Chrizelda’s guidebook

Sebastien
Chrizelda’s guidebook

Hiking

Hiking in and around the area
Mountain Sanctuary Park offers hikes ranging from easy to difficult. Easy (for with your children): There are the East Pools and West Pools hikes ranging from 30 minutes to 2 hours. They lead to natural rock pools and water slides to have a picnic at and to enjoy - the river water is drinkable! (remember to pack a plastic bag for your trash). Difficult: Leave the kids with a baby sitter and get a permit (ahead of time) with the Mountain Club SA (Tel: 061 461 8259 or mcsajhb@gmail.com - Website: www.jhb.mcsa.org.za) for this hike. It can be done in 4 hours, the first time we did it was in 8 hours and it is spectacular. At certain places, you need to climb down roots, slide down small waterfalls, swim (because you can't walk). But leave the kids with a baby sitter and first come see if you think they will be capable to do this hike for the next time. Remember to check the weather before you do this hike - the last place you want to be with a cloud burst is in the gorge. And pack plenty of ziplocks to keep a spare change of clothes and your phone dry. Mountain Sanctuary Park only allows 180 people in their park per day - so pre-booking is essential! Booking office: 0145340114 8am-5pm/0827075538 email: owen@mountain-sanctuary.co.za website: www.mountain-sanctuary.co.za
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Mountain Sanctuary Park
19 abantu bendawo batusa
Mountain Sanctuary Park offers hikes ranging from easy to difficult. Easy (for with your children): There are the East Pools and West Pools hikes ranging from 30 minutes to 2 hours. They lead to natural rock pools and water slides to have a picnic at and to enjoy - the river water is drinkable! (remember to pack a plastic bag for your trash). Difficult: Leave the kids with a baby sitter and get a permit (ahead of time) with the Mountain Club SA (Tel: 061 461 8259 or mcsajhb@gmail.com - Website: www.jhb.mcsa.org.za) for this hike. It can be done in 4 hours, the first time we did it was in 8 hours and it is spectacular. At certain places, you need to climb down roots, slide down small waterfalls, swim (because you can't walk). But leave the kids with a baby sitter and first come see if you think they will be capable to do this hike for the next time. Remember to check the weather before you do this hike - the last place you want to be with a cloud burst is in the gorge. And pack plenty of ziplocks to keep a spare change of clothes and your phone dry. Mountain Sanctuary Park only allows 180 people in their park per day - so pre-booking is essential! Booking office: 0145340114 8am-5pm/0827075538 email: owen@mountain-sanctuary.co.za website: www.mountain-sanctuary.co.za
No visit to Utopia is complete without enjoying at least one of the estate’s gentle walks. Despite being only four kilometers long, Utopia is unique in the way just a few hundred meters can take you from one mini-ecosystem to another: from rocky to riverine, from open grassland to woodland. None of the five consecutive walks described in this leaflet is strenuous, and few are over a kilometer in length. They are generally marked with the double-footprint logo (although a former owner liberated one of the markers you can see embedded in chalet 108's driveway, and he is now serving 20 years with hard labor). Neither is there anything on these gentle rambles which will attack you, even if someone somewhere invariably reports sighting ‘the leopard’ about once a year, the suspicion always being that Klipdrift and Coke may be involved. Outside these designated walks you are of course welcome to ramble anywhere; Utopia prides itself on being an open estate. One important note: do not cross the river or go through the fences. The farms on the other side of the river are off-limits. We have details directions for all walks - combine them all into a big 7km walk for the adventurous.
Utopia Nature Estate
15 Buffelspoort Rd
No visit to Utopia is complete without enjoying at least one of the estate’s gentle walks. Despite being only four kilometers long, Utopia is unique in the way just a few hundred meters can take you from one mini-ecosystem to another: from rocky to riverine, from open grassland to woodland. None of the five consecutive walks described in this leaflet is strenuous, and few are over a kilometer in length. They are generally marked with the double-footprint logo (although a former owner liberated one of the markers you can see embedded in chalet 108's driveway, and he is now serving 20 years with hard labor). Neither is there anything on these gentle rambles which will attack you, even if someone somewhere invariably reports sighting ‘the leopard’ about once a year, the suspicion always being that Klipdrift and Coke may be involved. Outside these designated walks you are of course welcome to ramble anywhere; Utopia prides itself on being an open estate. One important note: do not cross the river or go through the fences. The farms on the other side of the river are off-limits. We have details directions for all walks - combine them all into a big 7km walk for the adventurous.

