… just want to want to enjoy a good trek without worrying about acclimatising?
Altitude sickness, which usually kicks in around 2500-3000 metres (8200-9850 feet) and higher, affects some (but not all) of us, no matter how healthy you are.
And while we love Peru’s Inca Trail and Tanzania’s Kilimanjaro, both of these iconic treks hit heights that can affect your health and prevent you from summiting.
So we’ve rounded up the five best treks that feature unique terrain and boast fantastic scenery …
• W trek, Torres del Paine, Chile
• Bathali village treks, Nepal
• Milford Track, New Zealand
• GR20, Corsica, France
• Grand Canyon: rim to rim, Arizona
The Otter Trail is a hiking trail along the Garden Route coast of South Africa and is named for the Cape Clawless Otter which occurs in this region.
… widely regarded as one of the finest in the world and stretches from Storms River Mouth in the east to Nature’s Valley in the west, is 26 km long as the crow flies and 41 km as the hiker walks.
Walking the trail takes 5 days, and the 4 nights are spent in comfortable huts with superb views. The route is located entirely within the Tsitsikamma National Park, which protects an 80 km long strip of coastal mountains, forest and beaches.
… an extremely scenic landscape, never straying far from the shoreline, but often climbing steeply and then descending to the beach or a river crossing. …
Jens Niere’s trip report video gives a good feel for what I have to look forward to.
• DAY 1: Storms River Mouth to Ngubu Huts – 4.8kms – 3 hours
• DAY 2: Ngubu Huts to Scott Huts – 7.9kms – 6 hours
• DAY 3: Scott Huts to Oakhurst Huts – 7.7kms – 4 hours
• DAY 4: Oakhurst Huts to Andre Huts – 13.8kms – 8 hours
• DAY 5: Andre Huts to Nature’s Valley – 8.3kms – 3 hours
It’s tough to get a hiking permit. But by applying solo, and being flexible on start date, I was able to nab one in high season only a couple of months in advance.