Ralph Pina
  • Home
  • About
    • Studies
    • Oranje
    • Football
    • Reading
    • Reflecting on the last, lost decade
  • Terms
  • Contact
Select Page

Leopard’s Gorge, Kogelberg

by Ralph Pina | Apr 7, 2012 | hiking, Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve, scenic walks, trails

Here’s an easy yet spectacular walk for the family. The 7-and-a-bit km hike takes you through a 400 m rise and fall in  elevation, from the Palmiet River valley, through an old indigenous forest to glorious views above Betty’s Bay. Photos and a Google...

Green machine prowls Gordon’s Bay

by Ralph Pina | Jun 12, 2011 | kayaking, Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve

Last Sunday I took the new lime-green Skua out for its maiden paddle around Gordon’s Bay. We ducked into the old harbour, sheltered from a cloud burst under the NSRI station for a while, cruised over to Harbour Island and weaved through the marina, and then...
Fighting the Kogelberg fire

Fighting the Kogelberg fire

by Ralph Pina | Mar 21, 2011 | conservation, firefighting, Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve

The latest fire that swept through the Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve last week was nothing short of disastrous. Young veld burnt again and all the eleven-year old veld has been destroyed, so that, in the words of a nature conservation official, “everything between...

Paddling up the Steenbras

by Ralph Pina | Feb 14, 2011 | kayaking, Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve

There isn’t actually much of the Steenbras River to paddle up, even on a kayak – only about 300 metres. Rather it’s the 13 km round-trip paddle from Gordon’s Bay harbour and the usually benign, but spectacular, rivermouth entrance that is most...

Kayak Rooiels-Pringle Bay, Kogelberg Coast

by Ralph Pina | May 30, 2010 | kayaking, Kogelberg Biosphere Reserve

On this crisp morning, Deon and I launched at Rooiels and paddled out to look for the first Southern Right whales of the season, but it seems it’s still too early. So we settled for a paddle down the coast to Pringle Bay and brunch. A fairly heavy swell was...
Page 4 of 5«12345»

Welcome to RalphPina.com

Thank you for visiting my outdoor blog. RalphPina.com documents my experiences over many years of appreciating, and adventuring in, Nature. It celebrates visual beauty, advocates minimal impact, reflects on humans’ relationship with our ecosphere, spans the planet but focuses on the wild diversity of southern Africa. Photos, videos and GPS maps of hiking, cycling, kayaking, abseiling, canoeing and windsurfing..

Recent Posts

  • Botmaskop-Saaltjie Traverse
  • Springstygbeugel
  • Helderberg West Peak
  • Botanising trilogy
  • Grootkop
  • Aasvoëlkrans Hiking Trail
  • Perdeberg hike
  • Kasteelkop & Nek
  • Three Sisters hike
  • Up the Cascades
  • Erdvark Trail
  • Rod’s Trail, Betty’s Bay

Recent Comments

  • Pam Wijnberg on Grootkop
  • Flip van Schalkwyk on Gantouw Pass
  • Joachim Schultz on Witels – what else?
  • Piet Streicher on Hike above Kogelbaai
  • Ralph Pina on Smitswinkel – Simon’s Town Traverse

Navigate

July 2026
MTWTFSS
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031 
« Jun    

Friends

  • A friend cycles around the world
  • Peter Groves
  • Santie Gouws Mountain Walking Guide

Good Causes

  • Fire Information System for SA
  • The Cape Leopard Trust

Hiking sites I like

  • Boots and Fins
  • Ian Webb's Great Hikes in the Western Cape
  • Jacques Niemand – interesting hikes
  • Maps – Hike the Cederberg
  • Mountain Club of SA Stellenbosch Section
  • Mountain Meanders

Mountain & Hiking guides

  • Santie Gouws Mountain Walking Guide

Parks

  • Cape Nature
  • SANParks

Archives

Recent Posts

  • Botmaskop-Saaltjie Traverse
  • Springstygbeugel
  • Helderberg West Peak
  • Botanising trilogy
  • Grootkop
  • Aasvoëlkrans Hiking Trail
  • Perdeberg hike
  • Kasteelkop & Nek
  • Three Sisters hike
  • Up the Cascades
  • Erdvark Trail
  • Rod’s Trail, Betty’s Bay
  • Spanning the red stone arches
  • Gamkaberg Plan B
  • Fonteintjiesberg
  • Swartberg Pass over the years
  • Cape of Good Hope Trail once again
  • Fairy Glen – Plateau – Kasteelkopnek trail
  • Smitswinkel – Simon’s Town recce
  • Paddling with wild horses
  • Rooielsberg peak
  • Karoo corridor MTB tour
  • A walk on the Wild Coast
  • A northern Kruger cultural safari
  • Twelve Apostles loop

Recent Comments

  • Pam Wijnberg on Grootkop
  • Flip van Schalkwyk on Gantouw Pass
  • Joachim Schultz on Witels – what else?
  • Piet Streicher on Hike above Kogelbaai
  • Ralph Pina on Smitswinkel – Simon’s Town Traverse
July 2026
MTWTFSS
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031 
« Jun    

Recent Posts

  • Botmaskop-Saaltjie Traverse
  • Springstygbeugel
  • Helderberg West Peak
  • Botanising trilogy
  • Grootkop

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License except where otherwise indicated for some photos. Kindly attribute by linking to this site or citing “www.ralphpina.com”.

  • Facebook
  • X
  • Instagram
  • RSS

Designed and Developed by NetMechanic 2026