Pholela Hut to Mzimkhulwana Hut (9 km)

This is perhaps the best day of the trail, and not because it is the shortest – although this factor does allow you more time to enjoy the pool at Mzimkhulwana Hut. The scenery on this leg is spectacular and offers fines views of the Giant’s Cup on the long climb-out from Pholela Hut. See if you can find a large, secluded cave on your way up! After summitting the ridge, the path snakes past Tortoise Rocks and on towards Bathplug Cave, where you will get up close and personal with some protea bushes. After rounding a bend a little further on, you will look down on a large lake and, in the distance, you will see almost the entire far southern Drakensberg escarpment. The path crosses several small streams before starting a long descent down to Mzimkhulwana Hut.

Mzimkhulwana Hut is on the far side of the Siphongweni River, atop a small rise and nestled cosily between an excavated recess and a large, dense patch of rosewood (Latin name leucosidea / ouhout in Afrikaans). The hut is a long bungalow with a narrow veranda and a kitchen recess. A garden  tap at the far end provides the nearest water source. Each of the five rooms has three double bunks. There is a separate ablution block with a his and hers cold shower, flush toilet and basin, and a second food preparation cum wash-up room between these. The only disappointment is that there are no mattresses.

Overall, Mzimkhulwana is the remotest and most trail-like of all the huts, and blends in with its surroundings perfectly in an idyllic setting. There is no electricity or lighting, and the only people you are likely to share it with will be other trailists. Even the jackals don’t mind its presence and you will usually hear them around sundown. Except in winter, the rosewood below the hut is full of bird life.

The jewel in the hut’s crown is the large pool in the Siphongweni River, sufficiently far downstream to provide some privacy – provided no one else ventures to the top of the sandstone ridge above it. The pool is sometimes jokingly referred to as Huberta’s pool, after the famous hippopotamus that got a wanderlust, although she never came anywhere near this particular pool. The name has more to do with who you might find wallowing in it now. In all but the worst weather, the pool is a far better place to clean up in at the end of the day than the ice-cold showers up at the ablutions, but don’t use soap. The showers were heated some years ago, but the logistics of getting gas to the hut, and maintaining the gas geyser, proved insurmountable and the geyser was removed.

The Siphongweni River flows into the larger Mzimkhulwana River about 200 metres away, so there are other swimming opportunities there. A suspension bridge just upstream from the confluence facilitates crossing the larger river, and the southern escarpment can be seen from it, so it is an interesting little excursion from the hut.

Beware of the striped mice at Mzimkhulwana Hut. You may see some during the day, scampering around under the rosewood. At night, as soon as the lights are out, they start foraging for food inside the bunk rooms, making their way in up the back wall. They vanish when you switch your headlamp on, but they are there, expertly hidden amongst your stuff. Occasionally they will be joined by the much larger dormouse which resembles a squirrel with its large, bushy tail. They are good jumpers and can propel themselves between the bunks with ease.

Due to its remoteness, this hut is not serviced. Please take all your rubbish with you when you leave, ensuring that all the doors and windows, including those at the ablutions, are properly closed. This is to keep those pesky baboons out. Sweep the rooms, wipe the tables and benches, and leave everything how you would like to find it yourself on arrival.

There is no cell phone reception at the hut, but if you venture out onto the sandstone ridge just above the pool, you should get communications.