Drakensberg Adventure

DAY 1.
Drive inland to Pietermaritzburg, the capital of KwaZulu-Natal, for a brief city tour. Stop at the railway station where Mahatma Gandhi was thrown off the train because of the colour of his skin, and see the waiting room where, in the silence of the night, he formulated his philosophy of passive resistance.  Visit the Church of the Vow that was built as a result of the Battle of Blood River between the Voortrekkers and the Zulus in 1838. Continue to Howick where we visit the 100m high Falls, and stop at the monument erected on the spot where Nelson Mandela was arrested in 1962. Continue through an area of gentle pastoral beauty called the Natal Midlands. We pass through grassy plains scattered with villages and lush farmlands where plump cattle and thoroughbred horses graze. We enter the Weenen Game Reserve for an afternoon of game viewing. We have a good chance of seeing, amongst others, white rhino, giraffe and zebra. Afterwards we stop at the place where Winston Churchill was arrested by the Boers during the Anglo-Boer War. Then we travel to our hotel from where you can enjoy magnificent views while enjoying sundowners.

DAY 2.
After breakfast we travel through QwaQwa, a former homeland, and watch the locals busy with their daily chores in this remote land. We arrive at the Sentinel, some 3 200 meters above sea level, for a picnic lunch and some easy, or more strenuous, walks to viewpoints of the sheer drops into the Amphitheatre. For those VERY energetic souls, there is a stiff walk and climb up a chain ladder to the summit (weather permitting). Here you find the source of the mighty Tugela River and where it rushes over the edge of the cliffs to plummet down for hundreds of meters. After this unforgettable experience we return to our hotel late afternoon.

DAY 3.
We depart after breakfast and drive to the Giant's Castle area for a relatively easy walk to some of the country's best preserved ancient rock paintings. We have a peek into the mystical existence of these strange little people who became extinct at the beginning of the previous century.
From here we return to Durban arriving late afternoon.