Chain Ladder Pass, Tugela Falls & Beacon Buttress Gully

Follow the path from Sentinal Car Park, up to the right of the Witches, toward Sentinel, where the zig-zags take their toll, skirting around the base of Sentinel, along the contour path to the chain ladder. Along the way, one passes the Sentinel Cave (tucked 20 metres above the path) and also the Gully, which presents an alternative route up, for those too nervous of the ladder.

From the Car Park to the base of the ladder usually takes the average walker about an hour to an hour and a half. From the top of the ladder there is a well-defined path leading to the “Hut” and to the top of Tugela Falls.

Return via Beacon Buttress gully. Use the gps map to find the gully for your return. This hike can also be done by going up Beacon Buttress gully and then down the chain ladders. This route direction is a lot more difficult and makes this a difficult hike. It takes 45 minutes to an hour to climb up Beacon Buttress gully, depending on your fitness level.

Exposure & Winter Advisory: Reaching the summit plateau requires ascending twin vertical chain ladders. Those uncomfortable with heights can take the Beacon Buttress gully route instead. Always carry warm layer shells—summer thunder storms and winter ice/snow occur frequently above 3,000 metres.

The Qwa Qwa region around Witsieshoek Mountain Lodge is primarily inhabited by members of the Batlokoa chiefdom.

The Batlokoa community comprises a range of different Sotho-Tswana peoples, its population ranging from Botswana to Lesotho to the Free State and Gauteng. The tribe has inhabited the areas around Witsiehoek since the mid 19th century. In 1874, a mission station of the Dutch Reformed Church was established in the area. However, the majority of the Batlokoa living in the Free State today are Catholic. While elements of traditional Batlokoa culture still survive today, such as traditional music and oral poetry, the community has adapted to a rapidly urbanising population and culture, centred on the ever-expanding capital of the Qwa Qwa region, Phuthadithjhaba (meaning meeting place of the people).

Witsieshoek Mountain Lodge was originally built in the 1970s as a state enterprise, though former Batlokoa chief Wessels Mota built a stone hut for backpackers on the site in the 1950s. The lodge was gradually given over to the current King of the local Batlokoa community, Morena Mota (son of Wessels Mota), in the mid 90s. It was officially made a community asset by the state in 2000. Management challenges prompted the Traditional Council of the Batlokoa under their leader, Morena Mota, to enter into an agreement with Transfrontier Park Destinations (TFPD) in 2010 as management and marketing operators.