Pieter Holtzhausen is a member of Hottentots Holland Section, has had a close relationship with the Wupperthal community, having raised funds for the rebuilding of the town after a previous disasterous fire that swept through Wupperthal in December 2018, destroying more than 50 homes and much of the historic town centre.

Walking the Tra Tra is a community-rooted mountain conservation and cultural initiative centered on an ancient Khoe route that follows the Tra Tra River between the Tankwa Karoo and Wupperthal. By restoring this historical pathway through trail sport and ecological tourism, the project reconnects people with wild landscape, indigenous cultural expression, and local community-led stewardship.

This project bridges two dramatically contrasting landscapes: the vast, arid expanse of the Tankwa desert, stretching for hundreds of kilometres, and the lush, water-rich Tra Tra valley, which winds its way upward toward its source in the Cederberg mountains. These river and mountain valleys are home to descendants of the indigenous Khoe people and they live off the land in the same way that they have done for centuries.

The project brings together mountain sport, environmental care, and support for local cultural expression. It is built through direct collaboration with Cederberg residents, local youth, and partnering landowners. By responding to community needs, such as creating a bush camp at Agterfonteinskloof and the Tra Tra Trail event that expands access to remote trails, the initiative strengthens land-based livelihoods and helps grow eco-tourism opportunities in a way that honours the vision and requests of those who live there.

Walking the Tra Tra is a living, evolving project rooted in landscape, relationship, and respectful collaboration. It demonstrates how trail sport, cultural knowledge, and ecological care can be woven together into a model of regenerative tourism, grounded in community vision and adaptable to climate realities. With support, the project has the potential to inspire similar initiatives across other remote regions, offering a path forward where ecological healing and cultural memory walk side by side. Pieter laid out his plans for future development should he be awarded any grant – and now he can do that!

Read the article on the UIAA website.

Congratulations, Pieter!