By Roxanne Reid
We’ve visited the Tankwa Karoo National Park before and have succumbed to its charms whether camping rough or staying in the charming old-style Elandsberg chalets. But this time, in early October, the park treated us to a colourful display of wild flowers in the Tankwa Karoo that topped all our previous visits.
We’ve visited the Tankwa Karoo National Park before and have succumbed to its charms whether camping rough or staying in the charming old-style Elandsberg chalets. But this time, in early October, the park treated us to a colourful display of wild flowers in the Tankwa Karoo that topped all our previous visits.
Although August and September are peak season for spring flowers here, there were still lots of them to admire when we visited in October.
‘No, no,’ laughed Juliana de Vries, Tankwa Karoo National Park’s duty manager, ‘the flowers were much better in September. Lots of them are finished already.’
Maybe she’s blasé because she lives there. We thought they were pretty dazzling, especially for an area that gets less than 100mm of rain in a year.
‘No, no,’ laughed Juliana de Vries, Tankwa Karoo National Park’s duty manager, ‘the flowers were much better in September. Lots of them are finished already.’
Maybe she’s blasé because she lives there. We thought they were pretty dazzling, especially for an area that gets less than 100mm of rain in a year.
A carpet of Drosanthemum eburneum (vyebos) at the foot of the Roggeveld mountains
An artist's palette: purple and yellow flowers, blue skies and grey mountains in the Tankwa Karoo
The view from our loo at the Elandsberg wilderness camp
Flowers among the ruins which are a reminder of the farmers who used to live in the area
A river of yellow among the purple
The Tankwa Karoo's skies and clouds are as beautiful as its wild flowers
On the way to the Perdekloof camp site in the Tankwa Karoo National Park
Arctotheca calendula (soet gousblom) on the left, and Gazania lichtensteinii (botterblom)
When we left the Tankwa Karoo National Park, we took a different route, over the scenic Ouberg Pass and on to Sutherland. The road was rough and suitable only for 4x4s (it's sometimes impassable when there has been heavy rain). We snaked our way up to the top where, at 1404 metres, the flowers were more varied than in the valley below.
Moraea miniata, or Cape tulip
The plateau at the top of Ouberg Pass was a different world, awash in green fields and dams, even a sprinkling of flamingo, ducks and geese, not to mention jackal buzzards and pied wagtails.
Gone was the purple vyebos, and in its place orange Cape tulips, mauve daisies with yellow centres, white arctotis and more.
Gone was the purple vyebos, and in its place orange Cape tulips, mauve daisies with yellow centres, white arctotis and more.
Farm gates and orange botterblom at the top of Ouberg Pass
Anyone who thinks the Karoo is dry, dull and boring – or even that it all looks the same – obviously hasn't been looking very hard.
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Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
Tankwa Karoo National Park: everything you need to know
Gannaga Lodge at the top of Gannaga Pass, Tankwa Karoo
10 things to do in the Tankwa Karoo
Copyright © Roxanne Reid - No words or photographs on this site may be used without permission from roxannereid.co.za
