Drakensberg Northern Trail

In 2015 Skyrunning was really taking off in RSA, but the Drakensberg in KZN had no offerings on the circuit. This seemed bizarre considering its status, but as we would discover the high berg offered very few options with most of declared Wilderness and unavailable to formal events. We knew we wanted to go North and find a trail well-positioned between Durban, JHB, and Bloemfontein and the top of Oliviershoek presented itself as an obvious place using the lower ‘Berg and its ridges.

With the help of the Zunckels from Bergville, we were introduced to Craig van Rensberg who was renovating the Windmill cottages… The old home of the event. With their help and the rallying support of various local landowners, we were able to establish the initial courses for the first Drakensberg Northern Trail. Since then, we’ve navigated various obstacles and created a route that runs back on itself – avoiding restricted areas – and brought about what is probably the most famous part of the marathon course, Vultures Pass, a torturously steep climb not long after the main aid station at Greenfire Lodge.