Each spring the dormant arid winter lands come alive with a flamboyant spread of wild flowers including many rare, unique and endangered plants. Adapting to a climate defying all life, they survive and thrive in a beautiful land of blistering extremes.
Track the Old Copper Way and soak yourself in the colourful histories of towns deeply rooted in a proud mining tradition; Ponder the reasoning of treasure seekers of old who were prepared to die for the chance of newfound mineral wealth; Take a raft or canoe trip on the Orange River through deep canyons; Take your 4x4 on an adventure in the haunting moonscapes of the sawtoothed mountains of the |Ai|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park; Enjoy the cultural interaction of the Nama people whilst taking a donkey ride in Eksteenfontein; Experience the wonder of the star-studded night, from the South African Astronomical Observatory in Sutherland; Wrap yourself in an aura of timeless serenity at a solitary, palm-fringed cathedral in Pella.
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Set in a narrow valley bisecting the granite domes of the Klein Koperberge (small copper mountains), is the principal town of Namakwa, Springbok. Shortened from Springbokfontein in 1911, it owes its existence to copper-mining undertaken after 1850 and a ready supply of water.
Hauntingly beautiful and seared by a blistering sun, the lava mountains and sandy plains form southern Africa’s largest mountain desert park.