It was just before 6 in the evening when we eventually reached the Helskloof Gate and exited the Richtersveld Transfrontier Park. The GPS indicated a campsite near the small settlement of Kuboes, about 30Km south, so that is where we decided to spend the night. The road was very corrugated and the going was slow and frustrating.
At Kuboes the GPS indicated another 7Km to the campsite along a barely recognisable track, so when we reached a dry river bed just out of sight of the town we decided to stop.
The next morning we went back into Kuboes to the Information Centre. There we were told more about the Nama culture and the history of the area by Jacorine. Kuboes is the heart of theNama community and is the Management Centre for the Richtersveld World Heritage Site. We had an interesting chat with Mr Gert Links, the Managing Director of the Richtersveld World Heritage Site.
From Kuboes we continued to Lekkersing. The village got its name from the singing sound of a nearby spring and the inhabitants live up to its name by performing the Nama songs locally and even internationally. There is a quartzite quarry outside Lekkersing that produced beautiful ‘slate-like’ tiles, used to decorate many of the houses in the town. The quarry is no longer operational.
Our next stop was Kleinzee. This used to be the De Beers headquarters on the West Coast until they ceased operations. Approaching the town we observed a huge dragline operating on the coast. We were later told by Natalie, the owner of the campsite, that it is busy closing up the old diggings. De Beers is currently only involved with the rehabilitation of the area and has handed the town and all infra-structure over to the Municipality. They are hoping to create a thriving holiday town and an auction of all the houses was held in August. Apparently prices ranged between R95 000 for small houses up to R150 000 for 4-bedroom houses. It feels a bit like a “ghost town” at the moment.
On Natalie’s advice we returned to Springbok via Kommagas and the Spektakel Pass. Driving through Kommagas I eventually spotted something that I have always wanted to see; a small veggie patch. Somehow, in all the towns we have driven through over the past 11 months, we always see clean-swept (or not!) yards, lots of trash blowing around and very little gardening. We always wonder why people don’t plant fruit and veggies for their own use.
Back in Springbok we settled in at Namastat for the night with the intention of leaving the next day. Then a cold front reached us! It rained during the night and was freezing cold. We decided to stay another night; at least we were already settled in. We did pluck up the courage to go out to Nababeep though.
Nababeep is a mining town that is currently experiencing socio-economic problems due to unemployment caused by the closing down of the copper mine. The museum is rather run-down and very ‘old style’. We wanted to see Clara though, mentioned by George in the Port Nolloth museum.
We rushed home to cocoon for the rest of the day. It was extremely cold, windy and rainy so we caught up with our posts, drank red wine and went to bed early, sitting under the down duvet with our books!
Weather permitting we will move on to Nieuwoudtville in the morning (Friday 29th)…
