GRAAFF-REINET NEWS — On one side of town, the rocky columns from the valley rise from the stark landscape.
Another short hop takes you onto the plains around the Nqweba Dam where beautiful sunsets, picnics and roaming wildlife go hand-in-hand. The eastern side of the park awaits those that seek off-road adventures.
Not many cities can boast a national park a few steps from their doorstep. If not for the foundation set by a dedicated group of passionate people, the Camdeboo National Park might have never existed.
Local resident Theuns Eksteen knows much of the history of the area. He is not only passionate about the park and surroundings, but has also been a Graaff-Reinet resident for the last 52 years. As one of the founding members of Granaat, Camdeboo’s Friends of the Park initiative, he witnessed the area’s transition from the Karoo Nature Reserve to its proclamation as a national park in 2005.
There was a time when the actions of a few individuals could have meant the end of this conservation area. “In the early 1990s, farmers wanted to occupy the eastern side of the reserve. They argued that they did not have land for their livestock and that the legalities of a park meant nothing,” says Eksteen.
Eksteen realised the park needed protection, and gathered people that were interested in nature conservation. According to Eksteen, this marked the start of Granaat. The organisation was only officially launched in 2000. While it had small beginnings, the organisation has since grown from seven to about 80 passionate people.
This was not the only intervention that led the park to where it is today. In its early days, Eksteen met up with Dr Anton Rupert, then vice chairman of the World Wildlife Fund of South Africa.
As a passionate conservationist, Rupert loved everything from the Karoo violets to small antelope. It was only during one meeting, when Rupert’s phone rang, that Eksteen felt confident. “A certain prince from the Netherlands was on the line. I then realised that there would be hope if this man who loves small flowers speaks to princes daily.”
A lot of other work went into ensuring that the property remained protected.
“With Dr Rupert’s help, the property was transferred to the WWF in 2003 and then to SANParks.”
After all the years Eksteen is thankful that he and his fellow nature lovers managed to show the community the value of conservation in the area. “I think it would have been a huge loss to visitors if the park was not proclaimed.”
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