Which dorp will be the winner of the kykNET Kwela Town of the Year competition? Myrtle Ryan takes a look at the contenders.
Durban - Driving into Winterton along a magnificent avenue of trees, especially when autumn dapples the leaves, is certainly the best approach to the town.
Most residents of KwaZulu-Natal have passed through Winterton, either en route to the Central Drakensberg resorts, or driving towards Bergville, with the Northern Berg/Amphitheatre as the destination. It is also close to the famous Anglo-Boer War battlefields of Spioenkop and Vaal Krantz.
Visitors are able to hire magnificent Hanoverian horses and a buggy for a wedding or other functions. Trotting down the road, beneath the trees, is something special. Or you might want a more sturdy-footed steed to take a ride into the veld.
The Winterton Museum is a big drawcard. According to museum curator Annali Honiball, many visitors have said it is the best small museum in KwaZulu-Natal.
While the museum looks at the Battle of Spioenkop, local history, the Bushmen, and has authentic Zulu huts, one of the most fascinating items is a motorhome.
In 1918, John Weston (Maximilian John Ludwick Weston who is often glorified by the title of admiral) took his family on an amazing adventure in this motorhome, which he built.
“They travelled through Africa, crossed the Suez Canal and into Russia,” said Annali. “It is an amazing story. Some people said he was a spy.”
Information on this intriguing bit of memorabilia made me consider a visit to the town.
As for Weston, he was an aeronautical engineer, farmer, soldier and traveller who pioneered flight in South Africa, and is sometimes described as the “grandfather of aviation in South Africa”.
Visitors to Winterton can also browse around the antique shops or replenish their caffeine levels in one of the coffee shops.
Now for a history lesson. Situated on the banks of the Tugela River, the town founded in 1905 was first called Springfield, when the Natal government built a weir across the Little Tugela River.
In 1910 it changed its name to Winterton, in honour of the secretary for agriculture, H D Winter.
Among the other finalists in the Town of the Year competition were White River, Steytlerville (both of which I have recently visited) and Fouriesburg (I grew up in neighbouring town Bethlehem).
White River, in Mpumalanga, is pretty, with large houses set amid colourful gardens and stately trees. It is a springboard to the Kruger National Park.
The quaint St George’s Anglican Church, consecrated in June 1931, is a little gem, with an attractive, standalone belltower.
This parish was established to meet the needs of officers who had fought in Word War I and resettled in the area. Originally the rector of Barberton served the tiny community, until it got its own priest.
Steytlerville, in the Eastern Cape, cannot be described as pretty, but it has character galore. It is one of my favourite small towns in that part of the world.
At its entrance, the traveller comes across the history of South Africa depicted in an interestingly different way.
Painted on the rocks are the flags of nations such as the Dutch, Portuguese and English, and the two former Boer Republics, all of which make up our country’s varied past.
During my visit, people were sitting on the stoep of the Royal Hotel, which dates back to 1897, watching the world go by. A donkey cart, offering rides at R10, trundled past, having just dropped off a couple of tourists who were all smiles over the experience.
Apparently the poet A G Visser drew some of his inspiration from one of the biggest Gregorian-style Dutch Reformed churches in the southern hemisphere – that of Steytlerville.
Looking for entertainment? Look no further than the Karroo Theatrical Hotel, an oasis of style and authentic karoo cuisine, where glitz and burlesque meet over a grand piano.
The crests of many of the families who have played a role in the town’s history flutter on poles in the main street, giving history in a different format.
Fouriesburg in the Free State, which is close to the famous Golden Gate and within a stone’s throw of Lesotho, has many lovely old stone houses and buildings.
A big drawcard is Meiringskloof, a beautiful kloof surrounded by sandstone cliffs with open caves, indigenous bush and abundant bird life.
People often stay at Meiringskloof and take a day trip to Lesotho’s AfriSki, 95km away, to ski and snowboard in winter, or to the Katse Dam, 100km away, high in the mountains of Lesotho.
The town also boasts the Asparagus Festival, which showcases the growing, planting, and cooking of this tasty treat.
To win the title of Town of the Year, everything hinges on the number of votes received. This means every year the competition is weighted in favour of those able to persuade the most people to send an SMS in their favour.
A couple of years ago, I was told by a local, residents approached every visitor either passing through or visiting their town.
They handed them their own personal cellphone and asked them to vote for De Rust. Now that’s enterprising.
l Winning town will be announced on KykNET. - Sunday Tribune