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The Panorama route...so much beauty to behold...

Lowveld view from God's Window

South Africa has so much to offer in scenic beauty that it is difficult to single out one of the nine provinces as the most beautiful. Also - beauty truly is in the eyes of the beholder and a rock formation or sunset in the dry Karoo can be as beautiful as a rainforest in Mpumalanga. So forgive me for not stipulating whether...the vast expanse of green forests and Blyde River canyon of Mpumalanga, gigiantic rock formations of the Swartberg, the snow white beaches of the Indian ocean coast, the majestic mountains of the Boland or the purple hues of the Great Karoo early in the morning...were the most beautiful...but allow me to tell you more about the vistas of the place where the sun rises...

Graskop

Graskop, the small town where we stayed during our visit to Mpumalanga is on the edge of the Drakensberg escarpment from where one looks out on the Lowveld almost 1000 metres below. The name of the town means "grassy hill". It was one of the gold mining towns during the previous century but is now part of the thriving timber industry of the region. There are good pubs and restaurants and towards the south of the town one passes yet another of the many waterfalls in the area before going through the Kowyns pass on the way to Hazy view. We fanned out from Graskop on our travels to the other towns in the vicinity.

The day after our first trip to the Kruger Park I experienced a bit of trouble with my car's air conditioning system and we therefore decided to go to White river, a town somewhat bigger than Graskop to find a garage where this could be fixed. Our route again took us through the pine and Bluegum plantations where I stared again in wonder at the thousands upon thousands of wild Sabie lilies in full bloom right next to the road. Peter called them Easter lilies and said that they would sell for about $5 for one plant in America! Here they were as common as daisies!

Pilgrim's Rest

We got the air conditioner fixed and then drove to Pilgrim's Rest. It was raining and I must say I was not very comfortable when driving on the steep narrow road leading to the little mining town beautiful as the scenery were. Today Pilgrim's Rest is a living museum nestled in a narrow valley where thousands of diggers staked their claims during the late 1800's. This first gold rush in South Africa took place in 1873 when payable gold was discovered on the farm Geelhoutboom near the town of Sabie on the Mpumalanga escarpment. One of the Mac Mac diggers, Alec "Wheelbarrow" Patterson, left the immediate area to prospect further afield. Soon after, he discovered rich gold deposits in Pilgrim's Creek, a tributary of the Blyde River, close to where the village of Pilgrim's Rest now stands. Shortly afterwards a second prospector, William Trafford, discovered the same deposit of gold. The news of a rich strike triggered the first major gold rush in South Africa. Pilgrim's Rest was declared a gold field on 22 September 1873. The Gold Commissioner moved his office to Pilgrim's Rest and by the end of 1873 there were some 1500 diggers working 4000 claims in and around Pilgrim's Rest. . It is estimated that R2 million worth of gold was mined during the first seven years of mining in the Pilgrim's Rest valley.

By 1974 Pilgrim's Rest had become the commercial and social centre of the diggings and more permanent houses were built. Mining was active until 1971 when Beta Mine was closed down. The conservation of Pilgrim's Rest as a cultural and historic asset began in 1974 when the provincial government purchased the village. In 1986 the village of Pilgrim's Rest and the farm Ponieskrantz, on which the village is situated, was declared a National Monument.

It was raining cats and dogs when we reached Pilgrim's Rest and for this reason we missed out on visiting the museums but we walked down the street and visited the shops and drove to the area called "District six" where the houses are now occupied by people working in Pilgrim's Rest. I was most interested in a shop where items made from Mopanie worm silk were sold. I had visions of buying some of this silk for my own silk paintings but it was so expensive that I abandoned the idea. I would have bought some of the beautiful raw silk but I could never get it over my heart to cut it up and paint on it however tempted I was. Nevertheless it was interesting to see the silk and the African women working at their spinning wheels.

