Sutherland

When thinking of Sutherland, only one thing comes to mind, cold, very cold. When looking at the weather - South African weather - Sutherland will most probably be the coldest during the winter times. Many people believe that this small town is the coldest in South Africa, well it is not, and it actually is a town called Buffelsfontein in the Eastern Cape.

The mountainous landscaped provides a range of trails for the hiking enthusiast. Look out for Salpeterkop when hiking. It is the last active volcano south of the equator which last erupted over 66 million years ago. The wonder Boreholes is where a stream of water bubbles continuously throughout the year and also be on the lookout for an array of interesting and endemic butterflies. Believe it or not but in Sutherland there is a large working tulip farm called Koomlandskloof which flowers during spring. The growing of tulips in this area began in 1925 by the Dutch Reverend RM Brink who noticed that the climate in Sutherland was very similar to Holland. Only the bulbs of the plants are used while the flowers are sold to local markets.

When in Sutherland take advantage of the high elevation and remoteness and enjoy some stargazing of your own. Amateur astronomers should either book a stargazing tour through the Sutherland Tourism Information Centre or if you are staying at the Kambrokind Guest house you can gaze through the owner's telescope after dinner. The Sutherland Observatory houses the larges telescope in the southern hemisphere, the Southern African Largest Telescope (SALT). The construction of this telescope was a joint initiative between the governments and academic institutions of South Africa, Poland, USA and Germany. It was decided that it would be placed in Sutherland on account of its dark skies, the distance from the bright lights of the city and its pollution free air. You can go on a tour of the observatory daily except on Fridays.

If museums, memorials and churches are your thing then you would be interested in the Dutch Reformed Church that was designed by Charles Freeman and completed in 1901. Then there is the English cemetery where you will find the final resting place for many soldiers who fought in the Anglo Boer War. The Louw museum pays tribute to several writers and poets especially two Afrikaans poet brothers, NP van Wyk Louw and WEG Louw.

If you are looking for some accommodation I would suggest the Rooikloof Guest Farm. This guest farm has two farm houses the one can sleep eight and the other six. Don't worry about the cold because both are well equipped for the winter with a fireplace, heaters and electric blankets. Then there is also Kambrokind Guest House. They have a four star grading and it is named after the Kambro which is a potato like food that is found in the area. Then lastly there is Primrose Cottage. This cottage was originally built in the early 1900s and it's on a 2000skm land that is surrounded by fruit trees and grapevines.