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::Golden Gate National
park
::Bethlehem Museum
::Athlone Castle
::Cave Paintings
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THE COMMON view that the Free State is a flat,
featureless landscape could not be further from
the truth.
East of Bethlehem, the Free State prairie gives
way to a rugged mountain landscape, dominated
by the vivid red and yellow cliffs of the Rooiberge
mountain range.
Bethlehem, some way to the west, is a popular
inland holiday destination, particularly the Loch
Athlone lakeside resort.
The intriguing Athlone Castle restaurant, in the
shape of its Union-Castle mailship, contains many
navigational items from the original ship. Next
to Loch Athlone is the Wolhuterskop Nature Reserve,
which has plenty of game, such as springbok, red
hartebeest, eland and zebra, on view.
Bethlehem is worth a visit. Its Nazareth Mission
Church, now a museum, is a beautiful old blue
ironstone building. Amongst the museum's many
interesting historical pieces you will find the
Sharp-Stewart locomotive, which first serviced
the railway between Cape Town and Mafikeng in
1896.
Next stop is Harrismith, just over 100 kilometres
to the east. This town has the dubious honour
of being the birthplace of the person with the
longest first name in South African history. In
1879, a minister baptised a boy with the entire
text (in Dutch) of Isaiah 41:14. Quite understandably,
the boy was simply "Oom Jakob" later
in life.
A landmark worth visiting is the 30-metre tall
petrified tree in the middle of town. The tree
is believed to be 150 million years old.
Taking the R172 leads you past Mount Qua Qua,
a flat-topped sandstone massif that is the home
to a colony of Cape vultures. In summer, their
droppings make the cliffs as white as the snow
in winter, hence the name "qua qua",
meaning white.
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Golden Gate national park so called because
of the colossal slash through the Rooiberg's red
and yellow sandstone that forms a natural gateway
follows. This reserve is remarkable more
for its scenery than its wildlife even though
a wide selection of animals can be viewed. The
deep valley through the Rooiberg, carved over
thousands of centuries by the Little Caledon River,
is a veritable paradise of walks and hiking trails.
Keep an eye out for a great number of unusual
flowers such as the arum lily, watsonia and fire
lily. Caves and rock shelters are added bonuses
in a landscape filled with spectacular colours
and unusual formations.
The picturesque town of Clarens, surrounded by
the towering mountains of the Rooiberg range,
is the final stop on this route. Clarens is said
to be endowed with more trees than most other
Free State towns, and during springtime the fruit
trees are breathtaking and attract artists in
their droves. The many art and craft shops around
President Square offer a wide range of curios
and original artwork. Another feature is the many
sandstone buildings.
Located just outside the town is the Titanic
rock, named after (and vaguely resembling) the
ill-fated luxury steamship that sank in 1912,
the same year that Clarens came into existence.
Before heading back towards Bethlehem on the
R711, you may want to make a short detour to Schaapplaats
farm with its historic Bushmen paintings.
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