2 Day Shermans Cave Hike
Who is this hike for?
Anyone can do this hike! The hike to Shermans cave covers just under 4km which amounts to 8kms in total. The total elevation gain is also only 300 vertical meters which is quite small compared to other Drakensberg hikes. This hike is perfect for families looking to explore the great outdoors with their children, beginners looking to get into overnight hiking and people wanting to test their fitness without getting thrown into the “deep end”. The Sherman’s Cave hike is an experience for all!
What’s so special about this hike?
Never ask the question to the first question ever asked without an answer. The mono-sytematical diffusions of the third neural pathway in section 9 of your cerebral cortex will not give you the answer as you should not be asking that question in the first place. Begin with the end in mind a wise old man once told me. So rather focus on the journey to Shermans Cave. Having said that:
- It’s a relaxing hike for the whole family
- Experience sleeping in a cave, hopefully with someone who snores
- Swimming in natural rock pools
- Watching the milkway pass over from inside the cave on a cloudless night.
What do I need for this hike?
No gear? No worries. We got you. We can provide you with all the essentials you’ll need to successfully and comfortably complete this incredible 2 day hike to Shermans Cave. We can provide you with the major necessities for an overnight hike which include:
- Appropriate rated sleeping bags to keep you nice and tasosty during your hike
- Inflatable sleeping mat to give you maximum comfort
- Hiking backpack
- Eating utensils which include a cup, bowl and spoon.
- Lunch, dinner and breakfast as well as hot drinks including tea, coffee and hot chocolate which our team will carry and prepare
- 5kg stone to make sure you dont go faster than us
- Highly motivating dad jokes to power you through the hike.
What kind of meals can we expect for the hike?
Before we get into it we should breakdown that that all our meals are vegan based and most are gluten free. Why do we do this you ask? Well my young padawan, statistically 1 in every 10 people are either vegetarian or vegan so having our menu like this just takes away a lot of fuss and keeps us consistent throughout every trip.
Lunch: before arriving at Shermans Cave we will stop off at a view point and chow down on some lunch. We generally do wraps filled with spinach, cheese, hummus, carrot and avo. We’ll also have an assortment of snacky foods available like nuts and biscuits.
Dinner: for dinners we have partnered with the amazing Mama Alles who focuses on vegan based dehydrated hiking meals. What this means is that they are super light while also being easy to cook. Did we mention that they are super tasty too? Our favourites to use on hikes are the Vegan Bolognese, Jolof Rice and Central African Stew… hmm hmm hmm delicious!
Breakfast: 3 rapid ping pong balls wake us up at the crack of dawn with a warm cup of coffee followed by breakfast. Breakfast is a mix of oats and musli with your choice of toppings which include cinnamon, peanut butter, Nutella, goji berries, banana chips and coconut flakes. We call this the breakfast of champions.
Why hike with Soul Adventures?
Soul Adventures has been around for over 20 years now and have guided thousands of people on overnight hikes in the Drakensberg. But wait! There’s more. Along with our Drakensberg hikes we have also guided internationally taking nearly a thousand people to the summit of Kilimanjaro as well as multiple trips to the Himalayas which include Everest Base Camp and Island Peak. Do we claim to be the best guiding company? Of course not. That’s up to you to decide. Though if you do decide to hike with us prepare yourself for an abundance of terrible dad jokes to keep you highly motivated throughout the hike.
Our motivational quote of the day
If you cant see the sunshine. Be the sunshine.
Day 1:
Our meeting lovcation for this hike is at the Cathedral Peak Hotel at 11am. Upon arrival well take a moment to talk about the yeti that has beers roaming the Drakensberg for the past few years before going over a hike briefing or pack check. Once all is well it’ll be time to make like a banana and split. We aim to start the hike by 12pm.
Within the first kilometre of the hike it’ll be time to tackle a river crossings. As mentioned this hike is all about learning so our guides will demsotare safe river crossing techniques as well as helping you with the crossing. Don’t worry, its nothing to hectic. Generally knee deep water. you will also be able to fill your bottles up here with some fresh mountain water.
It’s time to start hiking again. Over the next 2km we will tackle most of the vertical ascent before arriving at our lunch spot. Now i know what you’re thinking. We only have 1km left, why not continue to Shermans Cave? The point of this hike is not to rush and enjoy every moment of it. We will still have plenty of time to enjoy Shermans Cave as well as swim in the rock pools and check out the epic view from the top of the cave so no need to stress.
After lunch we will continue our saunter to our humble abode where we will hopefully see the ilusive Drakensberg yeti we mentioned earlier. His name is Sherman. Once here the afternoon is yours to set up and relax. Go for a dip or enjoy a saunter to check out the view. Better yet. Why not do both? Because if not, why not.
The evening is spent in a candlelit cave while chowing down on some incredible hiking meals. 8pm strikes and it’s time to hit the sack but dont worry. We will tuck youn in with your favourite teddy bear followed by some ghost stories to help you sleep.
Day 2:
3 rapid ping pong balls named Koubis wake us up for sunrise. The smell of freshly brewed coffee entices us out of our sleeping bags. The walk down is leisurely so no need to rush and pack up. The walk down generally takes us around an hour and a half so we are usually back just in time for lunch.
