A fight over a remote 4x4 track in the Western Cape mountains has escalated into a legal brawl involving lawyers, environmental groups and government investigators.

The zigzagging route up to the snowline on the Matroosberg has long been contentious due largely to an illegal car park below the summit used by day visitors.

Now, says a report in The Herald, the Western Cape Government has ruled the road illegal, and has given the owners of the Matroosberg Private Nature Reserve outside Ceres an ultimatum to prove otherwise.

The reserve insists the road is legal and so remains open, and its claims are under investigation amid calls from environmental groups for the route to be closed due to its impact on the mountainside.

The 4x4 route was allegedly constructed more than 20 years ago without the necessary approvals and has since deteriorated.

It also crosses a neighbouring farm – despite the neighbour refusing permission.

This week, the Western Cape government confirmed it had instructed the reserve owners to stop using the route and to rehabilitate the road and car park.

Full report in The Herald