This cache is the third of a series of six caches that have been placed along the Swellendam Trail. The trail is a 5 day 4 night hike during which you will travel about 50 kms through real mountain scenery. The authorities ( Cape Nature ) who manage the Marloth Nature Reserve through which you will hike will only permit you to hike the trail in its entirety so there is no possibility to pick and choose which sections you would like to complete. For costs of the trail and booking information see below.
At the end of the third day you will reach the Protea Vallei Hut at the top of the Protea Valley with views all the way to Misty Point. This is a charming wooden hut with two sleeping rooms and a verandah. Todays walk is realtively quick and esay so there is a good chance you will reach here by lunchtime. In days gone by there was another hut to the West ( Nooitgedacht ) but that has fallen into disrepair and has been abandoned to nature.There are no showers here but a nearby stream will provide a chancce to clean up and cool off.
The cache is located a couple of hundred meters from the hut and you will need to cross the stream to reach it. There a a couple of nice pools near where you will cross.
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The container is a 200 ml lockable plastic box with room for small TB's etc. It has been placed beneath some quite heavy rocks ( hopefully large enough to keep baboon fingers away ) and these will need to be moved to reveal the cache. Plse replace as found.
At the time that these caches were placed ( Spring 2019 ) the cost of the 5 day trail was R 1040 ( for the 4 overnight huts / 5 days hike ). There are minumum number of places that must be booked ( 2-3 ) and the maximum number allowed on the trail at a time is 10. Day permits can be purchased to access some of the many other walks that are available in the Reserve and these cost R 50 / day. Bookings can be made through the Cape Nature Call Centre during office hours Monday to Friday 07h30 to 16h30 and Saturday 08h00 until 12h00 noon (CAT). Contact them via telephone on 087 087 8250, or email reservation.alert@capenature.co.za
Please remember - take nothing but pictures and leave nothing but footprints !
The complete series that can be collected on this trail is as follows ( note if you miss one it doesnt mean you cant collect the others as they are not linked to each other )
1. GC8F2NG Swellendam Trail Series No 1 : Boskloof Hut
2. GC8F355 Swellendam Trail Series No 2 : Goedgeloof Hut
3. GC8F387 Swellendam Trail Series No 3 : Protea Vallei Hut
4. GC8F38Z Swellandam Trail Series No 4 : Woolfkloof Hut
5. GC8F2PQ Swellendam Trail Series Bonus 1 : Misty Point ( Collect on Day 2 )
6. GC8F367 Swellendam Trail Series Bonus 2 : Karma Chameleon ( Collect on Day 3 )