Nieu Bethesda is situated just 50 kilometres from the town of Graaff-Reinet in the Karoo, South Africa. The region lies centrally within the great, minimalist embrace of this arid area and is called the Karoo Heartland, as it pulses with the lifeblood of a very special sub-tribe of South Africans.
Nieu Bethesda is a scattering of white-washed and period houses, set within a fertile valley at the foot of the Compassberg. There are no street lights, less than a thousand people call it home, and the stands are the size of Dutch farming plots.
Although summer is exceptionally hot, the presence of water and the gentle breeze wafting through the valley make life bearable, to say the least. Winter is freezing, and Compassberg Peak is often covered in snow.
Today Nieu Bethesda is something of an artist's haven, and eccentricity is only to be expected. It was here that the late, great Helen Martins, South Africa's most celebrated outsider artist, practised and left her legacy. Guests can enjoy the art route, as well as the many art galleries and restaurants. You can also visit the San Rock Art sites and fossil beds in the area.
In the Sneeuberg Mountain Range, the tallest peak, at 2502 m high, is called Kompasberg (Compass Mountain). In the southern foothills of the...
If South Africa had a heart or a soul, and you went off on a quest to find it, you'd eventually land up in this teeny-weeny dorp, all but fo...
When you look at some of the hills, you can clearly make out the concentric strata, each one representing a period in time when the sediment...
Go Karoo Cranking on your dirt bike and Crank the 100 km Compassberg MTB route passes through the Sneeuberg ranges along a network of gravel...