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..

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Eikenhofkloof abseil, Groot Drakenstein

by Ralph Pina | Mar 21, 2014 | Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve, Jonkershoek Nature Reserve

Eikenhofkloof is much more benign than Volstruiskloof. There are only about 7 shortish abseils down sloping walls rather than the precipitous, long drops down Volstruiskloof. So I would recommend that you do this one first if you are a novice. Paul Verhoeven led this...

Volstruiskloof: 15 abseils later

by Ralph Pina | Feb 13, 2014 | Hottentots Holland Nature Reserve, Jonkershoek Nature Reserve

Duiwelskloof (Devil's Ravine), Duiwelstand (Devil's Tooth), Groot Drakenstein (Great Dragonstone), Helshoogte (Hell's Heights), Banghoek (something like Scary Corner) - these mountain feature names suggest something about the nature of the mountainscape in which this...

Bainskloof rock-hopper

by Ralph Pina | Feb 6, 2014 | kloofing, Limietberg Nature Reserve

The Bainskloof Rock-hopper is an annual, fun, MCSA outing involving bouldering and swimming up or down the Witte River in Bainskloof, between Tweede Tol and Eerste Tol (Second Toll and First Toll). Yes folks, tolling is as old as road-building despite what the current...

Alexandria Trail, Woody Cape

by Ralph Pina | Jan 27, 2014 | Addo Elephant National Park

A round-trip drive of 1700 km is a long way to go for a weekend hike. It would have to be really special to justify the travel I argued, especially in the face of Marion's barely-concealed disapproval. Doubts loomed when Chris reported that his tendonitis could...