Hennops Hiking Trail Guide - The Scribs and Nibs

Just under an hour from both Joburg and Pretoria, the Hennops Hiking Trail is a great day hike to combo with exploring Hartbeespoort. There are several trails available for hikers of all ages and experiences, as well as mountain biking and off-roading.

There are several historic sites along the trail as well as animals such as zebras, dassies, kudu, and elands.

After all the hiking, be sure to stop at Almost Orange Bistro for some shared platters and a drink to cool off amongst the orange groves.

The Basics for Hennops Hiking

R100/pp, Hennops takes card but bring cash just in case as you never know when card machine service goes out. No reservations are required.
Trails are open at 7 am on the weekdays, weekends, and public holidays April-September. The trail is open at 6am on the weekends October-March.
This is a popular hiking area so arrive early—that means 9 am or earlier. Hopefully earlier…We left Joburg at 8 am and go to the trail at 9 am; the car park already looked full!
You must start your hikes by 2pm. The trails close at 5 pm.
You can purchase water and snacks at the canteen, which is open until 3pm.

Note: there are several trails in the area with similar hike names. Put “Hennops Hiking & Mtb Trails” on Google Maps.

All trails start here, by the canteen.

Tips for Hennops Hiking Trails

There is very little shade or tree cover on the trails. If attempting a long hike, be sure to bring around 1.5L of water per person.
Bring a hat, sunscreen, and wear long sleeves to protect yourself from the sun.
Don’t forget your trail nibs or lunch!

Hennops Hiking Trail Options

There are 3 trail options at Hennops. However, you can combo some of the routes as well as take the “escape” routes to decrease your hiking distance.

Krokodilberg Trail

11km, 3 hours
Difficulty: Moderate
Highlights: the cable car and suspension bridge, several historic points, and the possibility to see animals (Kudu and Eland).

The Krokodilberg Hennops hiking trail is a moderate hike. Although the trail is long, the elevation gain (400m) is gradual over the first half of the trail.

The trail starts off along the side of the Hennops River by the cable car.

There was just one section (between kilometers 3 and 5) that I needed to take a quick water break.

Be careful as the last 3 km is a little slippery with loose rocks and dirt. You may come across some cows near the end of your hike too!

Overall, I found the hike enjoyable as it wasn’t too strenuous and I thought going over the suspension bridge and cable car were really fun!

There were other couples and groups of friends on the trail most of the time. We tried to speed up at different points to pass other hikers to give space. Don’t expect a secluded trail.

Historic points

The first point you’ll reach on the trail is the Hospital Cave. This cave was used as a “veld hospital” by the Boers during the Anglo Boer War.

You’ll also see the Hardekraal, which has traces of a settlement going back to the 1700s. Honestly, I didn’t notice this…

The Pruimpie se gat is a cave that gets its name from the legend of Pruimpie, a young boy left behind after King Mzilikazi fled to escape the Zulu Impis in 1875. It is said that Pruimpie lived in the cave.

There are two viewpoints on the Krokodilberg trail as well that will branch off from the main trail. Although you can see Kudu and Eland on the trail, we didn’t see any animals while hiking, other than some birds.

Note: Historic info is from the Hennops trail pamphlet, which you’ll get when you start the trail!

Distance

The trail is well-marked with green signs with footprints. If you ever feel too tired to go on, just look out for the next “escape” route.

The official trail guide states that the hike is 10km, but while I was googling the trail, bloggers reported that the hike ranged between 10-13km. My tracking app says we hiked 11km and we followed the route exactly. The distance discrepancy may be due to people taking different “escape routes” or connecting from the Zebra Trail.

See if you spot this lone jacaranda tree on the trail during spring!

The Zebra Trail

5km, 2 hours (probably less for fast hikers)
Difficulty: Easy (according to Hennops—we haven’t hiked this)
Highlights: lots of animals (Zebra, Gnu, Impala, Blesbok, Kudu & Zonkie), the cable car and suspension bridge, and three historical points (Bokmakieries Bos, Oude Muragie, Dassie caves).

We didn’t hike this trail, but the thought of seeing Zebras almost made us choose this trail! While crossing over the cable car, a young hiker confirmed he had seen zebras on the trail.

If you arrive late in the day or don’t feel up for 10 km, the Zebra Trail is a great option. Conversely, if the Krokodilberg 10km trail isn’t long enough for you, combo it with the Zebra Trail as they are on different routes.

I saw two of these cool puff flowers on the trail!

The Dassie Trail

2.5km, 1-2 hours
Difficulty: Easy
Highlights: the cable car and suspension bridge, and some historic points

The Dassie trail makes use of the first escape route on the Krokodilberg Trail, after seeing the hospital cave and the Pruimpie se gat, you’ll take the escape route back to camp. This is probably best for hikers with small children.

What else can you do at Hennops Hiking Trail?

Have a picnic—Hennops has two swimming pools and plenty of braai stands you can enjoy after your hike. Your hiking ticket includes access to the picnic spot. The picnic spot is open between 9 am-5 pm.

Go mountain biking—there is a 36 km trail with a 500m elevation gain. There are several shortcut options so you can choose to bike however long suits you. For R80 you can access the MTB trails. For R100 you get access to the MTB trail, hiking trails, and picnic spots

Take your car off-road—those wanting to get their 4WD car dirty can pay R250 to drive the Zonkie trail.

Similar hikes around Joburg and Pretoria

If you want a hike closer to Joburg, head to Klipriviersberg Municipal Nature Reserve. The views and hike along the river and into the hillside are similar to Hennops hiking trail.

If you want a hike that’s further away from Joburg and more strenuous (with more stunning views), head to Rustig and do the 13km Karee hiking trail.

Joburg Guide