Hela Hela Pass

Hela Hela Pass
Hela Hela Pass
	A view of the Umkomaas valley from Hela Hela Pass
Elevation	1,199 m (3,934 ft) [1]
Location	Between Richmond and Donnybrook, South Africa
Coordinates	29°54′34.6″S30°4′37.9″E / 29.909611°S 30.077194°E Coordinates: 29°54′34.6″S30°4′37.9″E / 29.909611°S 30.077194°E
	Location in KwaZulu-Natal

Last updated April 06, 2019

Hela Hela Pass, also known as Helehele Pass, is situated in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa, on the road between Richmond and Donnybrook.

KwaZulu-Natal is a province of South Africa that was created in 1994 when the Zulu bantustan of KwaZulu and Natal Province were merged. It is located in the southeast of the country, enjoying a long shoreline beside the Indian Ocean and sharing borders with three other provinces and the countries of Mozambique, Eswatini and Lesotho. Its capital is Pietermaritzburg and its largest city is Durban. It is the 2nd most populous province in South Africa, with slightly fewer residents than Gauteng.

South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by 2,798 kilometres (1,739 mi) of coastline of Southern Africa stretching along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini (Swaziland); and it surrounds the enclaved country of Lesotho. South Africa is the largest country in Southern Africa and the 25th-largest country in the world by land area and, with over 57 million people, is the world's 24th-most populous nation. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World or the Eastern Hemisphere. About 80 percent of South Africans are of Sub-Saharan African ancestry, divided among a variety of ethnic groups speaking different African languages, nine of which have official status. The remaining population consists of Africa's largest communities of European (White), Asian (Indian), and multiracial (Coloured) ancestry.

Richmond is a town situated on the banks of the upper Illovo River in the midlands of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, approximately 38 km south-west of Pietermaritzburg. Timber, sugarcane, poultry, citrus fruit and dairy goods are produced here. The town is located within the Richmond Local Municipality, forming part of the Umgungundlovu District Municipality and incorporates the former township of Ndaleni on the opposite bank of the Illovo River.

Route

Access to the pass is by a fairly steep dirt road into the Umkomaas Valley that continues to a bridge that crosses the Umkomaas River at an altitude of 548m. The pass rises by 651m over 7,19 km to reach the summit at an altitude of 1199m.^[1] There are gradients of 1:6 on certain sections of the pass which make it treacherous when wet. In dry conditions though, the pass can be driven with an ordinary road vehicle as the hard-packed gravel - although rough - provides good grip. ^[2]

Origin of the Name

There are several versions of the origins of the name of the pass, the most plausible^{[ to whom? ]} being that due to thick impenetrable bush in the area, the local herders cut a pathway to the grasslands at the top, but this pathway was so narrow that they had to walk in single file. The Zulu word for single file is "ihela ihela".

Gallery

View down from the pass
Passing the Mkomazi River

Related Research Articles

Tugela Falls is a complex of seasonal waterfalls located in the Drakensberg of Royal Natal National Park in KwaZulu-Natal Province, Republic of South Africa. It is generally accepted as the world's second-tallest waterfall but there is an argument that it is actually the tallest waterfall in the world, rather than Venezuela's Angel Falls.

The Tugela River is the largest river in KwaZulu-Natal Province, South Africa. It is one of the most important rivers of the country.

Trail Ridge Road is the name for a stretch of U.S. Highway 34 that traverses Rocky Mountain National Park from Estes Park, Colorado in the east to Grand Lake, Colorado in the west. The road is also known as Trail Ridge Road/Beaver Meadow National Scenic Byway.

Scottburgh is a coastal resort town situated on the mouth of the Mpambanyoni River (confuser of birds), 58 km south of Durban on the KwaZulu-Natal South Coast in South Africa. Neighbouring towns include Pennington, Renishaw, Freeland Park, Umkomaas, Sezela, Bazley, Amahlongwa, Clansthal, Park Rynie and Dududu.

