Ladismith

Ladismith is a town on Route 62 in the Klein Karoo Western C

Ladismith is a town in the Klein Karoo, South Africa and not to be confused with the Ladysmith in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa. Ladismith lies along Route 62, 300km east from Cape Town and 100km west from Oudtshoorn. Ladismith is famous for, amongst other things, Towerkop, the split mountain peak which looms over the town, Stanleys Light and the Royal Hotel.

Towerkop Mountain Peak (2189m) looms above Ladismith. Local legend has it that a witch, flying overhead, struck the peak in anger with her wand because it obstructed her passage over the mountain. Her anger resulted in Towerkops unique appearance - the peak is split in two. These two peaks are called the Pinnacles. There is a hiking trail leading up to Towerkop which can be completed in a day if you are fit.

Elandsberg (2128m) lies to the east of Towerkop. Halfway up this mountain youll find a famous landmark, sometimes referred to as Ladismiths extra star in the galaxy: Stanleys Light (1500m). Erected in 1963 by Stanley de Wit, an inhabitant of the town, it consisted of a bicycle lamp and dynamo being powered by a waterstream. An indication of the availability of water for the surrounding farms and the town itself was hereby established. It was rebuilt recently - a cars generator replaced the bicycle dynamo and a headlight the bicycle lamp.

You can walk all the way up to Stanleys Light and it should only take you a couple of hours. At least 60 tourist busses per month use Route 62 from Barrydale through Ladismith to Oudtshoorn and eventually to the South Coast. A wide variety of scenic routes are accessible from Ladismith. If one travels east through the beautiful Hoeko Valley, breathtaking views of orchards in the spring and autumn can be experienced. Turning into the Seweweekspoort pass, spectacular rock formations can be seen as the road follows the winding riverbed for 21km through the mountains and emerges in the Great Karoo. From here the N1 national road leads to Beaufort West and Gauteng.

Ladismith is the center for a prosperous farming community producing fruit (export grapes, apricots and plums), milk (for two cheese factories), wine, flowers and mutton. There are even some ostriches around! Ladismith produces about a third of South Africas apricots and the Ladismith Agricultural Co-operative markets the fruit locally and overseas. Ladismith is situated in a region that is considered to be the best quality milk-producing area in South Africa. Parmalat, one of the two cheese factories, uses about 100 million litres of milk annually. The other cheese factory, Ladismith Cheese, although a relatively new business, has already made huge inroads into the dairy market. A powder factory was recently erected on the premises. Ladismiths businesses are listed here.

Ladismith is unique in the sense that is has its own individual building style. The so-called Ladismith style is a simplified Georgian design and dates from the 1830s. Several other architectural styles, i.e. Neo-Gothic, Georgian, Victorian, Regency and Rural (Karoo) style, can also be found.

Accommodation in and around South Africa