This entry was posted on Thursday, July 1st, 2010 at 1:26 pm and is filed under Historical Places, Northern Cape. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
The Richters was declared a World Heritage site, as of 10 years ago when the disadvantaged people united, reclaiming the title to their traditional land, setting it aside as conservancy for research and tourism. The last refuge of the Nama people living what is known as the transhumance lifestyle, migrating seasonally with their livestock from mountains to rivers, making full use of the sustainable fragile and succulent ecosystem. If you’ve started wondering why you’d like to visit this World Heritage site, it’s because it’s here that you’ll find The Gariep River or the Great River. Gariep means the “Great River” it is its Nama Name. This is the Orange River is the only perennial river in the region and comes to its end in the desert region of the Karoo and Southern Namib. What I find so very interesting about this is, that the river mouth supports 33 mammal species including the Straw-Coloured Fruit Bat and the Cape Clawless Otter. But the local people mistake the ripples made by the otter in the water, for that which the legendary Big Snake that roams the area makes. You see, near Cornellskop, is where you’ll find the Wondergat, or as the Nama call it, the “Heitsi Eibib” which means “spirit” or “emptiness”. Many connect the Wondergat to the “Big Snake” due to its size, thus inspiring many a story and attracting many a visitor. Some say the Big Snake can transform itself into a young maiden, luring men to the river to drown them, whilst the San believed the snake can kill with its breath alone. Stories? One wonders…. for more local information and accommodation options, click here.
