Oudtshoorn, the gem of the Little Karoo…Where many fortunes… in days gone by
were made and lost. There was a terrific boom in the sale of Ostrich feathers…
then the vagaries of the market caused the bottom to fall out…
and overnight fortunes were lost.
Once you arrive at George you have a choice of continuing on to Knysna…
proceeding to Oudtshoorn via the Outeniqua pass or via one of the old
historic passes.
Oudtshoorn is part of the Garden Route… and worth the 52 kilometre detour.
For me the striking feature of Oudtshoorn is the many wonderful buildings built
out of stone. The buildings are old and very strongly constructed.
Some
are outstanding examples of architecture.
One of the two big attractions in Oudtshoorn are the Cango Caves,
and secondly Ostriches.
The Cango Caves
One of the worlds great natural wonders…
It is situated close to Oudtshoorn. Weird and awesome limestone
formations in a wide variety of natural colours…a subterranean wonderland.
There are Regular guided tours daily.
The Cango Caves is certainly worth a visit.
The caves sculptured by nature through the ages with varying shapes
of stalactites and stalagmites.
Some of the chambers are colossal.
Stalactites…
are formed by deposits of carbonate of lime…formed by dripping
water. Hanging like icicles from the roof. They form extremely slowly.
Stalagmites form from the ground upwards.
During the guided tour coloured lights are used to wonderful effect
which will leave a lasting impression.
Ostriches
There are 400 ostrich farms in the vicinity of Oudtshoorn…
The 3 show farms have built an enviable reputation for themselves and
are justifiably referred to as show farms…. Become acquainted
with this exotic bird species, the largest in the world.
The Highgate Ostrich farm…
run by the Hooper Family has had many foreign tourists as well as
South African Tourists since it was established one hundred years ago.
It was opened to the public in 1938.
There are other attractions…
The Cango Wildlife Ranch…
is situated just outside Oudtshoorn.
It sprang to life in 1977 and has grown to become one of the favourite
tourist attractions in the region.
The wildlife ranch was first known as the Crocodile Ranch but the new
owners introduced an innovative concept, namely, the plight of
endangered species, and in line with this thinking it was expanded to
include a number of big cats.
The endangered Cheetah was their first priority.
Cheetah
The ranch is now known as Cango Wildlife Ranch, Oudtshoorn, Garden Route, South Africa
In 1988 the Ranch developed a facility known as Cheetahland.
This facility is home to a variety of big cats, which are viewed
from an elevated “catwalk.”
