An immense diversity of landscapes
From deserts to sugarcane plantations, from the beaches of the Indian Ocean to the cliffs of the Cape, from eucalyptus forests to the pine forests that line the beaches reminiscent of the Landes, from rocky desert bush to vast green pastures, South Africa, spread over 1,219,090 km2, is larger than France, Italy and Germany combined. The country boasts an immense diversity of landscapes and climates, yet its relief is relatively simple. Its 2,954 km V-shaped coastline stretches from the Mozambique border on the Indian Ocean side to the mouth of the Orange River on the Namibian border on the Atlantic Ocean side. To the north of this fabulous cone, the country shares borders with Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, as well as with Eswatini and Lesotho, two small enclaves corresponding to the country's mountainous regions.
Geography at the heart of the country
In the central region lies a vast plateau averaging 1,500 m in altitude, the High Veld. This plateau, which corresponds to the Gauteng region, is separated from the green coastal regions to the south by a large escarpment of low, isolated mountain ranges running from Lesotho to Eswatini. Only the Drakensberg constitutes a real mountain range, 400 km long and difficult to cross. Its highest peaks reach 3,446 m, such as Mafadi Peak, and 3,280 m, such as the Monts aux Sources, and sometimes disappear under a blanket of snow in winter, revealing a few ski slopes. What an amazing South Africa!
A desert of flowers in the west
In the western region, there are high plateaus arranged in a semicircle falling towards the central basin. They are called Namaqualand. Their altitude varies from 1,200 to 1,800 m, in a landscape of vast expanses of stone and sand. But around the months of August and September, as spring comes, this desert has the particularity to be covered with wild flowers. A few drops of rain are enough for a vast and colorful expanse to emerge from the earth. This region is not the most visited in the country, but it is absolutely to discover at the time of the fields in bloom, around September, at least once in its life. It is called "the flowering desert", a paradise for nature lovers in bloom. Let us dream, we would think we are in a Claude Monet painting!
The great Kalahari Desert in the north
To the north, on the Namibian border, lies the Kalahari, a term that means "great thirst" or "place without water" in the Tswana language. This desert stretches widely across Namibia, Botswana and South Africa. Known as the cradle of the Bushman or San people, and therefore often represented as the cradle of humanity, it presents vast expanses, covered with huge accumulations of sand that the wind has transformed into dunes, wadis and lagoons. Some parts of the landscape are entirely covered with vegetation. It is sometimes said of this desert that it is alive so much its decoration is moving with the wind.
Northwest, grain and livestock
In the northwest, in the basin of the Orange River, the longest river in South Africa, whose bed runs between the rocks from the Drakensberg to the Atlantic Ocean, there are flattened plateaus separated by rivers. Erosion has reduced some of the plateaus to kopje, conical hills topped with a layer of hard rock, often with many large round boulders that somehow hold together. This is the region of cereal crops and cattle breeding. Here is another scenery.
The famous Kruger in the north-east
Probably the reason, the motivation, the impetus given to many travelers arriving in South Africa, the Kruger National Park, in the northeast, has a small rocky escarpment that precedes the gigantic Kruger Park. The Kruger National Park is the most famous place in South Africa and is often the most important or unavoidable part of a trip. It covers about 20,000square meters of land, offering a very varied landscape from north to south. The area is characterized by bushveld-like vegetation: thick thorny bushes and woodland, whose density varies according to the weather. Rainy years leave behind dense vegetation in which animals hide in vain, while dry years turn the Kruger into a vast dry plain. It is through this scenery that many animal species reside, including the famous "Big Five".
Heading south
To the south, on the Atlantic Ocean side, a green coastal strip runs along the coast, before giving way to the semi-arid, stony plains of the Cederberg. The spring rains cover them with a magnificent carpet of flowers. The southern zone gives way to short mountain ranges, whose peaks often exceed 2,000 m in altitude, such as the Swartberg and Langeberg. These rocky bars separate the Greater Karoo from the Lesser Karoo, which extends to the heights of the Cape region. Cape Town is home to the famous Table Mountain and the magnificent Cape of Good Hope, incredible mountains that look out over the Atlantic Ocean. The Indian coast is made up of the Overberg from Cape Agulhas onwards, and the Garden Route, which owes its name to its many forests and swampy hedgerows.
In the Southeast Tropics
Mainly known for the city of Durban where the sun shines all year round and the waves are abundant for surfing enthusiasts, the coastal region, which separates the great rocky escarpment from the Indian Ocean, is a warm region in summer and winter in the Eastern Cape, and even tropical in KwaZulu-Natal where it is hot and humid all year round. The KwaZulu-Natal region is - by the way - much more attractive and rich in beautiful scenery than Durban, which does not age very well. In summer, the rains can be torrential and wash away everything in their path. The landscape is made up of sugar cane fields and green hills where islands of rondavels, the traditional round and colorful thatched huts, grow like little mushrooms.
