The ancient, huge sculpted sandstone boulders of the Cederberg form wondrous corners and caverns where you can explore for hours, seeking scores of ancient rock paintings and finding fresh ideas and inspiration amongst the weird shapes and ochres and fabulous flowers. I have reflected further while revisiting the Cederberg on comments received by email, and focused on one important point that was raised. The Maloti mountains, the geographical reality of them at least, are indeed not the subject of our new map series. I have thus decided to remove the name ‘Maloti’ from the titles, and call them simply ‘Drakensberg North’, ‘Central’ and ‘South’.
Reasons:
1. As above, the true Malotis do not feature on the maps.
2. Removes any potential confusion that may remain, that we are in some way contracted to the Maloti-Drakensberg Park – or EKZNW – to produce the maps. We are not. We are totally private and working on a Memo of Agreement with EKZNW regarding content and endorsement, but there is no contract. I have also removed the MDP logo from the covers for the same reason. The maps include recreational areas that are not in the Park.
3. Remains true to the titles of their actual predecessors, my original series, with no suggestion that these are in some way successors to, or revisions of, the existing Geomap series, because they are absolutely not that either.
4. Emphasizes the nationally and internationally iconic name ‘Drakensberg’, where the lesser-known name ‘Maloti’ might well cause confusion.
The revised covers for maps 1 to 3 are pictured below.
From the summit of Groot-Krakadouw you can see, a hundred kilometres to the east, the blue line of the Roggeveld Mountains. These dolerite cliffs represent the extreme western edge of the great igneous cap that once covered much of our land, and that left the mighty Drakensberg behind on its eastern rim. When there has been good rain and the streams are sparkling and the tall rye-grass is green the Roggeveld much resembles the mountains and glens of Scotland, rather as parts of the ’Berg can do.
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| The Verstepunt pinnacles, on the edge of the Roggeveld escarpment. The Cederberg Tafelberg can be seen faintly on the extreme right horizon, 100 km away to the west. In between lies the Tankwa, the driest area in the whole of South Africa. |
