Accommodation Kolaritas

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Nearby Verneukpan Puts Brandvlei In The Fast Lane

Verneukpan by Henry Jonker – http://www.willeklong.co.za/, CC BY-SA 1.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/1.0/

Verneukpan is a dry salt pan to the north of Brandvlei, between Swartkop and Diemansput in the Northern Cape, South Africa. Verneuk is the Afrikaans word for trick or mislead.

During the rainy seasons when the pan contains water many birds flock to the area. The surface is completely flat, and is approximately 57 by 11 kilometres.

In 1929 Sir Malcolm Campbell attempted to break the land speed record in his Napier-Campbell Blue Bird. The aim was to reach 300 miles per hour (483 km/h). However, he failed in the attempt when the coarse surface of the pan damaged his tyres. His average speed for the measured mile was 218.45 miles per hour.

More recently – in 2008 – Verneukpan was investigated by Andy Green who will be using the Bloodhound SSC in an attempt to match or exceed 1,000 miles per hour (1,609 km/h) to achieve a new world land speed record. Green decided to use Hakskeenpan to the north of Upington instead.

Over the decades a variety of speed records have been attempted on the pan.

The pan is regularly used for aerotowing, kite-surfing with wind buggies, and parasailing.

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Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park Full Of Surprises

Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park – the “Place of Thirst” – straddles part of South Africa’s northern border with Botswana. Two parks previously known as the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in South Africa and the Gemsbok National Park in Botswana were joined to create this vast wildlife area which covers around 38,000 square kilometres (15,000 sq mi).

The park’s emblem is the gemsbok, a large, imposing desert antelope for which the Park is famous, along with the black-maned Kalahari lions, migrating herds of wildebeest and springbok, red hartebeest and eland, as well as many birds of prey.

Originally there were three rest camps, Twee Rivieren, Nossob Rest Camp and Mata Mata Rest Camp, but more recently a number of wilderness camps were added.

Red-necked Buzzard in Kgalagadi

After a Red-necked Buzzard was recently identified for the first time within the Southern African subregion (during 2014 in woodlands at the northern end of Buffalo Reserve – Bwabwata National Park – in the Caprivi Strip of Namibia), old records were re-examined by birdwatchers, and a picture was found of the earliest sighting of a Red-necked Buzzard in the subregion namely in August of 2001 in Kgalagadi!

Planning your trip to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park? Accommodation KOLARITAS is perfectly located for the weekend break or a long trip to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, just under half-way there from Cape Town.

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Beautiful NeoGothic Dutch Reformed Church Brandvlei

Image: Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike

Passing through Brandvlei you may wonder about the history of the magnificent white Dutch Reformed church building, and the congregation it served over the years.

The Dutch Reformed congregation of Brandvlei was formed on 6 October 1897 by the Circuit of Tulbagh. In January 1898 the Rev Alheit from Ceres travelled nearly 500km to take the very first Communion service of the the new congregation.

With building materials having to be transported all the way from Ceres station, work on the church building was completed during 1905. The consecration of the church building, designed in the Neo-Gothic style, took place later that year.

– Contact Louis Kruger for accommodation in Brandvlei.

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Discover Northern Cape Birding around Brandvlei and Loeriesfontein

“Barren” and “dull” may be the first terms to come to mind for many visitors to the area around Brandlvlei in the Northern Cape, but if you know what you’re doing and what to look out for some interesting birds can be found there.

This according to conservationist and photographer Peter Chadwick, who was even able to add new bird sightings to his list when vising the region.

Read about it, and view some of Peter’s amazing pictures of the Black-fronted Canary, colorful European Bee-Eaters and much more in this article on photodestination.co.za.

You can also view his photography at www.peterchadwick.co.za

Contact Louis Kruger for accommodation in Brandvlei.