Forgotten Towns of the Karoo - a photojournalistic essay

Vanwyksvlei
Day 2: 17 December 2005 SATURDAY

Donkeys, young and old were the first thing we saw of this town. Thereafter we saw a large settlement of shacks at the edge of the town, with donkeys grazing around them. It looked odd having this setup but it seemed to fit with the rest of the town as we discovered. Decay was the only word to describe this town. Everything was closed, and most homes showed no indication of having life inside them, although we did encounter a few locals on the road. In the centre of town stood a monument declared to a dam-builder, and opposite it was a (NG) church, which is in an impeccable condition, so it was quite strange having this new church next to decaying houses. Even the Hotel had no cars standing nearby and all the doors and windows were tightly shut.

Driving through Van Wyksvlei was like driving through a ghost town. The occasional gust of wind chased dried plants across the road, leaving one with the feeling of isolation and desertion. The one house we stopped at had a beautiful red rose bush growing alongside a window which had all its glass planes shattered. But all wasn’t lost because, just as we left the town, we found in one street a group of youngsters playing soccer. It was very late in the day, so we headed to the next town, because we where sure wouldn’t be able to find any accommodation in this town.

Gazing dreamily out of the window, I saw more than a hundred flocks of sheep. A flock of sheep were totally brown, probably from the red Karoo sand, and they stood drinking in a circle around a waterhole. Most of them had little lambs, and they looked very cute. It’s no wonder that sheep farmers flourished in the Karoo, because the only threat they had was the occasional Jackal and they also had to ensure their sheep got inoculated against diseases. A large number of empty desolate neglected farm houses where seen alongside the road. Showing attempts of someone who wanted to create a home. Some of them really looked very depressing.

It was approximately 80km from Van Wyksvlei to Carnarvon.

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A short history:

Van Wyksvlei was established in 1880 and named after a local farmer, Van Wyksvlei who lies close to the first, state-funded dam, built in 1882 and is still in use.

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