TRAIL RUNNING
SA ’ s Highest Point
Mafadi is a peak in the Drakensberg Mountains on the border of South Africa and Lesotho . At a height of 3446.1 metres , it is the highest mountain in the nation of South Africa , but is lower than Thabana Ntlenyana , the highest peak in Lesotho at 3482 metres , and thus the highest point in Southern Africa .
By the Himalayan definition of a mountain , being a summit with at least 7 % topographic prominence relative to height , Mafadi is not in fact a mountain summit , but rather a subsidiary summit of Makheka in Lesotho . By this definition , Champagne Castle is the highest mountain summit in South Africa , although Mafadi is unquestionably the highest point in South Africa .
The name of Mafadi , which literally means the Mother of Fadi , is currently under dispute , with its original Sotho name , Ntheledi ( which means “ Makes me slip ,” referring to the nearby stream ) being considered by some to be more relevant and correct . route back to camp , so what were they up to ? Through the laughter , it then became apparent that they were so busy pranking younger hikers for their vaccination passports that they completely lost track of time .
It was a successful day . Most of the shooting was ticked off , the story was being written and only the start , the finish , and some on-the-run action shots were left for attempt-day . Then , it started to rain , and rain , and rain , and didn ’ t stop . Sven ’ s wife ’ s weather prediction was spot on . The guys were surprised , but not too worried . We were being very optimistic .
Campsite Conversations
Now , let me share some insights into what happened around the cooking canister that night . Firstly , we found out that Sven ’ s gazebo was 15 years old , and like him , had stood the test of time . It was leaking , though , which meant that you had to be strategically positioned under it in order not to get wet . Johardt was with us in spirit , but not in flesh . In addition to his running abilities , he also has the ability to be part of a conversation whilst lying in his tent , and then expects the minions to walk over with the snacks , chips , coffee , rusks , and whatever else made it to his buffetplatter selection . Happily , he joined the party at some point , as I had packed an extra chair to cancel out any no-seating excuses he might have thought of .
Arlo had been newly dubbed Machete Guy . Being a tree-felling expert by trade , and being from the Lowveld , one could kind of expect him to pack a machete for every occasion , but I am not entirely sure what his idea was . We were in no way going to cut the footpaths any easier for Johardt , and we were not planning to shoot any Braveheart scenes . However , I soon realised the machete had a dual purpose as Arlo used his machete skills to cut a trench so that we didn ’ t have to sit in a muddy dam the whole time . It worked miraculously and he cleared out most of the water , so we were soon left with only the mud . Then the blast-from-the-past racing conversations started .
Sven was adamant that he never raced Arlo at Num- Num , and that if he had , he would ’ ve beaten him . The conversation escalated and hit a climax when Sven told everyone that he ( apparently ) got the better of Bennie Roux one year . We couldn ’ t remember the details , and there was no reception to help us verify the facts . Next , we laughed about Johardt passing me time and time again on the uphill sections during our first Otter run together , all this while he had a torn calf muscle . That race will always remain my claim to fame , though , as I beat Johardt and Kilian on the same day .! ( I also claim to have retired after that .)
Sven also had an Otter story ... He started this renowned difficult race with one energy gel in his pocket , only to have his goody bag with extra supplies stolen by another runner at the halfway spot . We all knew there was only one way for that story to end , with a death march to the finish . Like Sven ’ s potential running career , our conversations then spiralled into a black hole .
Time for a Leg-loosener
As the sun rose on Friday morning , we could tell from the amount of water on our gazebos that it had been quite a heavy storm . The rain had cleared and it was only misty now , but Johardt wasn ’ t going to attempt the FKT this day . He argued that he couldn ’ t do the attempt after being on his legs for more than five hours the day before . In addition , his sports watch wasn ’ t fully charged , as the camping site didn ’ t have any electricity and my gadget-light had too little power to help him out the previous night . ( A timely reminder why watch companies are so eager to push the battery-life envelope … to compensate for the forgetfulness of elite athletes !)
So , the camera crew went fishing whilst Johardt and I went for an easy run , ignoring the watch-charging issue at hand . In my head , it was supposed to be a 12km jog to Marble Baths and back , and it started as an easy jog as we were treated with beautiful valleys , plentiful caves , and stunning waterfalls along the shortcut we took to Marble Baths . It was only once
Images : Louis Le Grange
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