouse Peak Trail

(Still to be reviewed)

This trail is a 9 km loop with +- 690 m cumulative elevation gain.
Some hikers recommend doing the trail anti-clockwise, preferring a steep ascent to a steep descent. Hikers report a good chance of seeing wildlife.

If you would like to view an interactive map of this trail, please go to: Map of Wodehouse Peak Trail in Golden Gate Highlands National Park. (The AllTrails app is needed if viewing the map on your phone.)

Where to stay?

There are several accommodation options: Glen Reenen Rest Camp (1920 m), Golden Gate Hotel and Chalets, Noord-Brabant Farmhouse and Highlands Mountain Retreat (2230 m). There is a natural rock pool in the hills behind Glen Reenen where you can swim.

As at April 2023, the accommodation at the Basotho Cultural Village is closed for renovations.

Nearby, Clarens has plenty of accommodation too.

Basotho Cultural Village

(Still to be reviewed)

If travelling towards Harrismith from Glen Reenen Rest Camp, the turn-off to the village is to the right about 20 km from Glen Reenen.

SANParks documentation refers to the village as a “living museum”. Standard tours are 45 minutes long and do not need to be booked.

You will need to enquire about the Herbal Trail and Cultural Route tours in advance.

Clarens

Clarens is a quaint village centred around its square. There are many art galleries, speciality shops, and eateries. Clarens is in a picturesque setting with mountain views and has its own nature reserve with some walking trails.
Glen Reenen Rest Camp / Office is a 23 km drive from Clarens.

Ash River Outfall

The Ash River Outfall is about 10 km north of Clarens.

The outfall is at the end of a 37 km tunnel from a reservoir which is part of the Lesotho Highlands Water Project. From here the water eventually flows into the Vaal Dam.

You can also see a cross-section of the huge concrete tunnel pipe.

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Northern Drakensberg Hikes and Area Guide

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Longer hikes in and around Gauteng

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