We’d deliberately planned our #visitWitzenberg trip in the middle of winter in the hope of seeing snow in Ceres. But when we woke up at 6am to heavy rain drops pelting our windows and trees thrashing in the wind, the temptation to burrow deeper under the down duvet was far greater than the desire to play muse for A Perfect Storm 2. That’s when we got the message from Ceres Zipline Adventures to say that there is indeed snow on the mountains and, yes, our scheduled morning zipline is still on. These Witzenbergers must be crazy!
Driving from Tulbagh to Ceres was enough to get the adrenaline going as the roads began to resemble wishing ponds in which the heavens were tossing their entire storehouse of coins. They must have been wishing good things for us, because it miraculously cleared up long enough for us to zipline against a backdrop of magical snow-capped mountains that could have come straight out of Lord of the Rings. Read more about our Ceres-ly Exciting Zipline Adventures.
Our next stop was the white dusted slopes of the Matroosberg, which were barely visible beneath the thick ash-coloured clouds that were swallowing the mountains with their frosty bite. A beautiful 35km drive from Ceres, the Matroosberg Private Nature Reserve covers more than 1000ha and reaches the Matroosberg Peak, which is the highest peak in the Boland at an altitude of 2249m. The reserve’s mission is “conservation through utilization” so its doors are always open to the public to walk in nature and experience the beauty of creation. Aside from playing in the winter snow, you can also enjoy paintball, cherry picking, horse rides, abseiling, fishing, and more.
As we parked our little Fiat Palio between giant 4x4s at the Matroosberg entrance we realised we’d have to do a lot more footwork up the sludgy mountain trail than our more rugged counterparts. This was certainly the case as we paid our entrance and pressed our way as far as possible up the mountain, dodging puddles where we could and giving the car a fresh splash of brown paint where we couldn’t. The 4x4s passed us by like royalty on a street parade. The only thing we could do was get out the way before we became victims of unwanted mud baths.
Whether you’ve seen snow before or not, it’s hard not to turn into an excited little child when you walk past your first patch of snow. Although I don’t recall feeling the cold quite like this when I was a kid! Families of all ages were scouting for the best patch of snow, building versions of Snowy the Matroosberg mascot, and pelting unsuspecting targets with snowballs.
But it wasn’t long before altitude, wind, and wafting drizzle caused a sudden drop in temperature and we hurriedly crafted our own dinky snowmen, took evidential photos, and made a bee-line for the car. After countless royals passed our shivering, soaking peasant bodies, we finally had a knight in mud-splattered armour offer us a lift to our car. We are forever grateful to you dear Kobus from De Keur!
Snow time essentials:
• Sunglasses and sunblock
• Extra warm clothing
• Dry clothes, shoes, and socks
• Wellingtons (gumboots) and gloves
Day visitor fees:
Adults: R50
Children under 13: R30
Dogs: R20
Click here for office hours, contact details, and GPS co-ordinates.
Next time you see snow forecast, I suggest you brave the cold, pack in the extra layers of warm clothes, hijack your friend’s 4×4, and head straight to Matroosberg!
