Mzimkhulwana Hut to Winterhoek Hut (12 km)

After crossing the suspension bridge over the Mzimkhulwana River, the path starts a long climb up to a plateau, where you will find Crane Tarn. This is one of the largest tarns in the area, basically a very shallow bowl into which water drains from the surrounding hillsides. In winter it is usually an empty mudflat. The path then descends through the saddle (nek) between Big Bamboo Mountain (on the left) and Little Bamboo Mountain (on the right), with the free-standing mountain named Garden Castle in front of you in the distance.

After passing through some more proteas, the trail enters the Killicranckie Valley, where you can take an optional side trip to Killicranckie Pool. The path down the valley breaks out onto private farmland, passing some dams, a farmhouse and crossing several stiles. Eventually you reach the tar road from Underberg to the Gooderson Drakensberg Gardens Golf & Spa Resort, as well as to several other resorts, an airfield, and a large number of private cottages and some more farms. It is also the road to the Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife entry point for the Garden Castle Wilderness Area.

The tar road must be followed to the right for almost 2 km. After the second road bridge at the bottom of a very steep hill, the trail continues again from the Castleburn Lake signpost, heading over a hill and passing through two gates before crossing a small concrete dam to the eight rondavels (rondawels in Afrikaans) that make up the Winterhoek Hut. They are next to some large oak trees which can be seen from a considerable distance away, standing in open grassland. Garden Castle, from which the whole area derives its name, provides a majestic mountain backdrop.

Five of the rondavels have three double bunks each. Another serves as a kitchen and another is the bathroom with cold showers. The remaining open-sided rondavel serves as a kitchen cum dining room. There is a small pond above the dam for those who prefer sunshine with their cold wash. As its name suggests, Winterhoek can be extremely cold and bleak in winter and you may have to fetch water from the dam if the water pipes freeze up.

There is no electricity or lighting at Winterhoek, but there is cell phone reception.