memorablemeanders.blogspot.com

Monday, March 3, 2014

Drakensberg Mountains

Starting with my blogger friend, Gattina, and subsequently many others who asked about the Drakensberg (and its name) I decided to post about it today. 

The Drakensberg mountains are so called because they resemble a series of long dragons. The Afrikaans name for a dragon is Draak. The mountain range is one of the most popular for hiking and rock climbing in South Africa. You can read all about the Drakensberg Mountains here

When the boys, John and Angus were growing up, we lived for a while in Estcourt, which is a small town only a short drive from the mighty mountains. John had been on a school tour to the Drakensberg and was totally hooked on hiking. So most weekends we as a family would don our back packs and do  a hike up any one of the hundreds of day and two day trails the 'Berg is renowned for. 

Great times those were...

Today, John and Debbie have a home in the Central Berg and as a family they do many hikes when he's home from work. Whenever we travel to see Grant's mum in Durban, it's a given that we stop off in the 'Berg and spend time with John, Debbie and family.

Below is an image from Internet which shows the Cathedral Range. (you can see Cathedral Peak - its shape speaks for itself - on the right of the photo)  This is similar to the photo I took last month which evoked such interest. 

 File:Cathedral Valley.jpg

8 comments:

  1. It's a stunningly beautiful place. How wonderful you and your family have been so privileged to enjoy it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The Drakensberg really is a very special place

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a beautiful place to live, Jo! The mountain scenery is gorgeous. I hope you had a great visit with your brother. Have a happy day and enjoy your new week.

    ReplyDelete
  4. I'm so glad you decided to explain the reason for the name!! And they're so beautiful as are your photos!!

    ReplyDelete
  5. It sounds and looks a magic place to visit and Hike.

    ReplyDelete
  6. A gorgeous place indeed, Jo!! What a terrific capture! I, too, am glad you and your family have been able to enjoy it!! Have a great week!!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks for the explanation ! I thought there were some dragons living in the mountains ! When I lived in Bonn we often went to the Drachenfels which means Dragon Rock, and there were many tales about a dragon living there !

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for visiting my blog and taking the time to leave a comment. I appreciate your feedback. Jo