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Mpumalanga a "Place of the Rising Sun"

The Seven Wonders...

Mpumalanga is a lush, land-locked province, filled with deep ravines, verdant valleys, crystal-clear streams, magnificent waterfalls and plenty of wildlife.

Mpumalanga covers almost 80 000 square kilometres of what some may call God's own country. All of it begs to be explored, from rolling highlands to the lofty escarpment and lush wetlands. The province's tourism authority has created seven regions with specially marked routes that beg to take the visitor on a journey of discovery...

The Panorama... Which abounds with breath taking views from natural wonders along the eastern slopes of the escarpment. There is God's Window and the world's third largest canyon and biggest green canyon, the Blyde River Canyon. There are also the astonishing Bourke's Luck Potholes and three rondawels. The towns of Lydenburg and White River are gateways to the route, which takes visitors through the quaint towns of Pilgrim's Rest, a living museum dating back to the hey days of the gold rush, as well as Sabie, Graskop, Ohrigstad and Hazyview.

Nature enthusiasts will discover cascading water falls while adrenaline junkies can get their next rush by bungee jumping, white water rafting or going on rigorous 4x4 trails. More gentler pursuits include hot air ballooning, walking trails and gold panning.

Lowveld Legogote is home to the seat of the provincial administration in Nelspruit. You will find the oldest dolomite caves the world - Sudwala Caves - a mesmerising butterfly garden and a botanical garden with an enormous collection of cycads and African rainforest. There's also a mall with an eight-theatre cinema complex, casino and entertainment centre. Indulge in quad and mountain biking, paragliding, microlighting, cultural tours to authentic villages and game viewing.

The Wild Frontier is a cradle of life with geological discoveries and some of the oldest forms of life discovered on earth, dating back more than three billion years. The imposing Mkonjwa mountains are said to be of the oldest in the world.

The region borders Mozambique, Swaziland and the southern tip of the Kruger National Park and takes visitors to the historic towns of Barberton, Komatipoort, Kaapmuiden and Badplaas. Barberton was the centre of the local gold rush and the façade of Africa's first stock exchange, which was built in 1887, still stands. The region holds enormous sentimental value for the people of Mozambique whose president, Samora Machel, died when his plane crashed south of Komatipoort at the height of apartheid atrocities in South Africa. A monument has been built in a small village to commemmorate his life and the lives of those who died in the crash with him.

The Wild Frontier's heritage trails, hiking and 4x4 trails certainly take visitors on a journey of discovery or one of pampering at hot springs and hydro spas at Badplaas.

Mpumalanga's Highlands Meander is a nature lover's paradise, boasting South Africa's premier fly-fishing mecca, some of the sub-continent's rarest birds, best rock climbing, and most spectacular wild flower displays -- all just two-hours drive from the metropolitan centres of Gauteng and Mozambique.

It is also home to Africa's only breeding community of wild Black Leopard, who haunt the wild mountain ravines and streams that characterise the Highland Meander.

The region's diversity and string of quaint historic towns have made it a popular weekend hideaway for well-heeled city sleekers, who flock to hamlets such as Dullstroom for South Africa's best trout and fly fishing. The town's stone lodges nestle along cool trout dams and streams, where bright yellow arum lilies and 120 other species of indigenous wild flower carpet the region in a kaleidoscope of colour every spring. The picturesque village wasn't, however, always such a haven. It was the scene of bloody battles during the Anglo Boer War 100 years ago, and was torched by invading British forces. The ruined forts, trenches and artillery placements are still visible around the village, as are the graves of Boer fighters and Imperial troopers.

Those interested in more peaceful pursuits should not miss the Verloren Valei Nature Reserve, which boasts the only habitat where all three of the world's endangered cranes are found. The Blue Crane, which is South Africa's national bird, can be spotted along with the Wattled Crane and Crowned Crane at the reserve, which has been declared an international RAMSAR wetlands site.

But Dullstroom is just one of the attractions in the Highlands Meander.

Nearby Machadodorp and Waterval Boven are also rich with Boer War history. Both towns are built along the Transvaal Republic's major railway line to Delagoa Bay (modern-day Maputo), and were fiercely contested by the British as the Boers retreated towards the end of the war. Visitors can take a walk through the historic ZASM tunnel through which the trains used to pass, and see a beautiful waterfall that cascades along the Elands River course. The route drops to the little town of Waterval Onder, where President Paul Kruger lived for a month before finally fleeing into exile and a lonely death in Austria in 1900.

