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The Langkloof Traditional Cache

Hidden : 7/3/2012
Difficulty:
1.5 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size:   small (small)

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Geocache Description:

This cache is located on the Potjiesberg pass and displays the beauty of the Langkloof  region. The area is well known for its apple farming and some apple orchards can be seen to the East of this site. Some Springbok (aka Springbuck) can normally be seen grazing in the lands below as well as cattle and sheep.

Cache Site

This cache is located on the Potjiesberg pass and displays the beauty of the Langkloof  region. The area is well known for its apple farming and some apple orchards can be seen to the East of this site. Some Springbok (aka Springbuck) can normally be seen grazing in the lands below as well as cattle and sheep.
 

Potjiesberg Pass 

The two owners of the farm Rietvallei had a disagreement and in 1856 each laid out a town on his section. One town was called Hopedale and the other Lyons. In 1865 a church was built on the land between the two towns and the argument was settled through the efforts of the church folk. The new church was given the name of Uniondale and became a municipality in 1884.
 
Uniondale is en route to Willowmore and Haarlem and access is through the beautiful Uniondale Poort on the one side or the quaint Potjiesberg Pass. The name of the Potjiesberg is quaint too. Directly translated it means little pot, bu when one sees it and the pass, it resembles a round pepper pot.
 
The pass is modern, orginally built in 1962, and the roads are in exceptional condition. The view over the valley from the top of the pass is magnificent.
 
Indeed the drive along the N9, runs parallel to the Kammanasieberge, and the views one is treated to, enchant and enthrall the full distance of about 80kms.
 
Visit the beautiful town of Uniondale, probably renowned more for the famous Uniondale ghost, and then head out on the R339 through the Uniondale Poort.
 
This Poort, recently damaged in severe floods, is being repaired, but it remains something very special, as one follows the Kammanasie River through the mountain.
 
During the Anglo Boer War, Uniondale was protected by six British forts, of which one has been restored to its original state and boasts a bird's eye view of Uniondale, well worth the visit. 
 

The Langkloof

The Langkloof is a 160 km long valley in South Africa, lying between Herold, a small village north of George, and Humansdorp. The kloof was given its name by Isaq Schrijver in 1689, and more thoroughly explored by a later expedition under ensign August Frederik Beutler in 1752.
 
The valley has been farmed since 1760 and is an important fruit-growing region, specifically of apples. Joubertina is the most important town of the Langkloof, and was founded in 1807 as a Dutch-Reformed community by the Rev. W.A. Joubert of Uniondale, who banned the sale of alcohol in the town, a ban which was never lifted but is now ignored.
 
The Langkloof is also home to early Bushman paintings and the Kouga mummy — the only mummy ever found in Southern Africa from a cave in the Baviaanskloof Wilderness Area. The remarkably well-preserved mummy, wrapped in Boophone disticha bulb tunics, appeared to be of the Khoi people, and was transferred to the Albany Museum in Grahamstown.
 

The area’s geography 

On its north side the Langkloof is bounded by the Kammanassie and Kouga Mountains, and on its south by the Langkloof, Tsitsikamma and Kareedouw Mountains. A low range of hills running parallel to the Langkloof and lying inside it, divides the kloof into northern and southern sections. The southern section is called the Klein Langkloof and is the main apple-growing area. The valley is crossed by numerous streams that arise in the Tsitsikamma Mountains and join the Kammanassie and Kouga Rivers. The road down the Kloof passes through the hamlets and towns of Avontuur, Haarlem, Misgund, Louterwater, Krakeel, Joubertina, Kareedouw and Assegaaibos.
 

Sources

http://samountainpasses.co.za/Home/WesternCape/Passes/KAROO/PotjiesbergPass/tabid/569/Default.aspx
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langkloof
 
 

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Lbh ner trggvat cvcvat ubg!

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)