If these mountains could speak
Daytripping through the Amathole mountains.
The Eastern Cape’s Amathole Mountain range stretches over about 280 kilometres. To fully explore their wonders is impossible in a day, nor would one want to. This area is best explored in bite sizes, one day trip, one getaway, at a time.
Beyond the natural beauty of the windcarved rock formations that make up the mountains, this is also a significant heritage area. It is, after all, in these mountains where 19th century Xhosa Chief Jongumsobomvu Maqoma, the eldest son of King Ngqika, fought in three of the Frontier Wars. His half-brother King Sandile also fought the colonial British in the War of the Axe during the 1840s, in these mountains.
Pick a route
There is no one town to start your journey from, as routes branch out in several directions. However, if a scenic drive with a couple of stops to eat and view, and possibly go on a short hike is what you’re after, catch the R67 from the small town of Fort Beaufort and take the mountain route all the way to the mountaintop village of Hogsback. Depending on what detours you take, the trip can take anything from an hour and 20 minutes, to two hours and 20 minutes.
First stop on the R67:
Just 7.5 kilometres from Fort Beaufort, a mere seven minutes into the trip, make sure to stop at the Baddaford farm stall to stock up on snacks for the road, and perhaps a few preserves, jams and chutneys for home. The farm, set among the cliffs, is largely a citrus and avocado farm. The stall has a great selection of homemade pies, carnivores must make sure to try the venison pie. The cheesecake is also a must. And if stocking up for home, try the tomato chilli jam and a jar of pears in red wine.
Keep calm and carry on
Once you’ve stocked up, carry on along the R67, and enjoy the view. Take in the mountains and rock formations, the grass-covered hills and villages along the route for the next hour and some, until you reach the R345, just before the small town of Cathcart. Take a right on to the R345 and follow the gravel road to Hogsback. It’ll take you about 30 minutes, and thankfully, you won’t need a 4x4 or SUV to drive through.
This road is best taken slowly, with numerous stops to enjoy the seemingly endless rolling hills, the occasional river stream, and neat arrangements of cypress trees that pop up along the way.
Middle Earth
Eventually, you will reach the small hamlet of Hogsback. At 1,300 metres above sea level and surrounded by centuries-old Afromontane forests, the lush village is home to a few hundred residents, a wide variety of bird life, samango monkeys, baboons, hares, waterfalls, and some of the most incredible English-style private gardens, often open to the public for viewing.
Although highly unlikely, the story goes that JRR Tolkien’s Middle Earth in the Lord
of the Rings series was inspired by Hogsback. Indeed, Tolkien was born in Bloemfontein, and left for England at three years old. Although some claim his family visited
Hogsback in those early years, it would be a stretch of the imagination to think that the town made such an impression on a visiting infant Tolkien, that he would later recreate it for his fictional universe.
However, this has not stopped the residents of the magical little village from taking inspiration from Lord of the Rings lore and giving bed and breakfast accommodation names like The Shire, Hobbiton, Rivendell, Lothlorien and on and on. Go with it; don’t challenge them, or it’s Mordor for you.
Must visit
No trip to Hogsback would be complete without visiting The Edge, a restaurant and accommodation venue quite literally on the edge of a cliff. This is meat-eating country, and while you’ll find a couple of okay vegetarian options on the menu, they are somewhat underwhelming. But for the meat-eater, the impala shank, or the ribs, are a must-have.
Don’t stop at the restaurant, ask your waiter to point you towards the labyrinth. It has a diameter of 29 metres and a circumference of 91 metres. The length of the pathway is 700 metres, and the total distance of the walk to the centre and out is 1.4 kilometres. Whether you want to walk it for a meditative moment, or to be mesmerised by the surrounding mountains, glass of wine in hand, don’t leave without a visit.
And if you have a bit more time, there are numerous short forest hikes that take no longer than an hour. But one you shouldn’t leave without attempting is the hike down to the Madonna and Child waterfalls.