Riemvasmaak Hiking Trails in the Northern Cape, South Africa.

If you’re looking for real adventure hiking, the sense you’re discovering a new world, Riemvasmaak is the place to go.

Riemvasmaak is so wild and ruggedly beautiful its easy to forget about its politically charged past. It is a community conservancy in the Northern Cape and one of the first land restitution projects of the new democratic government. The spectacular canyon where the campsite and tastefully designed chalets are located, is about 15-kilometes from the village of Riemvasmaak, where you can buy wood for your nightly fires.

There are marked hiking trails that lead you through the astounding semi-desert landscape, following the ephemeral Molopo River, you can even hike down to where it empties its sand into the Orange River. Black eagles wheel above you, baboons bark while keeping a weary distance, red rock towers 80-meters towards the bluest sky. And the best thing about Riemvasmaak hiking? A swim in the spring-fed rock pool at the end of a hot day. There is a hot spring fed pool too, a remnant of the area’s volcanic past. Nothing better for aching feet!