Kamiesberge

The Kamiesberg or Kamiesberge, is a mountain range of jumbled granite inselbergs or bornhardts dotted over sandy plains and centered on Kamieskroon in Namaqualand in South Africa. This range is very like the Matopos of Zimbabwe in appearance. It stretches for about 140 km from Garies in the south to Springbok in the north and forms a plateau between the Sandveld of the Cape West Coast and Bushmanland in the east, with the Hardveld of the mountainous central Kamiesberg escarpment in the midst.HistoryThe region was formerly occupied by Khoikhoi who were nomadic pastoralists.The buildings of Kamieskroon were moved from a previous location known as Bowesdorp, named after the village doctor. Steep granite hills and a shortage of water hindered development, so that it was relocated. The foundations of the original village may still be seen in a rocky ravine some 8 km north of Kamieskroon.The Leliefontein mission station, known for the Leliefontein massacre in 1902, is located at an elevation of 1 500 m (5 000 ft) on a plateau near the top of the mountains, which attains a height of over 1 700 m (5 600 ft).