Hobbit 90km Journey

Day 1: START ➡ CP 1 (MADEN DAM TO GWILI GWILI - 10 km) ➡ CP 2 ➡CP 3 (GWILI GWILI TO DONTSA – 18 km) ➡ CP 4 ➡ FINISH (DONTSA TO CATA HUT - 17 km) Starting at the Maden Dam parking spot the trail takes you round the dam, into the forest and along the banks of the Buffalo River. The trail gradually winds up to the foot of a moss covered waterfall, after which it climbs steeply leaving the forest as it levels out heading in a westerly direction along a mixture of jeep and single track. Day 2: START ➡ MNYAMENI HUT - 11 km ➡ CP 6 ➡ ZINGCUKA HUT ➡ CP 7 (CUT OFF) – 19 km ➡ CP 8 ➡ CP 9 ➡ CP 10 ➡ FINISH (Arminel Hotel) – 15 km Starting with a 3km climb. Take the marked short cut avoiding the detour to Geju Peak. The trail runs along the edge of the river valley before you descend the Mnyameni Gorge, passing countless waterfalls and crossing the river many times before emerging at Mnyameni Hut CP5. Leaving the hut, the trail crosses the stream and heads up Mnyameni Peak or what is also called Hog 3. The trail then runs along the edge of the cliffs for around 2km before a steep descent back into the natural forest and past Zingcuka hut, after which the path joins the road that leads to Hogsback. The path crosses the ridgeline of the Hog, offering great views of Hogsback before traversing along the base of the cliffs and descends to a short section along some cliff edges, leading you to the marshalls at CP8. From here you descend into the pine forests, passing CP9 at another watertable and traverse along the forest tracks on the mountain edge to CP10, descending to cross Kettlespout Falls where you will make the final descent through singletrack to the Arminel Hotel, beer and cheer. The route is marked as a hiking trail and not specifically for the race. GPX tracks and maps will be mailed to entrants.