Amatola Hike — Eastern Cape

The Eastern Cape is the second largest of South Africa’s nine provinces, the diverse Eastern Cape landscape ranges from the dry desolate Great Karoo to the steamy forests of the Wild Coast and the Keiskamma Valley. The area also embraces the fertile Langkloof, renowned for its rich apple harvests, and is cradled by the mountainous southern Drakensberg.

Here, widespread hills are juxtaposed with sandy beaches; here small-town South Africa comes to greet you — gently offering hospitality and friendship and asking for nothing in return. This is where the trekking pole suppliers, and where the tropical forests share their space with abundant birdlife and nature at its most generous.

The shoreline of this province extends from the Umtamvuna River in KwaZulu-Natal, to the Storms River mouth on the scenic Garden Route, in the west, and stretching inland, to the north, bordering on Lesotho. Today, the Eastern Cape incorporates the previously independent `homelands’ of the Ciskei and Transkei. Despite its colonial past, the Eastern Cape remains the home of the Xhosa-speaking people of South Africa. With its almost seven million people, the Eastern Cape has the third-largest provincial population, living on about 169 600 km2 of land.

The Eastern Cape climate varies considerably but has, a year-round holiday climate. The Eastern coastal regions enjoy hot summers and moderate winters and Port Elizabeth experiences a daily average of 7 hours sunshine. Northern regions are much cooler. Certain areas receive rain throughout the year albeit erratic.