The best way to experience the area, however, is perhaps aboard the historic Oosterlyjn Express steam train which retraces President Kruger's route between Machadodorp and Waterval Boven, and includes a cosy pub lunch in the hotel that served as Kruger's command centre.

South Africa's coldest town, Belfast, is today best know for its tulip farms and annual tulip festival, but is also the site of one of the country's largest and most notorious Boer War concentration camps for Boer woman and children, and the war's unrecognised black combatants.

The largest town on the meander, Lydenburg, has an even older history. It was once the capital of its own independent republic, and still boasts some of the best preserved Zuid Afrikaanse and old Transvaal architecture in the country. Lydenburg, which means 'place of suffering' was founded by pioneering Voortrekkers fleeing malaria and the debilitating heat of lower lying areas in the early 1800s. But, although Lydenburg was healthier, marauding Bapedi armies under the leadership of Kgosi Sekhukhune fought a series of bloody pitched battles with the settlers, monuments to which can still be seen in the area. The town continues as an important centre for farming, and is also home to one of Mpumalanga's best museums detailing the mysterious history of the famed Lydenburg Heads.

The heads are unique pottery masks made by a vanished people thousands of years ago, and believed to have served a ritual or religious purpose. The ruins of stone and iron age settlements are accessible to hikers on the surrounding Gustav Kleinbiel Nature Reserve, which has been earmarked for Mpumalanga's first astrological observatory.

But, the meander isn't all about history. It's cliffs, ravines, and rolling mountain grasslands offer some of South Africa's most spectacular hiking trails outside the Drakensberg. Hikers regularly report sightings of elusive predators such as leopard, caracal and African wildcat, as well as kudu, bushbuck, mountain reedbuck, duiker, otter and even hippo. The entire region is also a birder's paradise, boasting some of South Africa's last breeding populations of grey and red winged francolin.

Adventure seekers have meanwhile colonised the cliffs around Machadodorp and Waterval Boven, taking to the air on paragliders, handgliders and hot air balloons, abseiling down the cliffs, and clawing their way back up along some of the country's most challenging rock-climbing routes. The red-walled canyons shelter a hot spring, and scores of secluded campsites on ledges or in small indigenous forests, many of which are reached by canoeing safaris.

The Grass and Wetlands region is unequivocally a birding paradise that lures bird watchers in their droves. The route includes South Africa's largest freshwater lake at Chrissiesmeer. Chrissiesmeer also boasts a mysterious giant footprint in rock that matches one in Canada, and hosts an annual frog watching festival in summer and stargazing festival in winter. A fierce Anglo Boer War battle that was fought at Chrissiesmeer is also re-enacted annually.

The route borders Kwazulu-Natal and Free State, as well as the kingdom of Swaziland, which is the last absolute monarchy in sub-saharan Africa. It is also home to the 1 000-year-old ruins of the lost Legoya people and San paintings.

The route also includes the farming communities of Carolina, Hendrina, Ermelo, Volksrust, Piet Retief, Amsterdam, Breyten, Lothair and Morgenzon.

The Cultural Heartland immerses visitors in colourful Ndebele culture and winds through the north western towns of Witbank, Middelburg, Siyabuswa, Groblersdal, Marble Hall and Roossenekal. The Ndebele people are world famous for their vibrant house painting, bead work and crafts, all of which are on display at cultural villages in the region. The Heartland also has a Boer War route ideal for history buffs.

And, instead of the more traditional game viewing on offer further east, the Heartland offers game viewing by boat at the Loskop Dam Nature Reserve. The Witbank Dam is the largest municipal dam in the southern hemisphere, with a catchment area of 3 540 square kilometres. A large portion of the region is fantastic for water sports like skiing and windsurfing. The Heartland also offers parasailing, golfing and scenic hiking and 4x4 trails.

Visitors can also see the mining and farming industry as never before by going on industrial and agricultural tours to collieries and farms, while plant enthusiasts will find that the lanatus cycad is indigenous to the region and that a plethora of wild flowers like arum lilies transform the area into a magical garden during summer.

Although the centre of South Africa's fuel from coal production and home to the world's largest underground coal mining complex, Cosmos Country explodes with colour when pretty pink and white cosmos flowers bloom in late summer. Cosmos Country lies in the south western part of Mpumalanga against the Free State and Gauteng borders and includes the towns of Secunda, Delmas, Leandra, Bethal, Standerton, Balfour and Greylingstad.

Mpumalanga "Must Do's"

  • View the big 5
  • Enjoy the amazing scenic beauty
  • Visit Pilgrim's Rest
  • Hiking, Biking and Trout Fishing

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