OUR EXPERT

Willem van der Berg

“Every time I visit Golden Gate ,I wonder why I don’t visit more often. It’s a great weekend destination if you live in Gauteng or Bloemfontein (like me). It doesn’t look like the rest of the Free State – the mountains, sandstone cliffs and clear river pools make this park one of the most scenic in the country.

“If you like to hike, you’ll love Golden Gate – the park has several short hikes and a two-day trail with an overnight hut in the mountains. The hiking trails take you into wooded ravines, up steep slopes and over quiet plains. From Glen Reenen rest camp, the Echo-ravine Trail climbs up the mountain and later goes through a narrow sandstone ravine with a small waterfall. The hike takes about an hour. Brandwag Buttress, the most iconic landscape feature in the park, is also not far from here.

“Golden Gate has a great hide at its vulture restaurant where you can watch and photograph rare bearded and white-backed vultures.”