Outeniqua Mountains

The Outeniqua Mountains, named after the Outeniqua Khoikhoi who lived there, is a mountain range that runs a parallel to the southern coast of South Africa, and forms a continuous range with the Langeberg to the west and the Tsitsikamma Mountains to the east. It was known as "Serra de Estrella" ("Mountain of the Star") to the Portuguese. The mountains are part of the Garden Route of South Africa.Nomenclature"Outeniqua" is said to be derived from a Khoikhoi tribe that once lived in the mountains, and means "they who bear honey". Rock paintings by those people can still be found in the area.GeographyThe range is characterized by gentle southern slopes and steep drops on the north side down to the low valley Little Karoo. High points include Cradock Peak at 1578 m and George Peak at 1370 m located to the north of George. The varying conditions create diverse habitats. On the south-facing slopes there is montane fynbos at higher, moister altitudes, while the north hosts karroid and renosterveld shrubland. On the mesic southern slopes there are Afromontane gallery forests.WeatherThe high rainfall on the range has created numerous perennial streams used for irrigation in the Olifants River valley. While the climate along the range is generally hot to moderate, with an average summer temperature of 20.5 °C, weather conditions can vary greatly. In winter the temperature can drop to 5 °C (and even lower on the southern slopes) and snowfalls may occur on the higher peaks.