🏃 WESTERN CAPE TRAIL RUNNING

Trails, Reserves & Races

Runnable mountain and coast across the Cape — Table Mountain, Lion's Head and Silvermine, Jonkershoek and the Winelands, the Cederberg wilderness, and marquee races from Ultra-trail Cape Town to the Otter African Trail Run. Trails, reserves and events, filterable by region and type.

💡 Trails on Table Mountain and in the reserves usually need a SANParks conservation fee or CapeNature permit, and the big races (UTCT, the Otter) sell out or ballot months ahead. Cape mountain weather changes fast and routes are exposed — carry water, wind gear and, on the mountain, run in company.

Region

Type

📍 Where in the Western CapeAll areas

Full list

!Khwa ttu Nature Reserve — Darling. Private reserve near Darling with runnable fynbos and coastal-view trails and a San heritage centre. Day/entry fee…
Cape of Good Hope (Cape Point) — Cape Point. Runnable coastal and fynbos paths through the Cape of Good Hope section of TMNP, including the Shipwreck and Cape Point…
Cape Town Trail Marathon — Newlands. Trail marathon, half and shorter distances on Table Mountain's eastern trails from Newlands Forest. Paid entry; usually…
Cederberg Traverse — Cederberg. Two-day stage trail run through the rugged Cederberg wilderness past dramatic rock formations on remote paths. Paid…
Cederberg Wilderness Area — Clanwilliam. Remote runnable mountain routes to landmarks like the Wolfberg Cracks, Maltese Cross and Sneeuberg. CapeNature…
Constantia Greenbelt parkrun — Constantia. Free timed 5km on the Alphen/Constantia greenbelt paths every Saturday at 08:00; shaded and gentle. Register once…
Devil's Peak Circuit — Table Mountain. Steep single-track and jeep tracks up the saddle between Devil's Peak and Table Mountain, linking to Newlands Forest…
Elgin Valley & Oak Valley Trails — Grabouw. Runnable forest, dam and orchard trails around Oak Valley and the Elgin Valley, also used for trail-run events. Access…
Fernkloof Nature Reserve — Hermanus. Large network of runnable mountain paths above Hermanus in the Kleinrivier range, rich in fynbos with sweeping sea…
Greyton Nature Reserve — Greyton. Runnable trails into the Riviersonderend mountains above Greyton, including the start of the Boesmanskloof route to…
Groeneweide Forest (George) — George. Shaded indigenous-forest trails at Witfontein/Groeneweide in the Garden Route National Park near George, linking to the…
Hout Bay Trail Challenge — Hout Bay. Tough marathon-distance mountain race over the peaks ringing Hout Bay, with shorter options. Paid entry; typically…
Jonkershoek Mountain Challenge — Jonkershoek. Classic hard mountain race (about 37km, with shorter options) climbing high above the Jonkershoek valley. Paid entry…
Jonkershoek Nature Reserve — Jonkershoek. CapeNature reserve above Stellenbosch with a runnable Panorama circuit plus waterfall trails through pine and fynbos.…
Knysna Forest Marathon — Knysna. Long-standing marathon and half on the forest roads of the Knysna indigenous forest, part of the July Oyster Festival.…
Lion's Head — Lion's Head. A spiralling path to the 669m summit with chains and ladders near the top; the lower jeep track and Signal Hill saddle…
Merrell Whale of Trail (De Hoop) — De Hoop. Coastal trail race (53km and 35km) through De Hoop Nature Reserve along the famous Whale Trail route. Paid entry…
Mont Rochelle Nature Reserve — Franschhoek. CapeNature reserve on the Franschhoek Pass with the runnable Uitkyk Trail and ridge paths offering wide valley views.…
Newlands Forest — Newlands. Popular network of forest paths and the contour path on Table Mountain's eastern slopes, linking to Kirstenbosch and…
Otter African Trail Run — Storms River. Iconic point-to-point race on the Otter Trail along the Garden Route coast (Storms River to Nature's Valley), 42km with…
Paarl Mountain Nature Reserve — Paarl. Nature reserve around Paarl's giant granite domes with runnable jeep tracks and paths past Bretagne Rock and the…
RMB Ultra-trail Cape Town (UTCT) — Table Mountain. Flagship November ultra circling Table Mountain with 100M, 100K, 55K, 35K and 21K options; a UTMB World Series event.…
Robberg Nature Reserve — Robberg. Dramatic runnable coastal circuit around the Robberg peninsula on rock, sand and boardwalk. CapeNature reserve; entry…
Silvermine Trail Network — Silvermine. Extensive runnable single-track and jeep track around the Silvermine reservoir and along the Muizenberg ridge. Part of…
Table Mountain (Platteklip & Contour Path) — Table Mountain. Runnable contour paths circle the massif with steep climbs such as Platteklip Gorge to the summit plateau. Free access…
Tokai Forest & Arboretum — Tokai. Shaded forest roads and single-track climbing from Tokai Arboretum toward Elephant's Eye and the Silvermine plateau.…
Two Oceans Trail Run — Cape Town. Trail races (around 22km and shorter) staged over the Two Oceans Marathon Easter weekend on the peninsula's mountain…