Hear The Orange River Roar

Earlier this year, the people of the Northern Cape pricked their ears: Heavy summer rains and full dams upstream along the Orange River meant floodwaters and a great noise were coming to Augrabies Falls National Park.

- Martinette Louw

From a distance, I can see a plume of spray above the Augrabies waterfall, like a long finger beckoning me closer: Come look, this is where slabs of granite tear open into a deep gorge and the Orange River – currently in flood – tumbles more than 50m into a frothing pool.

I can hear the soft murmur of a river flowing at speed. It’s a few minutes before 7am and I’m in a short queue at the gate of Augrabies Falls National Park, about 40km northwest of Kakamas. I was up early because it’s mid-February – not only will the summer sun soon scorch down, but the park has also seen an increase in visitors over the last few weeks and I want to make sure I beat the crowds to the waterfall.

In the rest camp, I pop into the offices of park manager Angela Isaks and socioeconomic transformation officer Christine du Plessis for a quick chat.

“When the lockdown restrictions loosened a little last year and people could travel in their own provinces again, the people of the Northern Cape started to stream to the park,” Angela says. “People discovered their province and Augrabies anew… and then the floodwaters arrived. The park had about 3000 visitors a day over the past weekend.”

“South Africans are definitely exploring their own country – we have seen some unusual numberplates pass through the gates in the last few weeks,” Christine adds.

Augrabies Falls National Park was established in August 1966 and is currently about 520km² in size. The area around the Orange River has been inhabited since the Early Stone Age; these days it’s an economic hub, where table grapes, citrus fruit, peaches, cotton, lucerne and pecan nuts are produced.