Injisuthi hikes - 2 days

and for budget alternatives to backpack covers in case you don't have them, I just stick a strong bin bag in my backpack and load everything into that. Its worked every time, including river crossings where the bottom of the bag went underwater (in that sense better than a back pack cover). Also in summer I just hike in running shorts. They dry pretty quickly.....
I've spent some time trying to keep socks dry. Now I don't bother. Crossing rivers with shoes on when you have to walk in the water is easier and the excess water comes out quickly enough. I'm a minority on that point though I'm sure.
But late Sept won't be that wet?

Thanks for all the advice guys!

I use a plastic bivy bag as a liner inside my backpack and then I package everything else in smaller bags ( so that if I need my emergency bivvy bag I can take my stuff out without getting everything soaking wet, I just found that any other plastic liner does not hold up well with the wear and tear of packing and unpacking ones bag)

My folks just spent sometime in Scotland during the coldest it has ever been there so I have access to lightweight waterproof pants and decent gaiters.

I might end up staying 2 nights at Marble baths rather and trying Leslies Pass How is the security going up that pass and how doable is it up and down in one day?

Up and down Leslie's in a day is possible from Marble Baths cave, although you'd probably want to return to Marble Baths and not go on to Grindstone at the end of that day.

If you want to get up Leslie's, then a better option might be to get to the base of Leslie's pass on day 1 (there is a clear area to pitch a tent - no cave though), go up the pass the next day and end that day at Marble Baths. The stretch from Marble Baths to the base of Leslie's pass is slow boulder hopping in the river bed. There used to be much faster paths on the river terrace but these are disused now. So allocate a couple of hours + for this part of the trip. It would obviously help to be able to dump your bags somewhere for the day trip up Leslies. That would probably cut a couple of hours or more off the pass ascent and descent. But you'd need to take care to hide your bags well.

Dont have a tent But if we decide to do the pass we will hide our bags and take a day pack and leave at dawn, to be back at marble baths by sundown. We are not extremely fit we are kept busy with work and kids make it hard to take time to exercise but we hike a bit and should manage max 10kms with packs in a day without any problems.

If the weather is good, it will be well worth walking up the valley to Leslies Pass. Even if you don't make it to the top, it is still a great day out and even better without bags. An alternative if you don't like the look of the steep ridge which takes you up from the river at the foot of Leslies is to follow the river round towards the Injasuthi Buttresses and the start of Injisuthi pass. Its a nice valley and not many people go that way.

@nicolaasdekker
In June I did a solo trip to the base of Leslies Pass. Over 3 nights I saw nobody. In my opinion it is probably one of the more secure passes in terms of the locals.

Leslies is a nice pass, but as Intrepid says, don't underestimate it and leave yourself enough time to get back to Marble baths cave. The ridge from the campsite below the pass is relatively easy, but once you cross the river which comes down from the pass the going is a lot slower as it entails boulder beds and vegetation.

There is still a river terrace path which is in fairly good order, but the trick is finding it. Essentially the path starts at Marble Baths from above the campsite (which is situated across the river in the middle of the Marble Baths). From there the path seldom moves further than 50 metres away from the mountain slopes on your right hand side.

At the Leslies Pass campsite, the path back starts at the bottom of the highest of 3 camping areas with the same 50 metre ruling, this time on your left hand side.

Unfortunately I do not possess a GPS so cannot give co-ordinates, but I did scribble some notes for my own benefit. They are not yet in a legible document and I am not sure when I will have time to do it, but if you are interested in more details, I can try and do so before your trip. Let me know.

I do have access to a gps which I will be taking with but I will be using the standard gaints castle area map that they sell. It does however not indicate the camp sites you mention on it. Anywhere that I can find co-ords for these places, also is the route indicated on the latest map the correct one to take?

Thanks!

I had just found the downloads page a few min ago and downloaded all the stuff that I might need... Kinda wonder whether its worth having all this data available... I have always enjoyed using a map only to figure out where you are at all times and plotting a path.