Northern Drakensberg
The Northern Drakensberg is the highest, and possibly the most impressive, part of the Drakensberg mountain range. The peaks rise to over 3 000 metres and offer spectacular views of the surrounding areas.
The Northern Drakensberg is the source of the Tugela River, the largest river in Kwazulu-Natal, and plunges some 950 meters over the edge of the Mont-aux-Sources Plateau in an impressive waterfall. This waterfall, the Tugela Falls, is the second-highest waterfall in the world. The Northern Drakensberg is also where you will find the Amphitheatre, possibly the most photographed feature of the Drakensberg.
Most of the Northern Drakensberg makes up the UKhahlamba-Drakensberg Park, a World Heritage Site with an abundance of wildlife. Hikers are frequently surprised by bushbuck, oribi, mountain reedbuck, tiny duiker, and the largest of South Africa’s antelope species, the eland. Enormous lammergeiers, or bearded vultures, fly overhead and baboons bark from the cliffs.
Spring is heralded by carpets of wild flowers and the pink and orange watsonia, like miniature gladioli, bloom thickly on the hillsides. In autumn the fields and lower reaches of the Drakensberg is 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 display their prehistoric flowers, and ancient tree ferns and the odd cycad dot the gullies. Hikers should note that there are 24 species of snakes in these mountains.
An area of the Northern Drakensberg that deserves special mention is the “Lost Valley”. Here in this remote area of the Drakensberg is a unique geographical feature, repeated only at “Die Hel” near Oudtshoorn. The valley is different to other valleys as it is ‘closed in’ from all sides.
It was reportedly the home of a ‘white tribe’ descended from Piet Retief’s Voortrekkers who came into Natal via Retief’s Pass. Of historical interest is a man-made suspension bridge, still in working order at the bottom of the 4x4 trail into the Lost Valley. A statue, the ‘Kaalvoet Vrou’, stands close to Retief’s- and Voortrekker Pass, commemorating the 1837 entry of Piet Retief into Natal.
Bergville
In 1897 a cluster of trading stations and houses was built close to the banks of the Thukela River on the farm Kleine Waterval (small waterfall), owned by a retired sea captain named Wales. In 1903 the village was named Bergville and it slowly progressed as the natural trade and administrative centre for the tribal area of Ngwaneni, a European farming area close to the Drakensberg Mountains.
During the Anglo-Boer War the British built a blockhouse near the town and this is now a museum and national monument. The nearby Rangeworthy Military Cemetery contains graves of British soldiers killed in the battles of Spioenkop and Bastion Hill. Its on private land however, and the farmer's permission should be sought before venturing in.
Today Bergville is the biggest village in the Northern Drakensberg area and services tourism in this region. It is also a farming community with the production of dairy, beef, maize and wheat being the main agricultural activities.
Geluksburg
The village of Geluksburg was first conceived in 1908, but before it could be proclaimed World War I (1914-1918) forced its abandonment. The idea of a village was resurrected in the 1930's, but the outbreak of the Second World War (1939-45) again forced its abandonment.
The project finally took off in the 1980's and Geluksburg became a village in the centre of the Central and Northern Drakensberg area.
Geluksburg is close to the famous “Lost Valley “of the Drakensberg which has its own place in Drakensberg folklore, which has it that a group of Voortrekkers broke away from Piet Retief's original party and lived cut off from civilization for many years. Sheltering in grass houses, with no electricity, the group survived on the produce of the land. The area is now owned by local farmers and is a bird lover's haven.
The Lost Valley is a unique geographical feature, repeated only at "Die Hel" near Oudsthoorn. It is a ‘closed’ valley that can only be accessed with a four wheel drive vehicle.
Of historical interest is a man-made suspension bridge at the bottom of the trail into the valley. A statue of the ‘Kaalvoet Vrou’, commemorating the 1837 entry of Natal by Piet Retief, stands close to Retief's Pass and Voortrekker Pass.
Central Drakensberg
The Central Drakensberg is home to one of the most famous peaks in the Drakensberg Mountain range - Champagne Castle. It also contains a series of subsidiary peaks such as Cathkin Peak, Sterkhorn, Mount Memory, Monk's Cowl and Dragon's Back.
The Central Drakensberg escarpment is frequently covered in snow in winter, transforming the area into a completely different landscape. Popular with hikers, rock climbers, trout fishermen, and other holidaymakers, the Central Drakensberg area offers a wide range of hotels, country lodges, and bed and breakfast accommodation venues, as well as camping sites and caravan parks.
For the more adventurous there are also many trails that use caves in the mountains as overnight stops. A weekend of hiking and climbing, interspersed with dips in the icy pools and rivers, goes a long way to restoring those weary of city life.
Most of the Central Drakensberg makes up a good part of the Natal Drakensberg Park, a wilderness area with an abundance of wildlife. Hikers are frequently surprised by bushbuck, oribi, mountain reedbuck, tiny duiker, and the largest of South Africa’s antelope species, the eland. Enormous lammergeiers, or bearded vultures, fly overhead and baboons bark from the cliffs.
Spring is heralded by carpets of wild flowers and the pink and orange watsonia, like miniature gladioli, 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.