Umkomaas Place in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Umkomaas, a small coastal town on the subtropical south coast of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa was formed when a harbour was built in 1861 to export sugar. The town rests beside the mouth of the navigable uMkhomazi River, also known as the Mkhomazi or Umkomaas. With the successful dredging of Durban harbour's sandbar and arrival of the railway, like Port Shepstone, the harbour fell into disuse, but the town came to life.

Karridene is a small resort in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is now part of eThekwini. Seaside resort at the mouth of the Umzimbaza River, 37 km south-west of Durban, between Illovo Beach and Umkomaas.

The R102 is a Regional Route in South Africa. It is the route designation for all old sections of the N2, thus it is a discontinuous road that resumes in areas where a new N2 has been constructed.

The N2 is a national route in South Africa that runs from Cape Town through Port Elizabeth, East London and Durban to Ermelo. It is the main highway along the Indian Ocean coast of the country. Its total distance of 2,255 kilometres (1,401 mi) makes it the longest numbered route in South Africa.

The Prittle Brook is a minor watercourse in south Essex, England. A short tributary of the River Roach, the brook rises near Thundersley and discharges into the Roach at Rochford.

Sani Pass is a mountain pass located in the West of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa on the road between Underberg, KwaZulu-Natal and Mokhotlong, Lesotho.

Chesapeake High School (CHS), is a four-year public high school in Baltimore County, Maryland, United States.

The Mhlathuze River is a river in South Africa. Located in KwaZulu-Natal, its catchment area has a surface area of 4,209 km². It rises in the west in the Babanango hills at an altitude of 1,519 m and flows over 100 km eastwards to the sea forming an estuary. The deep-sea port of Richards Bay is situated at the mouth of the Mhlathuze River and all industrial development is focused within the Empangeni / Richards Bay complex.

Metrorail KwaZulu-Natal is a network of commuter rail services in and around the city of Durban in KwaZulu-Natal province, South Africa. It is operated by Metrorail, a division of the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa (PRASA).

The Capital Pathway, also known informally as the Bike Path, is a 220-kilometre (140 mi) recreational pathway interlinking many parks, waterways and sites in Ottawa, Ontario and Gatineau, Quebec. Most of the pathway is paved, and allows an almost continuous route through the National Capital Region.

The Umkomazi River is a river in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Encephalartos ghellinckii Lem. or Drakensberg cycad is endemic to South Africa, and is one of about 70 species found in sub-Saharan Africa. Strongly associated with the Natal Drakensberg, this 3m tall evergreen species is found from the foothills to fairly high altitudes, growing on stream banks, steep grassy slopes and sandstone outcrops. Its preferred habitat lying within grassveld, it has developed resistance to veldfires, and also the intense cold brought on by snow and frost.

Umkomaas Commando was a light infantry regiment of the South African Army. It formed part of the South African Army Infantry Formation as well as the South African Territorial Reserve.

National Highway 505, commonly called NH 505 is a national highway in India. It is a spur road of National Highway 5. NH-505 traverses the state of Himachal Pradesh in India. NH505 a high altitude road, covers Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti districts of Himachal Pradesh, mainly running along Spity river in Spity valley. The highway from Kaza to Gramphu remains closed for nine months in a year due to heavy snowfall and closure of Kunzum La pass at an altitude of 4,550 m (14,930 ft).

References

1 2 "Hela Hela Pass (D114)" . Retrieved 2014-05-07.
↑ "Hela Hela Pass" . Retrieved 2018-01-07.

External links

Passes Index at Wild Dog Adventure Riding website

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[hela-1] 1 2 "Hela Hela Pass (D114)" . Retrieved 2014-05-07.

[savenue-2] "Hela Hela Pass" . Retrieved 2018-01-07.

Hela Hela Pass
A view of the Umkomaas valley from Hela Hela Pass
Elevation	1,199 m (3,934 ft)^[1]
Location	Between Richmond and Donnybrook, South Africa
Coordinates	29°54′34.6″S30°4′37.9″E / 29.909611°S 30.077194°E / -29.909611; 30.077194 Coordinates: 29°54′34.6″S30°4′37.9″E / 29.909611°S 30.077194°E / -29.909611; 30.077194
Location in KwaZulu-Natal