by Ralph Pina | Sep 14, 2019 | hiking
Koue Bokkeveld mountains In 2009 the inaugural Rim of Africa mega-hike was aborted two days shy of our destination, Turret Peak, due to adverse weather. By then we had been on trail for 10 or 11 days. But I have always wanted to eventually get to Turret Peak, so when... 
by Ralph Pina | Sep 11, 2019 | conservation, hiking, Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve, Jonkershoek Nature Reserve
It’s spring in the Cape and Santie decided that she wanted to hunt a wild population of blushing brides (Serruria florida) in Assegaaiboschkloof, the valley in which the Berg River rises before it drains into the Berg River Dam. So Santie, Magdel and I set off with a... 
by Ralph Pina | Sep 3, 2019 | Cederberg Wilderness Area, scenic walks
Red Cederberg The name “Zoo Ridge” has always struck me as a bit of marketing hyperbole. It is a name given to an area between the Swartruggens and Skurweberg mountains in the south-eastern Cederberg. But when you get to wander through its mazes and arches and wonder... 
by Ralph Pina | Sep 1, 2019 | hiking, Jonkershoek Nature Reserve
At 1589 m ASL Victoria Peak is the highest summit in the Jonkershoek range. From the grassy dome one can see Table Mountain beyond Stellenbosch Mountain and Haelkop, south over the Groenland mountains above Grabouw and Elgin, the blue – and once more spreading... 
by Ralph Pina | Aug 26, 2019 | Kruger National Park, safari travel, trails, wilderness trail
Kruger National Park This was my third or fourth Wolhuter Trail since the late nineties, but it was like no other. The anti-poaching ¨war¨ has changed the atmosphere in the park. It is like we are clinging on to a century-old, island model of conservation that is...
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