The Montagu Trails Network is arguably one of the Western Cape’s best-kept secrets and hosts the Cogmans Trail Run every July. Offering technical trails with towering ascents and speedy descents, the various distances take trail runners around the Montagu bowl, summiting the Aasvoëlkrans Peak, Cogmans Peak, and then the beastly Bloupunt Peak at 1266m.

…the routes demand balance, agility and focus while offering rewarding views…

Whether you’re racing or heading out for a weekend adventure, the routes demand balance, agility, and focus while offering rewarding views over vineyards, fynbos, and rugged sandstone peaks. With its famous natural hot springs, Montagu is the ideal host town for some R&R when the running is done.

Fun Facts:

• Highest Peak and Elevation: Arangieskop 1696m.
• The groundwater of Montagu Hot Springs is heated naturally by the Earth’s internal geothermal heat, dissolved with minerals from the surrounding rocks and forced back to the surface through fault lines. The water emerges at temperatures of around 40–45°C, making Montagu one of South Africa’s best-known natural hot spring destinations.
  

The Area:

Montagu lies within the Cape Fold Belt, a mountain range that formed when the ancient supercontinent Gondwana experienced immense tectonic compression. These forces folded thick layers of sandstone and quartzite into dramatic ridges, creating the Langeberg Mountains that dominate Montagu today. The rocks around Montagu are exceptionally hard because they consist largely of quartzite, sandstone and shale and, over millions of years of erosion, have produced dramatic sheer cliff faces, knife-edge ridges, deep ravines, rocky gullies and natural rock steps. 

The Race:

The Cogmans Trail Run began in 2023 when organisers realised that few people knew about the extraordinary trail network hidden within the Langeberg Mountains. At the same time, there was no major winter trail event on the calendar, and they saw an opportunity to share this remarkable place with the trail running community. The first race began with a PVC start-line banner printed at PostNet and just 58 runners. Four years later, it has grown into an intimate race village welcoming over 700 runners from across South Africa, while staying true to the spirit that inspired it from the beginning. The race is fast becoming one of the best events on the race calendar. Over the past four years, the race has become more than a race. It has become a celebration of community, adventure, and the mountains that make Montagu so special. 

Race Details:

16-18 July 2027
Distances: 100 km, 50 km, 34 km, 17 km, 10 km
Start and Finish:  NG Kerk, Montagu

Find out more here.

READ MORE ON: Cogmans Trail Run Montagu rave runs trail-running