Spekboom Tours Blog

By Teigue Payne An explosion of energy over a few years which saw the creation of 22 iconic redbrick and stone Trappist mission stations in southern KwaZulu-Natal is the theme of a cycle tour through this beautiful part of South Africa. In…

A brief history There are many reasons to love South Africa, and a few reasons to hate it. One of the best reasons to love it is its great wildernesses. Another is its colourful past filled with strong people. One of the…

When backpacking trails were first conceived of in South Africa, in the 1970s, the old government overestimated the ability of the people it hoped would use the National Hikingway Trails that it installed. For that reason, the daily distances of those first…

‘The R103 is not the only Midlands Meander,’ said Julia Invernizzi as we – a group of 8 slackpack hikers of various backgrounds and fitness levels – sat together in the shade, digging into her delicious homemade trail mix ( a favorite…

Cycling is a great way to tour the Battlefields of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) – as I discovered when I joined Spekboom Tours’ inaugural tour of the historic sites of the Newcastle-Ladysmith and Spioenkop areas recently. That region is a combination of the iconic…

The Karoo, a place I had first visited together with my family as a child, has always held a special place in my heart. A land of vastness, of sweet and succulent lamb and even sweeter jerepigo, of stark beauty, mysticism, colourful…

Despite a day of hot blustery winds, some 35 enthusiastic hikers turned up at the trailhead of the historical Karkloof  “Shawswood farm”  for a 15 km fundraiser walk for Karkloof Conservancy.  The hike constitutes the first day part of a 3-day “Falls2Falls”…

It is the first day of a two-day Meandering the Midlands cycle tour and thankfully the Dargle mist and rain had turned and instead we were greeted with clear blue skies and a gorgeous wintery light with which to explore the Dargle…

KwaZulu-Natal’s Midlands Meander is surely South Africa’s most successful tourist meander. A measure of this is that it is being copied in many other areas in South Africa. Nonetheless, many visitors view the Midlands Meander as an extended rural mall to stop…

Creature-comfort slackpacking in the tranquil mistbelt forests and grasslands of the Dargle Words: Carol Brammage.  Pictures: Carol and Dave Brammage Walking in ancient mistbelt forests, home to shy samango monkeys and other wild creatures, is both grounding and inspirational.  It is grounding…

Written by Alison Chadwick Having just completed the 5 day Giant’s Cup Trail whereby you carry all you need on your back for 5 days I was looking for something not so strenuous so when the Dargle Samango Slackpack Hike popped up…

Words: Veruska De Vita It is night, the sky a velvet cloak of forever stars. An almost full moon ripens and makes the sand glisten. Our torches are off as the moon sheds an even light across the beach and lengthens our…

Written by Alison Chadwick This hike in the beautiful Karkloof a mere 20kms from Howick in the KZN Midlands encompasses 3 major waterfalls namely Grey Mare’s Tail Falls (101m), Karkloof Falls (105m), and ends at Howick Falls (111m). Our group of 10…

The Clarens San-Traverse is a new three-day slackpacking trail that allows hikers to stride out onto the sandstone domes of the Rooiberg/Witteberg while learning about the fascinating heritage of this corner of the Eastern Free State. Titanic Rock in the Clarens Conservancy…

If you need to hiking breakaway and would like to immerse yourself in nature, we found there is no better way to do it than slackpacking effortlessly and in style … 1. Enchanting Midlands indigenous forests are right here  In the heart…