Miner's house at Pilgrim's Rest

Pilgrim's Rest is still consisting of more or less two streets against the koppie with the site of the diggings on the opposite hill. Although the idea of the gold rush stirs up visions of wealth and merriment in the Royal hotel in bygone days life on the diggings was hard and unsympathetic. The long hours that the diggers worked took its toll and many of them received no reward at all. If so many of them spent it in the many canteens. Proper medical and sanitary services were non-existing and dysentery, malaria and other tropical diseases took their toll. Only the prosperous few - canteen owners and shopkeepers - could afford to erect structures of timber and corrugated iron. Most of the diggers at first lived in tents. Later on simple dwellings were erected - usually no more than one room sparsely furnished with tables and chairs made from the crates and boxes in which goods were transported to the diggings. Beds were made from poles with canvas sheets attached to them and layers of dry grass for mattresses.

Although this was a typical diggings community the customary violence and lawlessness was absent. Criminals were tried by a diggers committee and punished according to the seriousness of the transgression. Claim robbing was one of the most serious crimes. For more serious crimes the culprits were banned from the diggings. The first jail was a tent but was also later replaced by a wattle and daub hut. Only the sturdier corrugated iron and wooden buildings are still there today to give the visitor a glimpse of what this mining town once looked like. The diggings can be seen on the hill opposite the little town and the cemetery tells many a tale of the suffering.

The increasing ore production however necessitated the establishment of a central reduction works. Office and other buildings were also erected and a tramline was set up to convey ore from the outlying mines to the reduction works. This was quite a feat at the time and by 1910 mining in Pilgrim's Rest was booming and gold production reached a peak during the period of 1813 to 1914. The reduction works continued to function till 1959 when the machinery was adapted to produce fertilizer as a by-product. The reduction works closed in 1972.

Another interesting fact that I came across was that Pilgrim's Rest had electricity at a time when London still made use of gas lamps!! The increasing demand for electricity at the reduction works led to the construction of the Belvedere Hydroelectric power station near Bourkes Luck in 1911. At the time it was the largest power station of its kind in the southern hemisphere!

A local newspaper was also printed in Pilgrim's Rest. The newspaper was first called the "Gold News" but the name was later on changed to the "Goldfields Mercury" and again to the "Pilgrim's Rest and Sabie News" in 1911.

We reserved our last day in Graskop for scenic drives and to proceed towards the far Northern Transvaal where we planned to find a guesthouse somewhere along the way for the night.

What a pleasure!! We left Graskop on the Saturday morning to drive along the rim of the Blyde River canyon with lots of stops just to drink in the scenic beauty. The Lowveld was still bathed in a soft mist when we drove out of Graskop but the promise of a clear day was evident.

The Panorama Route is a circular drive all along the escarpment. One more or less travels on top of the escarpment looking down on valleys of spectacular beauty. The hills on all sides are mantled in trees, mostly plantations of pines and wattles but also swatches of natural forest dense with many types of indigenous trees. Ferns, creepers and primeval cycads and many varieties of flowers cluster closely around waterfalls that plunge down rugged sheer cliffs. One of our first stops was at "The pinnacle" an enormous protruding monolith rising 30metres above the ground in a beautiful natural forest "kloof" (ravine). From there we stopped at "God's Window". Well one cannot describe this scene!! It really feels as if one is looking out through the most beautiful window in the world with the mountains forming the "walls" next to the window. A vista that can only be described as "godly" overlooking valleys, hills and rivers right to the far misty blue horizon. The mist and the clouds were still rolling in as we stood there and it felt as if one was above the clouds in heaven looking down. The cliffs rise between 600 to 800 metres above the riverbeds down in the valley.

In the rain forest at Blyde River Canyon

After spending some time going from one lookout to the other we followed the trails of the Blyde River Nature reserve through the rainforest looking at dainty orchids, moss covered plants and rocks in the semi darkness of the natural forest with sunrays breaking through every now and then. Eventually we came out right on top of the escarpment for even more fantastic views. This walk took the best part of an hour but it was a soul enriching experience that few of the hurried tourists that only take a quick look from the lookout points to take a photo attempt and experience. They have to get back, to the luxury tour buses to soon! How lucky was I to have the time and ever-curious Peter with me to share this very special memory.

