Lawrence de Lange Nature Reserve
Lawrence de Lange Nature Reserve is situated on the idyllic slopes of the Madeira Mountain Range just outside of Queenstown. The reserve has semi-arid vegetation, with plant life such as cycads, shrubby bush, acacias, aloes and stretches of grasslands.
It is an ideal habitat for various animal species, including kudu, zebra, Indian water buffalo, rhino, giraffe, gemsbok, black wildebeest, steenbok, springbok and ostrich. Birdlife is also quite magnificent, with 166 species calling the reserve home. Visitor’s can spot birds such as Black eagle and Cape vulture.
The reserve offers scenic game drives along with ample game viewing, as well as birdwatching for avid avian students. There are also two challenging hiking trails - The Madeira Guide Trails - that will take hikers through the landscape of the reserve. The Bushbuck Trail is an 8-hour route following the mountain range’s foothills, and the Wilderness Trail takes six hours to complete, following ground-level scenery.
Ruth Lock Shell Art Gallery
The Ruth Lock Shell Art Gallery in Queenstown celebrates the work of one of South Africa’s unsung artists, the late Winifred Ruth Lock. The gallery originally her home, where she lived until her death in 1994. Lock’s work can be called ‘eccentric’, and she decorated her entire house (the floor, windows, walls and even lamps) with an intricate daisy pattern. The used broken bits and pieces of shells as her main material.
The house is divided into three galleries. The first houses sculptures made from shells that Lock collected while on holiday in Port St Johns. The second is home to a series of detailed paintings, all made from shells. The third is a collection called Broken Things, which is a collection of things Lock found at the local rubbish dump, like plates, jugs and teapots. She embellished these broken items to create beautiful works of art.