Horse trails are offered by various operators and birding is a big attraction as the areas boasts many raptors and forest and grassland species. Fly-fishing can be done at Sterkspruit, Injasuthi, and the Little Thukela River and there are a range of golf courses available in the area. The Central Drakensberg is also a cultural hotspot with arts, crafts, music and dancing, drawing strongly on the Zulu traditions.
Winterton
Winterton is situated in the foothills of the Central Drakensberg. It is a typical pioneer settlement with a relaxed and easy-going atmosphere. In 1905, three years after the Anglo-Boer War, the colonial government constructed a weir across the Little Thukela River and founded an irrigation settlement known as Springfield.
The tree-lined village was renamed Winterton in 1910, after the Secretary of Agriculture for Natal, H.D. Winter. The village still serves the largely agricultural community who farm maize, wheat and beef.
The town has a variety of shops, including a butchery and supermarket. Well worth a visit is the small Winterton Museum situated in Church Street. The museum has fascinating displays of the geology, fauna and flora of the Drakensberg, as well as exhibits on the history of the area, bushman paintings and a reconstructed beehive kraal.
Estcourt
In pioneer days, when the road to the north was just a wagon track, Clem Heeley erected an inn and trading store at a ford on the Bushman’s River. Problems with Bushman cattle raiders in 1849 prompted the Government to send a military force to the area. A fort was built by Lt-Col A.W. Durnford on a hill dominating the ford.
The fort still stands today and has been converted into a museum. It was decided in 1863 to call the village growing around the fort, Estcourt, in honour of Thomas Estcourt, an North Wiltshire MP who sponsored the immigration of settlers under the Byrne immigration scheme into the area. In 1872 an Anglican church was built on the banks of the Bushman's River and the original fort was rebuilt in 1874.
The fort became a substantial stronghold, and was used to protect transport riders and the herds of cattle driven across the ford. It is as secure as any castle with drinking water tanks in the basement, a drawbridge, moat and two secret tunnels.
In 1885 a railway bridge was constructed across the Bushman’s River (The Old Natal Government Bridge) and the bridge is still in use today. The town's first government school was built in 1886. The Boers under the command of General Petrus Joubert pushed south pass Estcourt in 1899 during the Boer War and Winston Churchill was captured by the Boers at Chievely between Estcourt and Colenso in November of the same year.
Estcourt became a municipality in 1914. Lying at the edge of thorn country in the Kwazulu-Natal midlands, Estcourt is the centre of a considerable livestock industry. The Estcourt Co-operative bacon factory (now Eskort Limited) produces great quantities of sausage, ham and other foodstuffs. Nestlé has a large factory in the town, while other products include hard and soft board, nylon goods, plastics, animal feeds and textiles.
The Bushmans River provides trout fishing opportunities. Four kilometres upstream from the town lies the Wagendrift Dam, ideal for fishing and water sports. The waters of the lake cover the site of Vetlaager, where the Voortrekkers withstood an attack by the Zulus on 10 August, 1838. The town itself has all amenities such as banks, supermarkets, medical facilities and fuel stations.
Hidcote
Hidcote is a rural area in the Kwazulu-Natal Midlands and is known for the Battle of Willow Grange that took place close by. The Willow Grange battlefield is located in pristine country, very close to Mooi River, and unlike most of the KwaZulu-Natal battlefields has not become overgrown with trees and bush and in many respects it is very much as it existed 104 years ago at the time of the battle.
Weenen
Weenen (Dutch for "to weep") is the second oldest European settlement in KwaZulu-Natal. It is situated on the banks of the Bushman River. The farms around the town grow vegetables, lucerne, groundnuts, and citrus fruit. The town was laid out in 1838 at the site of a massacre by the Zulu's following Voortrekker settlements in the area near the royal kraal of Dingane. A now closed narrow gauge railway was built in 1907 to connect the town to Estcourt, 47 kilometres to the west.
Spioenkop
Spioenkop is the site of one of the most fearsome events of the Anglo-Boer War. Recalling the battle of Spioenkop, the Boer commander, Denys Reitz, wrote, 'There cannot have been many battlefields where there was such an accumulation of horrors within so small a compass.' Almost a century later, it is hard to imagine that it was on this quiet, sunlit hill that Boer and Brit fought one another in the bloodiest battle of the Anglo-Boer War.
Today visitors can explore the battlefield and follow the events with the aid of a self-guided trail map available from the Natal Parks Board office or from the attendant at the battlefield. Following the ridge to the summit is a tough walk of about three hours, but there is an easier way via a paved road that winds all the way to the top. The historical weight of the Anglo-Boer War almost crushes any other claims from the past, yet it was from the crest of this hill that the Voortrekkers were believed to have had their first panoramic sighting of Natal.
The Spioenkop Dam was built in the 1960s, swallowing several kilometres of the Tugela and some historical sites such as Trichardt's Drift, where Buller's troops had crossed prior to the fateful battle. The area falls under the aegis of the Natal Parks Board and, apart from the Spioenkop Dam, remains much the same as it was at the turn of the century.
The dam is ideal for watersports and there are numerous slipways for powerboats, although there are no boats for hire. Waterskiing, canoeing and sailing are popular activities, as is angling, and fishermen are welcome to try to land carp, bass, bluegill and tilapia. The game is plentiful, and you can arrange walks or tours through the park to view the wildlife, which includes white rhino.
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