The spectacular Drakensberg mountain range flanks the western border with Lesotho for 200 km's. It was originally referred to as the Dragon Mountains by early settlers. To the Zulu's living in the east, the rock formation resembled a row of spears and they called it Ukhahlamba (a barrier). Nowadays, it is affectionately known to locals as the berg.
The northern Drakensberg is an area of magnificent natural beauty. One such scenic wonder is the Amphitheatre which lies on the eastern edge of the Mont-aux-Sources, a 3000m high plateau and the source of the Tugela River.
The Tugela River flows towards the Amphitheatre and then plummets 2 000m over the edge in a series of falls and cascades forming the highest waterfall in South Africa.
The Amphitheatre forms the backdrop to the Royal Natal National Park which has some of the most breathtaking scenery in South Africa.
The central Drakensberg area includes a solid basalt rock wall maintained at a level of over 3000m for some 35 kilometres ending in a massive corner stone known as Giant's Castle.
Proclaimed almost a century ago, Giant's Castle Game Reserve can be found on the foothills and a series of caves offer visitors a chance to view galleries of rock art - a testament to the San people who once inhabited the area hundreds of years ago. Vultures for Africa
The Southern Drakensberg ranges from Giant's Castle to KwaZulu-Natal's southernmost section of the Drakensberg, Bushmans Nek. Bushmans Nek is one of two official entries into Lesotho from KwaZulu-Natal and can be made on foot or horseback. Sani Pass, the highest in South Africa is the other and the only road link.
The Northern Drakensberg is the source of the Tugela River, the largest river in the province, and it plunges some 2 000 meters over the edge of the Mont-aux-Sources plateau in a spectacular waterfall. This waterfall, the Tugela Falls, is the second highest waterfall in the world. The escarpment is frequently covered in snow in the winter months, transforming the area into a picture-postcard winter wonderland.
Most of the Northern Drakensberg makes up the Natal Drakensberg Park, a wilderness area with an abundance of wildlife. The spring is heralded by carpets of wild flowers and the pink and orange watsonia, like miniature gladiol, bloom thickly on the hillsides. In autumn the fields and lower reaches of the Drakensberg are often a waist-high sea of confetti-like pink, white and deep velvet red cosmos blossoms. In the higher reaches on the slopes of the Little Berg, varieties of protea trees show their prehistoric flowers, and ancient tree ferns and the odd cycad dot the gullies.
The Northern Drakensberg Mountains also contain thousands of Bushman painting sites, evidence of the small, primitive San people who practised a prehistoric life style in the area long ago. The earliest of these paintings are about 800 years old, and the golden age of the painters was between 400 and 200 years ago.
Tip: The Amphitheatre is possibly the most photographed feature of the Northern Drakensberg.
Champagne Castle and Kathkin Peak. Copyright: Walter Knirr
Historic Giant's Castle Nature Reserve, home of the eland and the majestic bearded vulture, lies in this region of the Drakensberg. Giant's Castle hutted camp is situated on a gassy plateau among the deep valleys running down from the face of the High Drakensberg, offering glorious views for hikers and mountain climbers.
Visit the Giants Castle Main Caves Museum for fascinating insight into the past lifestyle of the San people. Guided tours of the rock art take place hourly on the hour at the cave from 9am till 3pm. (and Tandeka the guide is fantastic)
Just as beautiful are Cathedral Peak, Cathkin Peak, and Champagne Castle.
The southern Drakensbergs first inhabitants were the San (Bushmen)
people. All that remains are their stunning paintings in rock shelters
in the mountains. The Drakensberg mountains are an area incredibly rich
in rock art. Some well-known sites have been badly damaged as a result
of uncontrolled visitor access, and sites on Nature Conservation land
can now only be visited with a guide.
White settlers arrived in the district in the 1880's .
The
Southern Drakensberg incorporates the villages of Underberg, Himeville
and Bulwer. This is a paradise for those who love active, outdoor
holidays and the beauty of undisturbed nature.
Kokstad is named after the Griqua chief Adam Kok III who settled here. In the 1860s the Griqua tribe which lived in Griquatown split and under the leadership of Adam Kok III, descendent of the ex-cook who established the tribe, one section first moved to Philipolis, then across the Drakensberg to the vicinity of the modern Kokstad. They named the mountain where they settled Mount Currie after Sir Walter Currie who gave support to their effort to settle here. The Griquas settled on the steep mountain slope, living in mud huts. When, in 1869, the Reverend William Dower was asked by the Griqua to establish a mission, he agreed on condition that they resettle in a more suitable place on the banks of the Mzimhlava River. The town was built at this location.
