Jammersberg Town in Free State
Wepener is situated at the foot of the Jammersberg, on the border of the Free State province in South Africa, right next door to Lesotho. The town is named in honor of Louw Wepener, a military leader of the Boers during the war with Basotho chief Moshoeshoe I in 1865.
Wepener was founded in 1867 on the banks of the Jammersbergspruit. Today, Wepener is the commercial centre of an agricultural area where sheep and cattle farming, as well as dairy and wheat farming is practiced.
The town boasts the Street Bridge, which is a national monument, the Jammersbergdrift battlefield and the memorial gardens and statue of Louw Wepener. The area in which Wepener is situated in the Free State is unspoilt, sparsely populated and largely unpolluted.
About 15 km south of Wepener is the Caledon Nature Reserve, through which the Caledon River flows, and is home to the Welbedacht Dam. Popular activities in the reserve include fishing, 4x4 routes, hiking a serene nature walks that will allow visitors to experience the tranquility of the natural environment.
The views are breathtaking and black wildebeest, blesbok, springbok and zebra can be spotted and the call of the Fish Eagle is regularly heard.
The history of Wepener dates back to the 19th century, when the Boers, led by Louw Wepener, attacked the Basotho nation’s stronghold of Th...