Last week was our fall break, so we took a nice family vacation within South Africa. We were looking for something relaxing and fairly low-key since we have been going strong for a couple of months now, and we definitely did not relax on our long weekend to Munich a month ago. So we headed to the mountains and enjoyed two of our favorite South African destinations: Clarens and Drakensburg.
Clarens is a cute little touristy town that has great restaurants and an art, wine, and beer focused down town with lots of hiking nearby. We took the girls on a small day hike to start, and they did incredibly well. They loved following the trail and heading up the mountain. Justin and I also took advantage of the many running trails that ran along the mountains and streams alongside of town. Before we left, I made sure to get a nice massage at my favorite spa, and Justin went golfing for one morning.
Next, we went to Drakensburg where we stayed in a nice little cabin at a great camp resort called Dragon Peaks. We had a great back porch that overlooked a lake and the mountains in the background. It was beautiful. The girls had a great time here because there was a lot of activities for them to do. They went horse-back riding a couple of times on the property as well as a kids' zip-line. Taelyn particularly liked the horses and became rather close with a small, brown horse that she named Brownie. Each time we went to the stables, she made sure to pet Brownie and get plenty of hay for all of the horses to have to breakfast. Kaelia was a star on the zip-lining. She loved the experience and spent most of her time hanging upside down from the cord.
We also went on another hike in Drakensburg, but this one was significantly longer than in Clarens. We made our way through trails at Monks Cowl Sanctuary until we found a beautiful waterfall. It took us 1:20 just to get there, and the same amount of time to get back, making our journey a total of 2:40 on foot. The girls were champs during this hike. They complained about being tired from time to time, but for the most party, they were champs.
For most of the trip, the weather was a bit cool which was great for hiking and running. By the last two days, however, it got a little warmer, and the girls were able to swim at Dragon Peaks. There was a fantastic kids' pool with a waterfall, and a couple of water slides in the larger pool. The girls had a great time splashing around for a while on those days.
Our trip to the mountains was the perfect getaway to relax and still enjoy the outdoors. Take a look at the link below for some pictures and videos.
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