SLACKPACKING WALKING TRAILS AT PLEASANT PLACES
IN THE LIDGETTON VALLEY
“Above all, do not lose your desire to walk. Every day I walk myself into a state of well-being and walk away from every illness. I have walked myself into my best thoughts, and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it” ~ Soren Kierkegaard.
We have recently completed fine-tuning our Slackpacking Walking Trails and they are officially up and running, just in time for you to appreciate the beauty of Summer in the Midlands….Stunning!!
We want to reveal the charms and attractions of the beautiful Lidgetton Valley to you all. Our valley is an undiscovered gem and it would be selfish not to share it with others.
Many folk visiting the Midlands coming here to attend a wedding, have great jollifications and then dash off home again, oblivious to the beauty of the area they have just had the privilege of visiting.
Rather than rush in and out of the Midlands JUST to attend a wedding, why not take a few days leave, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, spend those three days walking our easy trails, attend the wedding on Saturday and then drive home on the Sunday?
Pleasant Places is within an hour’s drive from Durban and 4 ½ hours from Gauteng and is accessible with a normal car – no 4 X 4’s required
All the trails can also be enjoyed on mountain bikes. Walkers and bikers will be advised when both may be using the trails simultaneously and asked to exercise due caution
What is Slackpacking, you may ask?
Most simply, Slackpacking is backpacking without the schlep
Slackpacking trails are a relatively new genre of multi-day hiking trails, which allow you to travel light, carrying only your water, camera, cell phone, bird book and waterproofs in a day pack. Slackpackers will cross rivers and streams, walk around dams, cross pastures, stroll through indigenous forests, gently climb hills and descend into valleys
At present we have three trails, starting and ending here at Pleasant Places; more are in the pipeline
Trail 1. Swissland Cheese & Fifehead Dairy
Swissland Cheese is a renowned goat’s cheese producer where you will enjoy lunch and relax a while. You can buy cheeses, pickles, jams pates etc. from Fran’s recently opened Swissland Pantry. If you time it right, you can watch the goats being milked.
Fifehead Farm is a successful, modern dairy farm, where you can watch 800+ cows being milked, 60 at a time on a revolving turntable; fascinating and mind blowing to say the least! Again timing must be right, but we will advise you.
Trail 2. Blesberg Farm and Indigenous Forest
Enjoy walking through one of the finest indigenous forests you have ever entered, spending time bird watching in the forest, along the various sections of the trail or around the dam.
Click here to view a list of birds that have been seen in the Lidgetton Valley
At an additional charge, we can arrange a fly fishing lesson with a local expert; learn how to tie a fly, cast a line and even fish from a float tube or a boat.
Trail 3. Dargle Valley and Lidgetton Valley
This trail starts near Blesberg, goes over the hill into the Dargle Valley and then follows a very quiet district road, with magnificent views over the countryside as far as Midmar Dam.
Then on down the road to I’l Postino Pizzeria for a scrumptious lunch. After lunch the happy walkers head off back towards Lidgetton, walking first along a railway reserve road and then veering off through plantations, over hills and across green pastures.
A last gentle downhill walk takes walkers back to Pleasant Places, where a welcome “Frostie” will await them!
The trails are between 10 and 15 kilometers long.
Total daily distances walked will depend on the final routes we give you to follow, largely based on the prevailing ground surface conditions on the days that you walk.
We cut some corners if the state of sections of the route indicate this is advisable; sometimes there are soggy sections due to unseasonal amounts of rain, causing springs to suddenly burst out of the ground. Schedules for monitoring condition of the trails, and especially visibility of markers, have been drawn up and these are strictly adhered to.
You are advised to bring both warm clothing, as well as lighter attire. The temperatures are largely determined by the mist, which can cause a drop of more than 10 degrees Centigrade in a few hours!
Early mornings can often be quite brisk, but it soon warms up during the day, even in Winter. If it gets colder in the evenings we jump at the chance to light fires in the lounge and dining room. All bedrooms have underfloor heating or heaters, so you sleep warm and snug.
Linda, my wife, always says...
"Whether the weather be hot, or whether the weather be cold, we must weather the weather, whatever the weather, whether we like it or not"
What you will need on your walk
Take a jersey or jacket and a dry mac with you, if rain is eminent.
No need for huge hiking boots; good, sturdy walking shoes will be fine.
Bring your favourite walking sticks along or else we have a selection on hand.
Some of your group should bring day packs to carry water, bird books, binoculars, cell phones, cameras etc.
Don't forget to bring a hat and block-out for protection against the sun.
Cell phone reception is available along most sections; it is advisable that one group member carries one.
Ticks are endemic and unfortunately part of country walks. We try our best to avoid taking you through areas of long grass, where we know they hide out.
We recommend Bayticol anti-tick fabric spray for use on clothes. This remains active on clothing even after three or four washes! Ticks attaching themselves to treated clothing will not stay on for long and drop off fast. Bayticol is not recommended for use on skin.
Anti-ticking the skin is best done by spraying lightly with Eucalyptus oil or applying a film of Peaceful Sleep or Tabard using the sticks. The use of these products is advisable to control ticks and avoid tick bite fever. We will have them all on sale for your convenience. Cold bottled water will be on sale as well.
Walkers should bear in mind that they are walking the trails for the enjoyment of being in the countryside, appreciating nature and the stunning views around them
It is not a race to see who can complete the trail first!
If walkers force the pace they will be eating lunch before their tummies are ready!
We suggest a leisurely start at around 9 am after a good breakfast. Should weather forecasts indicate a very hot day or rain is on the horizon, an earlier start may be advised, but then you would have to pace yourself to be at the lunch venue at the right time. We could also arrange packed lunches to take with you and eat when tummies dictate.
Should any walkers injure themselves or tire and decide they have had enough, we will arrange to go out and collect them at accessible points along the routes.
Current rates, per person, are:-
Three day trail, with a FOUR night stay – R3500
Three day trail, with a THREE night stay- R2850
Two day trail, with a THREE night stay – R2600
These rates include Dinner, Bed & Breakfast, lunches along the way, trail levies and transport to the start and finish of the trails and collection of any tired walkers.
In cases when the weather is not suitable for walking, we will suggest alternative activities, like a tour of the Meander by car, and arrange for a lunch to be provided along the route we choose for you.
One day smaller groups, who are members of bona-fide walking/hiking clubs, will be requested to pay R50 per walker, per day, to cover trail maintenance.
This charge will also apply to any guests of Pleasant Places or casual walkers wanting to do a day walk only on any of the trails.
The trails are all very well marked and are all Self-guided.
An experienced local hiker is available to accompany walkers as a Porter if required. There will be a minimal charge for his service.
On some slackpacking trails in South Africa, stay-overs are at a different accommodation venue each night. However, we decided to accommodate walkers at Pleasant Places every night for a number of reasons.
- Many accommodation venues are reluctant to take one night bookings
- Venues booked up with wedding guests, conferences etc. and unable to accommodate walkers
- All our trails are situated within 15 km of Pleasant Places, as the crow flies
- Recent walkers said that they would rather stay in one venue and not have to pack up each day
Pleasant Places is also an ideal venue for small home-cell group meetings or Christian retreats.
