Do you want to go for a relaxed hike or a challenging hike? At Helderberg Farm you can choose between 5 scenic hiking sections with various levels of difficulty. Each section has been named a different color to distinguish between them. The distance and duration of each section is measured from the starting point. For example, the distance of the yellow section includes the distances of the green, red, and yellow sections altogether.
Hiking Day Permits
- All Hiking Day permits can be purchased at the Tea Garden.
- Hiking Permits allow access to the Hiking Trails ONLY – Cycling / MTB trails and anywhere off-trail on the property will be considered trespassing.
- Allowed on trails STRICTLY from 08:00 – 17:00.
COSTS:
- Permit Fee Adults: R 40 per person
- Permit Fee Kids (6-18 yrs.): R 25 per person
Hiking Annual Permits
- All Hiking annual permits can be purchased at the Tea Garden.
- Hiking Permits allow access to the Hiking Trails ONLY – Cycling / MTB trails and anywhere off-trail on the property will be considered trespassing.
- Allowed on trails strictly from Sunrise to Sunset.
- Valid annually from 1 January until 31 December.
COSTS:
- Permit Fee Adults: R 400 per person
- Permit Fee Kids (6-18 yrs.): R 300 per person
- Permit Fee Pensioners (from 65 yrs.): R 300 per person
- Family Permit Fee (2 adults & 2 kids): R 1200 per permit
Dog Permits
- All dogs need to be registered at the Tea Garden for a life-time permit.
- All dogs with Green or Red leads need to be on lead at ALL times.
- All dogs with Blue leads need to be on lead at ALL times and may only be off lead on the hiking trail only.
- If Green or Red lead dogs are caught off lead, your permit will be terminated and may not re-apply.
- If Blue lead dogs are caught off lead outside the trail, your permit will be terminated and may not re-apply.
- Dog permits is a once off cost and don’t require annual renewal. If your lead is lost or damaged, you’ll have to re-apply for a permit/lead.
- Remember to renew your hiking permit annually.
- Cost: R 150 per dog & includes a lead.
- Lead Options:
- Green Lead: Friendly / Approachable
- Red Lead: Caution / Not Approachable
- Blue Lead: Trained (provide training certificate upon registration)
HIKING TRAIL SECTIONS – ALL THE SECTIONS TOGETHER FORM 1 LONG HIKING TRAIL
The Green Section
- Distance: +/- 1.8 km
- Difficulty: Easy
- Duration: +/- 50 minutes
- Hiking through: Forest
- Point of Interest: There are benches all along this section. At the starting point, there are picnic and braai areas available for booking. The picnic and braai areas are close to the Tea Garden, playground and animal farmyard. An overnight hikers hut is situated in the forest, 1 km from the starting point, which is ideal for small families with kids. The path through the forest is suitable for young children as well as the elderly.
The Red Section
- Distance: +/- 4.5 km
- Difficulty: Moderately easy
- Duration: +/- 1 hour 20 minutes
- Hiking through: Forest and vineyards
- Point of Interest: This section leads through a forest area with endangered and indigenous plants to South Africa.
The Yellow Section
- Distance: +/- 5.8 km
- Difficulty: Moderate, steep uphill and downhill
- Duration: +/- 2 hours
- Hiking through: Forest and vineyards on the mountain slope
- Point of Interest: Wooden lookout platform with breathtaking views over False Bay, Table Mountain and the Stellenbosch Winelands.
The Blue Section
- Distance: +/- 9km
- Difficulty: Moderate, steep uphill
- Duration: +/- 3 hours and 25 minutes
- Hiking through: Forest, vineyards and up the foot of the mountain.
- Point of Interest: Stunning lookout point high up.
The Brown Section
- Distance: +/- 11km
- Difficulty: Difficult. Do not attempt on a cloudy day.
- Duration: +/- 4 – 9 hours (depending on how far you want to walk when on top of the mountain)
- Hiking through: Forest, vineyards and up the foot of the mountain.
- Point of Interest: This section takes you to West Peak with a breathtaking view over Somerset West, Strand, Cape Peninsula and Stellenbosch. One of the best viewpoints in the Western Cape.
- From there you can walk further to the highest point of the Helderberg Mountain, The Dome (1137m above sea level).
- Back to start: Walk back the same route as you came, right down to the yellow section. Follow the yellow section down along the vineyards to the green section in the forest which will lead you back to the starting point where you can enjoy some refreshments at the Tea Garden.
You can expect spectacular views such as only seen on brochures or television. For the photographers out there, there are ample opportunities to capture the beauty of the surrounding nature.