Peter "above the clouds" at the Blyde River rain forest

From God's Window we travelled on to have a look at two of the many waterfalls in the area. We first stopped at the Berlin Falls where the water drops into a glistening pool. At the time we were there the rocks where the water poured down were so narrow and close together that I was amazed to see a man walking on the rim of the escarpment towards the waterfall and simply jumping from one rock to the other to across the stream of water.

The next falls were called the Mac Mac falls. The name comes from the gold digging days when many of the diggers were Scots and Irish with names often beginning with Mac or Mc. The Mac Mac falls are 56 metres tall (about 170 feet). The Mac Mac falls are twin falls formed by the water pouring between two adjacent sections in the rock face.

From the Mac Mac falls we almost missed the entrance to the Bourke's Luck Potholes! It was only after we drove past the sign that I realised that it was indeed indicating the famous tourist spot and viewing place and not referring to the surface of the road because the sign just said "Potholes"!!

Bourke's luck Potholes is a remarkable feature of dolomite rock erosion in the shape of huge potholes created by swirling water, rocks, pebbles and other debris. The name comes from the farmer Bourke who discovered gold down in the holes. Some of the holes are big enough to contain a small vehicle and are up to 6 metres deep. The potholes are in what was once called the Treur River by the Voortrekkers. In 1844 members of the Potgieter trek waited at the river while Hendrik Potgieter and some of his men went to the present day Maputo. After months of waiting the Trekkers gave up hope that they would ever see Potgieter again and called the river the Treur which meant "river of sorrow". However a while later they trekked to another location and the surprisingly met up with their leader again. They promptly called this river the Blyde River - the river of joy. These two rivers flow together near Bourkes Luck Potholes.

Mac Mac Falls

The Blyde River Canyon

The 33km long gorge called Blyde River Canyon is the third largest canyon in the world and the largest green canyon. It is truly a scenic wonder with the most fantastic rock formations and sheer cliffs. It is easily approached from the west where one can walk down to lookout points a short way from the main road. We visited another lookout point called "Three rondavels" featuring three similar looking hillocks shaped like round huts.

At Bourke's Luck potholes we also visited the tourist information centre with displays of the canyon and explanations and scale models of the area that show how these fantastic rock formations were formed aeons ago.

From Blyde River canyon we drove towards Hoedspruit. This route took us towards the Strydom Tunnel and past numerous stops where African curios are sold. We stopped at what looked like a fruit market and Peter noticed some women selling beverages on the opposite side of the road. I thought they were selling fruit juices but upon closer inspection we realised that they were selling home brewed (tribal) beer. You guessed it!! Peter had to taste!! So out they came with a tin mug and we each had a sip. Well fermented and to please them Peter bought some of the beer.

Women selling their crafts at the Strydom Tunnel

A little further on we stopped near the Strydom tunnel to have a look at some fruit sold along the route that we could not identify. Well it was Maroelas! The fruit that they make that potent almost 100% proof liquor from. We bought some and Peter immediately tucked in whilst chatting to and questioning the vendor about the fruit. Thinking back on it now I don't think I ever had one or otherwise the small yellow fruit did not really make any impression on me!

We drove on to Hoedspruit where I wanted to visit Kapama, a cheetah and endangered species breeding centre to at least make sure that Peter saw the last of the Big Five - the leopard. However we were just too late in reaching Kapama to go on the last guided tour of the day and had to turn back. We were not too disappointed and decided that it looked too much like a typical "tourist establishment".

Then we decided that it was still early enough to travel to Tzaneen further north. Our route took us through the beautiful fertile Letaba Valley and into the Northern Province...but that is another story...

Below: Bourke's Luck Potoles