See our write up in February 2009 issue of Getaway

'Step off the ledge,’ the mother urged her child. The youngster peered down the 100- metre drop into fresh air and sat tight. So she starved him for a few days, then dangled a tasty morsel just out of reach. He lunged for it and found himself falling.

Instinct kicked in and soon the Verreauxs’ eagle chick was airborne, if not actually soaring.

The flying lesson was in full swing when we spotted ma, pa and their fledgling riding the air currents above us on the last day of the Green Mountain Trail, a new four-day slackpacking hike in the Elgin area an hour out of Cape Town. Our guide for the day, Gerald McCann, was excited - it was the first time he’d been able to pinpoint the eagles’ nest site this year.

‘There’s the nest they used last year,’ he pointed to a krantz across the gorge from where we stood at the base of an even higher cliff .

An indefatigable conservationist who’s spent much of his life working in the Kogelberg Biosphere as head of the reserve, Gerald, now in his seventies, has hacked out a network of trails on the fynbos-covered slopes of the Houwhoek Mountain above Bot River. ‘It’s my hobby,’ he said.

On top of the world
The trail is the brainchild of Dr Paul Cluver, Alison Green and Murray Weiner, all members of the Green Mountain Eco Route which encompasses the Overberg around Houwhoek Mountain and Groenlandberg. The Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve is the core of the area and all the grape farmers are members of the Biodiversity and Wine Initiative, which promotes conservation and sustainability.

Gerald is involved in mentoring a new generation of guides just graduated from Elgin Learning Foundation College, who will act as second guides until they gain experience. ‘I love being outdoors guiding people,’ said Chris September, who is also Murray’s right-hand man at Porcupine Hills Guestfarm, where you spend the first two nights.

On day one, the trail starts with a ride to Twaalff ontein Farm and a six-kilometre slog up a shoulder of the Groenlandberg. Once on top, the terrain evens out and there are glorious views all the way to Hermanus and Cape Point in the south and across Theewaterskloof Dam to the Franschhoek Mountains and Villiersdorp in the north. There was plenty of time to enjoy being on top of the world before the trail descended through a recently burnt area to the collection point near Viljoen’s Pass on the R321 to Villiersdorp.

Certified minibus taxis are used to ferry slackpackers to and from their overnight accommodation. ‘It helps spread visitors’ rands into the community,’ said Alison.