The Summit Cathedral Peak Hike

To summit Cathedral peak gives you some boasting rights. This is a well known free standing peak in the Northern Drakensberg that gets  up to 3005 m above sea level. I am sure that everyone sitting on the veranda at Cathedral peak hotel look up at this peak and want to hike up there. When you are sitting on top of Cathedral peak you can see all the way to Cathkin in the South and the Devils tooth in the North at the Amphitheatre. Really worth it and of course the selfies are the best.

Some mad people do this hike in 1 day so to do it over 2 days with me is quite a bit easier.

However there is some climbing involved so you need a head for heights. I have to say that the views from on top of Cathedral peak are incredible. Believe it or not but the whole hike is only about 18km. This is why I don’t talk distances but rather hours spent to get there. So with that said we leave the hotel at 8am to head out into the mountains. Soon we cross the Mlambonja river and start the uphill. An hour later we pass Sherman’s cave while walking through lots of Proteas.

As we ascend the views get better and better.

After walking up the ridge we can look over and see the whole Drakensberg escarpment on our left and Cathedral peak peeping out up ahead of us. Here we arrive at Orange peel gap. A strange name for a narrow gully that we clamber up and turn left on the path towards Cathedral peak. We can’t see the peak now but as we come around a bend, there it is way above us. There is only 1 piece of flat ground here and this is where we pitch our tents. Depending on the group we either summit Cathedral peak in the afternoon or early the next morning.

As we ascend the views get better and better.

After walking up the ridge we can look over and see the whole Drakensberg escarpment on our left and Cathedral peak peeping out up ahead of us. Here we arrive at Orange peel gap. A strange name for a narrow gully that we clamber up and turn left on the path towards Cathedral peak. We can’t see the peak now but as we come around a bend, there it is way above us. There is only 1 piece of flat ground here and this is where we pitch our tents. Depending on the group we either summit Cathedral peak in the afternoon or early the next morning.

To summit Cathedral peak we use ropes to help people feel safe.

From our campsite below Cathedral peak it takes up to 2 and a half hours to the top and back to our camp. Luckily we don’t have to drag our back packs up there. So after some clambering and a short chain ladder we arrive on top. I won’t describe it to you any more. You have to see the views for yourself.

Day 2 is back down to the Cathedral peak hotel and a relaxing drink while looking up at where you just were.

Drakensberg Amphitheatre Hike Difficulty:  Intermediate