We love a positive global shoutout; and South Africa’s hiking trails just earned one. Dubbed the ‘undisputed champ of African hiking’, South Africa’s most epic trails are in the spotlight this Africa World Heritage Day:
South Africa (05 May, 2023)—It’s Africa World Heritage Day, a cultural and natural celebration of all things African. And, in a huge nod to our natural pleasures, CNN Travel has crowned South Africa the ‘undisputed champ of African hiking’, despite Mount Kilimanjaro being the ultimate quest.
According to the publication, our crowning glories are the trail diversity, the fynbos landscape, ‘extremely high biodiversity’ and of course the flora and fauna.
As many South Africans and visitors know well, you can find a hiking trail just about anywhere in our country if you take a little drive.
So, without further a-due, here are SA’s most epic trails for a multiway adventure, and where to find them:
1. Otter Trail
- Where: Garden Route National Park, Eastern Cape
- Wow factor: aquatic sea life spotting (dolphins and of course the cape clawless otter)
2. Mont-Aux-Sources
- Where: Thendele Royal National Park, Drakensberg
- Wow factor: The epic summits
3. Klipspringer Trail
- Where: Augrabies Falls National Park, Northern Cape
- Wow factor: The gorges and massive Orange River waterfall
4. Cape of Good Hope Trail
- Where: Cape of Good Hope National Park, Cape Point, Western Cape
- Wow factor: Wildlife meets ocean views
5. Kgaswane Summit Trail
- Where: Kgaswane Mountain Reserve, Magaliesberg, Gauteng
- Wow factor: Walking through history following in the footsteps of hunters and gatherers
6. Tsitsikamma Trail
- Where: Garden Route National Park, Western and Eastern Cape
- Wow factor: The lush greenery
7. Rim of Africa
- Where: Cederberg to Outeniqua, Western Cape
- Wow factor: The fynbos
8. Ribbok Trail
- Where: Golden Gate National Park, Free State
- Wow factor: The sandstone formations and wildlife spottings
9. Namaqualand Coast
- Where: Heaviside Trail, Namaqua National Park, Western Cape
- Wow factor: Coastal dunes and wildflowers in the area
by 