Nieuwoudtville Off-site Attractions - Nieuwoudtville Olive Camping and Caravan Site |
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The Olive Camping and Caravan Site & Guest Houses are beautifully restored traditional sandstone buildings typical of the architecture and stone masonry of Nieuwoudtville.We are open throughout the year.
THE SMIDSWINKEL RESTAURANT & INFORMATION CENTRE is situated in a large sandstone building which, many years ago, was occupied by the last blacksmith at Nieuwoudtville. The Restaurant offers traditional farm style meals and for the adventurous we will even prepare baked "skilpadjies" (liver) or a sheep's head.
The Restaurant is suitable for wedding receptions, music recitals, art exhibitions and conferences. It houses a botanical and history library, an extensive collection of maps, and one of the most complete collections of antique smithy tools in South Africa. A vast collection of Clivias is housed in the garden. |
First of all buy lamb from the local butcher and have a braai!!!!. |
| The stone buildings in town. |
| These buildings and the beautiful Dutch Reformed Church that dominate the skyline of Nieuwoudtville, highlight many interesting uses and features that sandstone was put to in yesteryear. |
| The beautiful sandstone church. |
This beautiful sandstone church, which has been declared a historical monument, dominates the skyline of Nieuwoudtville. The foundation stone was laid on 02 February 1906 shortly after the end of the Anglo-Boer War and was completed in April 1907.
The church is built of dressed sandstone quarried just outside Nieuwoudtville. The oak pews, wrought-iron railings and the magnificent pressed ceiling were all transported by ox-wagon from Piketberg, which was then the end of the railway line running north from Cape Town.
What an epic journey that must have been and just imagine the commitment of the parishioners who hauled all this material by ox-wagon over a distance of approximately 250 km.
One of the many outstanding features of this church must surely be the pulpit, built of pristine white sandstone that has not bleached or discolored over a period of 100 years. |
| Glacial pavement gouged in the rock 300 million years ago!!! |
The Oorlogskloof glacial floor is approximately 5 km south of Nieuwoudtville on the road to Botterkloof Pass, Pakhuis Pass and Clanwilliam. It is clearly signposted and not more than a 100 metres from the road.
According to the Geological Society of South Africa, the highly visible striations in the rocks were laid down 300 million years ago when glacial conditions prevailed over Southern Africa. |
| Aloe forest. |
The largest and the most southerly colony of Aloe dichotoma – one of South Africa’s giant aloes, occurs approximately 25 km from Nieuwoudtville just of the tarred road to Loeriesfontein.
This aloe grows almost exclusively on hot north facing slopes and flowers in June/July. In this particular colony there are thousands of plants. In the early morning and late afternoon this aloe forest is almost like a Jurassic Park scene. The Bushmen used the branches of this aloe for their quivers, hence the name Kokerboom/Quiver tree. This site can be visited throughout the year and makes for spectacular photography. |
| Waterfall gorge. |
The waterfall is 5 km from Nieuwoudtville on the tarred road to Loeriesfontein. The parking area is on the right and is clearly demarcated. Nominal admission is charged during August and September.
The spectacular Nieuwoudtville Waterfall marks the site of an interesting example of river capture. Since the break-up of Gondwanaland, approximately 195 million years ago, some rivers cut back even further than the escarpment edge. Where this happened, they captured rivers that had previously flowed to the interior. The Doring River did just that.
The main fall is 30 m high and the gorge supports an interesting array of plant and bird species. Nesting Booted and Black Eagles, Gymnogene, Lanner Falcons and Black Stork have all been observed. |
| Stone ruins dating back 250 years. |
To the north and south of Nieuwoudtville, hugging the escarpment over a distance of almost 100 km, are some of the most spectacular ruins in South Africa. We urgently need funds and researchers to photograph, map and where possible restore and maintain these magnificent ruins, as they are both culturally and historically of great significance. If you are able to assist, please contact us.
These ruins are the remains of the homesteads and outbuildings of the early pioneers and farmers who settled in this area. As you travel out onto the northern and southern sections of the Bokkeveld Plateau, the ruins can be seen from the road.
The farm Groenrivier, approximately 1 km from town, was issued as a loan farm by the Dutch Administration in 1750. This is where Thunberg stayed in 1774 and to which he refers in his journal. The ruins at Groenrivier are a must to be visited, especially for photographers. |
| The Oorlogskloof Nature Reserve for hiking. |
The Northern Cape Department of Nature Conservation runs this Reserve. Permits are required to enter the reserve and can be obtained at Nieuwoudtville. The Department of Nature Conservation has printed an excellent brochure and map of the reserve. We strongly recommend you obtain it in advance when planning your tour. We stress that this is a hiking trail and not a stroll in the park. So come prepared to hike. There are in total 147 km of hiking trails in the reserve, in marked routes ranging from 1 to 7 days.
The exceptionally high diversity of plant communities and species (including endemic species) makes Oorlogskloof one of the Northern Cape’s unique nature reserves. This could be ascribed to the location of the Reserve in a transition/ecotone area of the Fynbos and Karoo Biomes, as well as to the diverse broken topography. A large section of the Reserve forms part of the northern-most extension of the Fynbos Biome and includes various endangered species. Oorlogskloof contains Fynbos, Afro-montane and Western Mountain Karoo plant communities.
The fynbos community can be found on the Bokkeveld Mountain Plateau, with the dry fynbos sub-community on the dry eastern side. On the wet western side a mesic fynbos is encountered. Oorlogskloof is situated in a transitional zone, therefore a variety of succulent plants (typical of the Karoo plant community) are also found in the fynbos vegetation. The mountain "renosterbos" (rhino bush) mainly grows on the shale soil in shallow clefts, forming small isolated patches that have a lower species richness than in other communities. This plant community is found in the ravines where the erosion was severe enough to enable the plant roots to grow through the sandstone layer into the shale and mudstone. Lastly, the Afro-montane plant communities are restricted to the river, ravines and areas below cliffs with a moist shady microclimate. |
| Wild Flowers |
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| If you have any questions please e-mail me. |
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| Last Update: 18 July 2006 |
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