Hiking in the Natal Drakensberg is a popular activity for experienced locals and visitors to South Africa. The escarpment allows one to hike on a cliff roughly 1000 m high that stretches for 240 km from Sentinel Buttress in the North to Bushman's Neck Didima camp in the South. Hiking is however not recommended for inexperienced hikers as conditions can change quickly and harsh weather can occur for extended periods.
KZN (KwaZulu-Natal) Wildlife distributes 6 1:50,000 maps that can be used while hiking in the Drakensberg. The maps use the Cape datum as the geodesic reference. GPS users should be careful to use the correct datum as WGS 84 is not always the default. Some GPS waypoints for the Drakensberg are listed below:
List of GPS waypoints in WGS84 format Pass Summits Bannerman Pass Beacon Buttress Gully Corner Pass (Rock) Giant's Castle Pass Gray's Pass Hilton's Pass (Rock) Isicatula Pass Judge Pass (Rock) Ka-Masihlenga Pass Langalibalele Pass Leslie's Pass Masubasuba Pass Mlambonja Pass Mzimkhulu Pass Ntonjelana Pass Organ Pipes Pass Ships Prow Pass (North Fork - Rock) Ships Prow Pass (South Fork) Tseketseke Pass
Caves Didima Cave Fergy's Cave Injasuti Summit Cave Marble Baths Cave Nkosazana Cave Sandleni Cave Shepherd's Cave Spare Rib Cave Twins Cave Wonder Valley Cave Zulu Cave
Peaks Bannerman Face Castle Buttress Cathedral Peak Cathedral Peak: SAGNS Champagne Castle Dome Cleft Peak Cockade Peak Erskine Gypaetus Point Injasuti Dome Injasuti Greater Buttress Injasuti Lesser Buttress Katana Mafadi Mashai Matebeng Mount Durnford No Man's Peak Popple Peak Redi Stimela Peak Tareteng Thabana Ntlenyana The Corner The Judge The Twins Trojan Wall Verkyker Peak Wilson's Peak
Escarpment Stimela Saddle River (T43) River bend (W43) Path going around Elephant (AD49) Saddle (AF51) Saddle (AG52) Path behind Windsor Castle (AK54) Start of Yodler's Cascade Valley (AL58) Yodler's Cascades (AM59) Gully to climb up to Pampiring (AO61) Pampiring Saddle (AP61) Watershed Saddle (AQ61) Watershed Saddle (AU60) Watershed Saddle (AW62) Saddle (AX64) Spot height 3375m (AY72) Watershed Saddle 3360m (BA74) Watershed Saddle (BB74) Popple Saddle (BE77) Bannerman Face Saddle (BG80) Watershed Saddle (BJ89) Saddle 2985m (BA102)
Huts Bannerman Hut Centenary Hut Giant's Castle Lodge Injasuti Hutted Camp Old Fire Lookout Sani Top Lodge Tseketseke Hut
Campsites Campsite at the bottom of Cockade Pass Gatberg North Campsite Gatberg South Campsite Keith Bush Camp Monk's Cowl Forest Station Campsite at the bottom of Tseketseke Pass
Path Junctions C9 C10 C11 G5 G6 M7 M23 M24 M25 Blind Man's Corner Camel Pass fork in Organ Pipes Pass Ship's Prow Pass Fork Thuthumi Pass Fork on Organ Pipes Ridge Turnoff to Waterfall Cave
References
Drakensberg hiking trails South African Hiking Trail Guide