Johannesburg - Two Grade 11 Treverton College students have been invited as ambassadors for a conservation fundraising initiative, the Rhino Peak Challenge.
Jarred van Alphan and Kai Broom were selected after they completed another gruelling hike, the Grand Traverse in the Drakensberg earlier this year.
The boys were accompanied on the Grand Traverse by Shaun Robertson and Derrick Brown, both science teachers at Treverton College.
The boys' peak physical condition and aptitude for endurance set them apart as the natural choice to complete the Grand Traverse as part of Treverton College.
Their experience with orienteering, trail running, rock climbing and being avid outdoor adventure enthusiasts were instrumental in preparing them for the mental and physical fatigue that they faced during the traverse.
Their success on this climb was the reason why Jarred and Kai were selected to take on the Rhino Peak Challenge on September 17, 2022.
Invited as ambassadors and accompanied by Treverton College’s sports co-ordinator, Travers Pellew, the trio will be ascending and descending the Rhino Peak in the Drakensberg, as a fund-raiser for conservation efforts.
The Rhino Peak Challenge (RPC) is a conservation fund-raiser that takes place in the Maloti-Drakensberg World Heritage Site each year. A limited number of RPC Ambassadors set themselves the challenge of ascending the famous Rhino Peak,, which is 3 056-metres, and raising funds for the RPC Beneficiaries while doing so.
Since its inception in 2016 the RPC has raised almost R3.7m for Wildlife ACT, The Endangered Wildlife Trust and EKZNW. These funds are spent specifically on projects involving vultures, rhinos and cranes.
Speaking about the Grand Traverse, the boys said it entailed a rigorous hike of approximately 246km from the Sentinel car park in the north to Bushmen’s Nek in the south. It is regarded as the hardest hike in South Africa because of the mountainous terrain, altitude (on average 3 000m), distance, remoteness, variable weather and lack of a predefined route and path.
Jarred and Kai were chosen, rather than invited, as the nature of the trip required a certain level of fitness and prior Drakensberg experience. The group was also kept small so as to limit equipment and injury-related issues that naturally occur in adventure-based activities.
The traverse wasn’t all plain sailing. The disorientating mist made navigating challenging and cost time and energy. Ascending and descending approximately 1 100m and fitting in 25 to 30 kilometres a day proved a serious physical challenge. Added to that were the high winds, cold drizzly rain, long days of walking, frustrating mountain bogs and innumerable tufts of grass.