The village of Black Rock supports the Assmang Mine’s underground manganese mining venture. Villagers can relax at the recreation club with its many sporting facilities. Other Atractions Manganese Mineral Collection: The collection is displayed at the Assmang Mine’s Geology Office. Mine tour: Explore the tunnels and rock formations of the worked-out manganese mine. Bookings need […]
The Tswana word “Dibeng” means “First drinking place”. Dibeng was developed on the banks of the Gamagara River, which has since dried up. The nickname of the town, “Sunflower town”, refers to the many wind pumps that provide water for every property in the town. Adventure and Sport Hiking: The Steenkamp Trail explores a lovely […]
If the name makes you break out in sweat and reach for a cold beer, you have understood correctly. The town’s name is a corruption of “Hot as Hell”. Hotazel was developed to support the open-quarry manganese ore and sinter plant, the underground manganese ore mine and the railway terminus. Social activities revolve around the […]
The “town under the trees” was established to serve the iron ore mining activities in the Kalahari. Kathu has one of the largest opencast iron mines in the world. It is an attractive town with palms and limestone houses that echo the surrounding desert landscape. The small mining community of Dingleton is near Kathu. Adventure […]
The “Oasis of the Kalahari” is generally believed to have been named after an 18th century San leader, Kudumane. The permanent spring that delivers 20 to 30 million litres of water to the surface daily, the Eye, is the source of the “Oasis” nickname. The generous source of water may have been one of the […]
“Van Zyl’s Rest” is an apt name for a town where people often stop over on their way to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park. The hotel, tea garden and cafe are often filled with out-of-towners and the post office and other stores are a reassuring sign of civilisation amid the red Kalahari dunes. Adventure and Sport […]
The village of Beeshoek (“Cattle corner”) lies 10 km north-west of Postmasburg and owes its existence to the iron ore operations at Assmang Mine. The local recreation club is the nucleus of the villagers’ social life. Beeshoek’s single claim to fame is the surprising number of Springbok rugby players who took the first steps on […]
Danielskuil (“Daniel’s Den”) lies in a particularly attractive setting at the foot of the Kuruman hills, 90 km south of Kuruman. A natural crater near the town reminded a missionary, the Reverend J Campbell, of the story of Daniel as told in the Bible and in 1820, the name of the village was changed from […]
Groblershoop (“Grobler’s hope”) lies to the east of Upington and dates from 1936. Grobler was the Minister of Agriculture of the time. Pioneer farmers settled in the area as far back as the 1870s and agriculture is still the main activity of this part of the Orange River Valley. Adventure and Sport Water sport: Since […]
Modern-day Kakamas in the lower Orange River Valley is surrounded by green vineyards and lush fields of cotton and lucerne. This is a far cry from the town’s beginning as a worker’s colony for the poor on land owned by the Dutch Reformed Church. Until the church’s interests in the settlement were liquidated, the settlers […]
