The Southern KZN Drakensberg

  “IF THERE IS ONE THING YOU LEARN AS AN ADVENTURER, IT’S NEVER CLOSE YOUR MIND OFF TO THINGS THAT SEEM FAR-FETCHED.”

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The Southern KZN Drakensberg

One of the last uninhabited areas along the foothills of the KZN Drakensberg was a stretch of country in the south-western corner of KZN. Allen Francis Gardiner passed through this mountainous terrain while trying to find an overland route to the Cape in 1835.

Twenty-five years later Robert Spiers spent about six weeks in this area looking for a herd of cattle which had been stolen from his farm. It was known as a cold and wet part of KZN, close to hostile tribes living to the south, where raids from Bushman and Basotho could be expected at any time.

One day, in 1886, a young man whose name was RW Cockerell, walked into the office of the Surveyor-General of Natal, and asked whether he could settle in the unoccupied territory known as the Polela Magistry. Permission was granted and Cockerell gathered all his possessions and set off in an ox-wagon. He found what he considered an ideal place for a farm, which he named “Fondeling”. And thus the first settler arrived in this remote and lonely region where not even the black tribes would settle. Soon he was followed by R Christison, who chose a farm on the banks of the Umzimkulu. T Palframan was the next to arrive and he called his farm “Watermead”. W Nicholson saw the opportunity and chose his farm and at the same time selected farms for his relatives. To the south of the Umzimkulu the three Wilson brothers established their homes in the valleys where the setting sun cast long shadows of the high peaks across their pastures.

When P McKenzie, author of the booklet, Pioneers of the Underberg, arrived in the area in 1892 he found a friendly and happy community already settled in the southern part of the KZN Drakensberg.

It certainly was not easy for these settlers to establish their farms. The soil was poor and the nearest rail link was a great distance from the settlement. Sheep were introduced and then cattle, but disease soon took a toll of all stock. Some farmers decided to plant crops, and just as things looked good in the Spring of 1895 swarms of locusts descended and devoured the entire crop.

There were times of panic when Le Fleur, a Colored man from East Griqualand, resisted and escaped from the police who tried to arrest him. He started inciting the local tribes to rebel. Some families moved immediately to Grafton’s farm for protection where there was a stone barn which was originally built to be used in case of unexpected attack. Le Fleur was finally arrested and peace returned to the valleys.

A petition was then sent to the Government of Natal requesting that a village be established in which a fort could be built as protection for the farmers. A site was chosen for a village and this was named Himeville, after Sir Albert Hime who was Prime Minister and Minister of Lands and Works. In 1902 a store and hotel were built and eventually, after much argument, Himeville became the recognized meeting-place of the farmers.

In 1910 the Natal Government passed an Act that gave authority to build a railway which came into operation in 1917 from Donnybrook to Underberg.

The village of Himeville not only became the center where farmers met, but its store soon also attracted Basotho horseman and their pack animals. These mountain folk descended the Sani Pass to exchange their goods and returned to Lesotho laden with their purchases.

Himeville became an important road link when the Sani Pass was opened to motor traffic and a lonely outpost, called Mokhotlong, was linked to Himeville.

Today, Underberg and Himeville is the gateway to the magnificent Southern Drakensberg Reserves of Garden Castle, Cobham, Vergelegen, Lotheni, and UMhkomazi where a wild, rugged wilderness awaits the visitor.

The End.

Safe Hiking.