Expedition Africa

High In The Drakensberg

Rob Howard / 06.05.2013

It was a well rested group of racers who gathered for a 5am breakfast before the start of Expedition Africa 2013 – as Bob Miller of Tecnu Adventure pointed out, “It’s almost unheard of to get a full 8 hours sleep before an expedition race.”  Rested maybe, but not relaxed, there were plenty of nerves due to the challenge ahead, and specifically Stage One.  Lots of racers had been comparing it to races in their own countries, thinking the first stage alone would represent an extreme challenge on any race calendar.

With 4127m of ascent over 76km it was daunting and the mountain wall of the Drakensberg on the horizon looked impressive and intimidating as the racers gathered outside the gates of the Mont-aux-Sources hotel at dawn. There was no frost this morning, and the clear sky promised a hot day of climbing as the racers set off with a cheer at the blast of a vuvuzela at 06.30.

After a short run down the road they found the first CP at the entrance to the Royal National Park, and from there onwards the climbing began for the next 6, 7, 8 or more hours, depending on how fast the teams were going.  The were heading up to the top of the Drakensberg plateau via checkpoints at a cave, and a viewpoint, and it was between these two that Capestorm/WCAD Racing pulled a surprise move, taking a different and quicker route to everyone else, and arriving at the viewpoint in the lead.

Teams were told to stay on the trails, and Capestorm found a trail with a more direct route than anyone else, gaining themselves a 10 minute lead before the main pack of leading teams arrived, lead by Haglofs Silva and Raidlight.  Next came a 10km climb along a track where the lead was swallowed up and the climb continued below the impressive bulk of Sentinel Peak, contouring round below the base of the cliffs to the next checkpoint – all the while giving amazing views of the lower Drakensberg and the plains beyond.

The next checkpoint was an iconic Drakensberg location, the chain ladders, which are bolted to a short section of sheer cliff, giving access to the plateau above. They are in two sections, climb for about 100m and are not for the faint hearted as it’s just a matter of holding tight, there is no way to clip in or protect yourself.  There were some relieved racers at the top, letting out their breath and muttering thanks, but one South African competitor casually told me he’d now been up them 28 times!

Just above the top of the ladders the climbing was finally over and teams could cross the level plateau towards The Amphitheatre and the top of the Tugela Falls.  The checkpoint here was right at the top of the World’s second highest falls, on the very edge of the immense and sheer walls of The Amphitheatre, and it would be hard to imagine a more dramatic location.  Teams could stop to take in the view, drink from the stream and take a cooling splash as the day was still hot, though the wind was cold if you stopped for long or were in shade for any length of time.

The going was much easier up on the plateau and after traversing this it was time for teams to decide where to head down to get to the first transition – something which had caused a lot of debate prior to the start. As the afternoon drew on the lead teams took different options, with the top 3 south African teams choosing the rocky and difficult, but more direct Ifidi Pass, while the leading international teams took the longer way to the Rockeries Pass, which offers an easier descent and then a fast run along a jeep track into transition. As things stand at the time of writing the two groups are converging on Transition One from different directions, and none have yet arrived.

Later teams will be coming down at night and this may affect their route choice, but whatever route they take down, it has been a memorable first day for all the teams at Expedition Africa.