Canopy Tour

Tree top ziplining
Located in the heart of the majestic Magaliesberg mountains, the Magaliesberg Canopy Tour® is a unique eco-adventure that takes you on a journey through the ecology and geology of the second oldest mountain range in the world – estimated to be 2,400 million years old. 11 platforms have been constructed high against the rock faces of the spectacular Ysterhout Kloof – a natural wonderland carved out of the mountainside over millions of years – joined by 10 cabled slides up to 140 metres long and in places 30 metres above the canopy floor.  https://www.canopytour.co.za/locations/magaliesberg/
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Magaliesberg Canopy Tour
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Located in the heart of the majestic Magaliesberg mountains, the Magaliesberg Canopy Tour® is a unique eco-adventure that takes you on a journey through the ecology and geology of the second oldest mountain range in the world – estimated to be 2,400 million years old. 11 platforms have been constructed high against the rock faces of the spectacular Ysterhout Kloof – a natural wonderland carved out of the mountainside over millions of years – joined by 10 cabled slides up to 140 metres long and in places 30 metres above the canopy floor.  https://www.canopytour.co.za/locations/magaliesberg/

Gambling & waterpark

70kms from Utopia A world famous leisure resort, Sun City offers fun for the whole family in the form of ongoing entertainment, the Valley Of Waves, horse-riding, golf, casino fun and so much more! https://www.sun-city-south-africa.com/
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Sun City Resort
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70kms from Utopia A world famous leisure resort, Sun City offers fun for the whole family in the form of ongoing entertainment, the Valley Of Waves, horse-riding, golf, casino fun and so much more! https://www.sun-city-south-africa.com/

Sightseeing

Get your big five fix at the Pilanesburg Game Reserve, located in an extinct volcanic crater that dates back over 1,200 million years! The park is home to over 8,000 animals, including the big five. https://pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/
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IPilanesberg National Park
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Get your big five fix at the Pilanesburg Game Reserve, located in an extinct volcanic crater that dates back over 1,200 million years! The park is home to over 8,000 animals, including the big five. https://pilanesberg-game-reserve.co.za/

Mountain Biking

Mountain biking places in and around the area. I have two more recommendations that airbnb doesn't allow me to load due to the locations not being found.
Mountain Sanctuary Mountain Bike Trails Grading: Intermediate to difficult Duration: 1 - 2 Hours Configuration: 12km trail plus various options along dirt roads. Start Point: Mountain Sanctuary Park TRAIL BASICS Access: Day visitors must book ahead. Fee payable. No riding in the rest camp Beware of: Watch out for vehicles Facilities: Swimming pool, lapa, restaurant. Cell Reception: 0145340114 8am-5pm/0827075538 The reserve has excellent access to some of the best trails crisscrossing these majestic ranges. If you’re an adventurous mountain biker, the 12km MTB trail on Mountain Sanctuary makes up part of the infamous Magalies Monster MTB race; so get cranking past crystal-clear mountain pools and extraordinary rock formations.
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Mountain Sanctuary Park
19 abantu bendawo batusa
Mountain Sanctuary Mountain Bike Trails Grading: Intermediate to difficult Duration: 1 - 2 Hours Configuration: 12km trail plus various options along dirt roads. Start Point: Mountain Sanctuary Park TRAIL BASICS Access: Day visitors must book ahead. Fee payable. No riding in the rest camp Beware of: Watch out for vehicles Facilities: Swimming pool, lapa, restaurant. Cell Reception: 0145340114 8am-5pm/0827075538 The reserve has excellent access to some of the best trails crisscrossing these majestic ranges. If you’re an adventurous mountain biker, the 12km MTB trail on Mountain Sanctuary makes up part of the infamous Magalies Monster MTB race; so get cranking past crystal-clear mountain pools and extraordinary rock formations.