Van der Stel Mine Traditional Cache
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A cache by [DELETED_USER]
Hidden
:
2/26/2012
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Simon van der Stel requested permission "om met 20 persoonen lanwaerts te reizen" from Higher Commissioner Hendrik Adriaan van Rheede tot Drakenstein during 1680, but as commander of the Cape of Good Hope, at that time, Van der Stel was responsible for the completion of the fort, and had to postpone his plans until 1685. He must have been disappointed.
He left the Cape during August 1685 for this six months epic adventure, searching for copper in the north, where the Khoi pointed to the Koperberge (Copper Mountains). On 27 October 1685 he found exploitable copper deposits just east of where Springbok is today.
This prospecting hole, where the cache is, is the biggest of three in the Koperberg, made by Van der Stel, and is a Nasional Monument. On 5 November 1685 Van der Stel turned south west, heading for the coast, in search for a suitable harbour, if mining of copper would start in the future. He found a harbour, which is today called Hondeklip Bay. From here he went back south east and joint up on his original route and headed back south for the Cape.
But transporting the copper ore remained a huge problem (the ossewa did not exist at that time) and only during 1852 did mining of copper started at the "Blue Mine" (S29° 39.815’ E017° 52.797’) in Springbok, which was reputed the first mine in South Africa to achieve commercial production. More than 11 tons of copper ore was removed from this mine and shipped from Hondeklip Bay. The Cape Copper Company continued mining after richer deposits were discover at O'okiep (the richest copper mine in the world during the 1870s), followed by Nababeep, Concordia, Spectakel and Carolusberg around Springbok. O'okiep Copper Company acquired all the copper mines in 1937. But sadly all these mines closed down by 1995 with only Nababeep mine still in small scale operation until 2000.
Please visit Springbok Lodge & Restaurant (S29° 39.995’ E017° 53.008’) which has a large collection of minerals/crystals, books and photos on display – a real museum of the Copper Mining Era in Springbok, or visit the Nababeep Mine Museum (S29° 35.291’ E017° 47.195’).
Directions to cache: Drive to Carolusberg town outside Springbok. Turn south (S29° 37.972 E017° 56.839) at the Simon van der Stel Myn sign board, and again at S29° 38.304' E017° 57.052'. Keep left at S29° 38.361' E017° 56.959' You can either park at S29° 38.750' E017° 56.663', or engage 4x4 and drive up the mountain. Notice the bright green copper sulphides on your way up, which is called Malachite Copper Ore.
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