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The Ribbok hiking trail is situated in South Africa's Golden Gate National Park not far from the
picturesque town of Clarens. It's a two day backpacking trail through some stunning landscape.
The first night at base camp generally involves camping as there is no dedicated hut for the
hikers. The first days hiking takes one through rock overhangs and into one of the back valleys,
before descending again and crossing the main tar road leading to the Glen Reenen base camp. The
last stretch on day one is quite flat and covers a few km before reaching the Ribbok overnight
hut.
Day two is considerably longer and more difficult than day one with a climb of around 750m. Near
the summit there are often great views into Lesotho, weather permitting. The rest of the trail is
more or less a constant descent. One often finds various antelope types at the high altitude such
as Black Wildebeest. Along part of the descent one follows a ridge which is usually extremely
windy. Its a trail well worth doing, although having a certain fitness level makes the trail much
more enjoyable.
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The one variable about the Ribbok trail is the weather. From rain, snow, hot, cold or
thunderstorms, anything is possible, so be prepared for the worst. The last time we did the trail,
the Ribbok overnight hut was in a pretty dilapidated state, although they were busy renovating
everything at the Glen Reenen camp, so hopefully they did something about the hut as well. You
should start no later then 7am on the second day as the day gets quite long. Be prepared for very
cold temperatures on day two at the top of the trail around the Lesotho view area.
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