This hike in a seldom visited area provides diversified terrain, wonderful views and an interesting selection of fynbos. By delaying the start by one day we avoided the low slung cloud and dampness that would have obliterated the views and made the lichen covered rock unsafe.
The two ridges provided plenty of rock obstacles to test our mettle. The views from the ridges which are higher than Skoorsteenkop are far reaching in all directions. The circular 9.7km route involving 760m of ascent took us just under 7 hours to complete.
Starting in Baviaanskloof, Hout Bay, we ascended the southern slope of Skoorstenberg and then made our way off path onto Blockbuster Ridge followed by a short descent before ascending again to the adjacent AirBnB Ridge. After exploring the two ridges we connected with the Vlakkenberg trail path for our return to Baviaanskloof.
Our group of 10 hikers were back at the cars by 2:30pm.