Bobbejaans Gat
Bobbejaans Gat is an underground dolomite cave situated three hours from Johannesburg and approximately 40 kilometres north of Wondergat on a game farm just north of Ottoshoop. It was formed thousands of years ago through the collapse of its roof. The site is not accessible to the general public from the main road and permission from the owner is necessary to dive this site.
The Small Island
On the northern part of the game farm is a small trail that leads you down a steep slope over rocks to where you can see vertical dolomite rock formations narrowing. Getting down to the pool is not easy due to the near vertical rock walls that are between 15 and 40 metres high. There is an old truck chassis cemented to the rock on the eastern side of the hole and it is possible to lower your gear down with a rope.
The alternative way down to the water is from the southern side of the sinkhole along a footpath. It leads you down the steep slope where you will need a rope to support yourself while climbing down the rock face. When the roof of the sinkhole collapsed, the falling rocks were jammed between the sidewalls halfway down. This now forms a small ‘island’ when water levels are lower.
When the ‘island’ breaks the surface, it splits the pool into two sections, a small pool to the west and a larger pool to the east. The water surface is approximately 10 metres x 40 metres, with a large portion of the pool under the cave roof. Diving down and swimming over the ‘island’ takes you down into the huge main chamber that is 10 metres to 15 metres in width, 48 metres in depth and 120 metres in length. Some smaller caves with unknown dimension lead out from the main chamber to the north.