Haenertsburg is a village situated on the edge of the
Great Escarpment
The Great Escarpment is a major topographical feature in Africa that consists of steep slopes from the high central Southern African plateauAtlas of Southern Africa. (1984). p. 13. Reader's Digest Association, Cape Town downward in the directio ...
in the
Limpopo Province
Limpopo () is the northernmost province of South Africa. It is named after the Limpopo River, which forms the province's western and northern borders. The term Limpopo is derived from Rivombo (Livombo/Lebombo), a group of Tsonga settlers ...
of
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...
, on the
R71 road between
(formerly: ''Pietersburg'') and
Tzaneen
Tzaneen () is a town situated in the Mopani district of the Limpopo Province in South Africa. It is situated in a high rainfall fertile region with tropical and subtropical agriculture taking place in a region. It is Limpopo's second largest to ...
en route to the
Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park () is a national park in South Africa covering an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in the country's northeast. It extends from north to south and from east to west. The administrative headquarters are i ...
.
Farming and tourism are the main economic activities on "The Mountain" as it is locally known; Haenertsburg is in hilly terrain. The Iron Crown mountain is the highest point in Limpopo and is a well-known landmark.
Frequent mists and relatively high rainfall have created a lush vegetation with
afromontane
The Afromontane regions are subregions of the Afrotropical realm, one of the Earth's eight biogeographic realms, covering the plant and animal species found in the mountains of Africa and the southern Arabian Peninsula. The Afromontane regions o ...
forest patches occupying the ''kloofs'' (gullies) which dot the grasslands and surrounding mountains. However, large areas of rare, and botanically diverse, grassland (Woodbush Granite Grassland) have been planted to timber (primarily timber for pulping). These monoculture plantations extract a great deal of water and the resulting water shortages downstream (in the Kruger National Park and Mozambique) are cause for concern. A local volunteer group, FROHG (Friends of the Haenertsburg Grasslands) helps to conserve the indigenous flora and fauna. Funds are raised to create educational materials, maintain a hiking trail, remove alien invasive plants and alert the authorities to illegal developments like bulldozing for pipelines, fencing and even squatting.
The scenery of the Haenertsburg area attracts many tourists. It is a common spot for cycling, biking and fishing. Sailing and other watersport take place on nearby Ebenezer Dam. The 20th steepest mountain pass in South Africa, the
Magoebaskloof
Magoebaskloof is a mountain pass in Limpopo Province, South Africa, between Tzaneen and Haenertsburg on the R71. It takes its name from Chief Makgoba and literally means "Makgoba's ravine".
It is a lush green mountainous area, covered by natu ...
pass, leads one down from the
Highveld
The Highveld (Afrikaans: ''Hoëveld,'' , ) is the portion of the South African inland plateau which has an altitude above roughly , but below , thus excluding the Lesotho mountain regions to the south-east of the Highveld. It is home to some of t ...
of the Haenertsburg area to the
Lowveld
Veld ( or , Afrikaans and Dutch: ''veld'', field), also spelled veldt, is a type of wide-open, rural landscape in Southern Africa. Particularly, it is a flat area covered in grass or low scrub, especially in the countries of South Africa, ...
adjoining the
Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park () is a national park in South Africa covering an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in the country's northeast. It extends from north to south and from east to west. The administrative headquarters are i ...
, gaining/losing 446m altitude in 5.15 km.
Haenertsburg is also known for the annual Spring Fair where various crafts and flower displays are exhibited. July sees the advent of the Holistic Fair which displays the creative talents of the Mountain folk. Every Friday and Saturday morning the Morning Market is run by the Duchess of Atholl.
The town was established in 1886 with the discovery of
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
by Carl Ferdinand Haenert.
References
{{Authority control
Populated places in the Greater Tzaneen Local Municipality