Suurberg cycads in a valley of the Suurberg The Suurberg (also Zuurberg or Suurberge) is a mountain range in the southern

Sarah Baartman District Municipality Sarah Baartman District Municipality (formerly Cacadu District Municipality) is situated in the western part of the Eastern Cape province, covering an area of 58 242 square kilometres. The area of the district municipality includes seven local m ...

of the Eastern Cape, South Africa. The range of some 70 kilometres long (west to east) is situated at the eastern end of the

Cape Fold Belt The Cape Fold Belt is a fold and thrust belt of late Paleozoic age, which affected the sequence of sedimentary rock layers of the Cape Supergroup in the southwestern corner of South Africa. It was originally continuous with the Ventana Moun ...

, and rises just north of the towns of Kirkwood and Bontrug (in the

Sundays River Valley The Sundays River Valley is a low-lying area along the Sundays River. It forms part of the Sunday's River Valley Local Municipality in Cacadu District Municipality, Eastern Cape, South Africa. The valley stretches from the Kirkwood prison gr ...

), and

Paterson Paterson may refer to: People * Paterson (surname) * Paterson (given name) Places Australia *Paterson, New South Wales *Paterson River, New South Wales * Division of Paterson, an electoral district in New South Wales *Paterson, Queensland, a lo ...

further east. Its rugged terrain is intersected by many defiles and ridge lines, rising from some 200 m a.s.l. in the south to 936 m a.s.l. The southern slopes are drained by various tributaries of the

Sundays River The !Khukaǁgamma or Sundaysriver ( af, Sondagsrivier) is a river in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is said to be the fastest flowing river in the country. The Inqua Khoi people, who historically were the wealthiest group in Sout ...

, including the Kabouga, Uie, Wit and Krom Rivers. Two passes cross the mountain from south to north, namely the

Suurberg Pass Suurberg Pass () is traverses the Suurberg range in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, on the regional road R335, between Coerney and Somerset East. The pass hugs the western edge of the Nyati section of the Addo Elephant National Pa ...

and

Olifantskop Pass Olifantskop Pass, (English: Elephant's Head), is situated in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa. It carries three to four lanes of road traffic on the N10 national road over the Suurberg mountains between Paterson and Cookhouse A cook ...

. ''

Oldenburgia grandis ''Oldenburgia grandis'' is a shrub or small, gnarled tree in the family Asteraceae. It occurs in the mountains around Grahamstown in South Africa. It grows to a height of about 5m on sandstone outcrops. It has thick corky bark and large leaves c ...

'' and the Suurberg cycad are striking plants that are endemic to the mountain range and its vicinity.

References

{{coord, 33, 16, 45, S, 25, 30, 56, E, type:landmark_region:ZA, display=title Mountain ranges of the Eastern Cape