- Harts River
It rises on the far southwestern slopes of the
Witwatersrand and flows for 320 km (about 200 miles) in a southwesterly direction (mostly through very flat areas of theNorth West Province ) before flowing into the Vaal River about 100 km above the confluence of that river with the Orange (Gariep). TheLittle Harts River which rises near Coligny joins theGreat Harts River , which rises nearLichtenburg , to form the main river. Near Taung, theDry Harts River , a seasonal river with its headwaters in theVryburg area, also joins it. The river is characterised by highly intermittent runoff, but is regulated to optimise water usage.Most of the fish found in the river are introduced species, except for Barberspan, which has indigenous species.
Near the towns of
Sannieshof andDelareyville , the river is connected toBarbers Pan (26°35' S 25°35' E), which lies partially inside tThe Barbers Pan Nature Reserve and is aRamsar wetland site . The pan is 11 km long and 3.5 km wide, and is named afterFrederick Hugh Barber FRGS, who hunted along the Harts River in 1875 and not, as has been suggested, after the barbel ("baber" in theAfrikaans language), a species of catfish found in South African rivers. In 1913,Jan Christiaan Smuts , who owned a farm near the southern end of the pan, provided the labour and his foreman, Mr M.S. Basson, supervised the digging of a channel which diverted water from the Harts River into the pan, which lies about 9 m lower than the river. The area is so flat that the Harts River now pushes enough water into Barbers Pan during the rainy season to last through the dry winter months, where previously the pan used to dry up during the dry season. This was ecologically important, since the pan now became a large perennial water body in an area of otherwise seasonal pans andvlei s. It became an oasis forbird s (especiallywater fowl ) which use it for feeding, drinking, roosting, moulting and breeding. Up to 20,000 birds of more than 320 species can be seen at theBarbers Pan Bird Sanctuary , making it a popular birding spot, probably the finest in South Africa. Seven endangered bird species and two endangered mammal species occur here. Barberspan also supports a rich plankton community. (RAMSAR, 1994).Barbers Pan is also the venue for off-road vehicle rallys, like the
Barberspan 500 .There is a hotel, self-catering accommodation and camping facilities on the site.
Further downstream, the town of
Schweizer-Reneke (founded in October 1888) lies on the banks of the river.Wenzel Dam , just north of the town on the river, has been developed into a holiday resort.In around 1850, a dam was built in the river next to
Dikgatlong , but it was washed away during a flood in 1856.Near the confluence of the Harts and Vaal Rivers a major irrigation system, the
Vaal-Harts Scheme has been set up in 1933 as part of the national reconstruction effort after the Depression. Here water drawn from both the Vaal and the Harts rivers provide water to intensively irrigate numeroussmallholding s through a system of canals in an otherwise dry area of the country, supporting towns such asJankempdorp andVaalharts .Around the northern part of the Scheme lie the settlements of
Pampierstad ,Motsweding ,Mokgareng ,Manthestad andTaung , all with mostlyTswana speaking residents. Taung became famous after the discovery of the skull of the so-calledTaung Child in a lime quarry 14 km west of the town. The quarry is not in use anymore and is now theTaung Heritage Site and open to the public. To the west of the town, theTaung Dam was built in the Harts River. Upstream of the dam some rock engravings can be seen.On
31 March 1902 , during the final months of theSecond Boer War , theBattle of Harts River , also known asBoschbult , was fought between theBoers and the British Forces near the confluence of the Harts River and theBrak Spruit , one of its dry tributaries. The battle was a British defeat and was also the bloodiest day of that war for theCanadian Forces , who fought on the British side.Alluvial diamond mining still occurs in ancient river beds within the Harts River catchment area. The Newlands Mine is located some 60 km northwest of Kimberley on the river. It is currently being mined at a rate of 3000 tonnes per month by the companyDwyka Diamonds Limited.Noble Minerals , in cooperation with the localBa-Ga-Maidi tribe has set up an operation to exploit the alluvial diamonds within 20 square kilometres of diamondiferous gravels of the river system, near Taung.References
* [http://www.tourismnorthwest.co.za/barberspan/overview.html North West Province Tourism - Barbers Pan Bird Sanctuary] . Includes a picture.
* [http://www.ho.org.za/PhotoAlbum/2004/Barberspan/barberspan.htm North West Parks & Tourism Board Honorary Officer Association Photo Album] . Many pictures of Barbers Pan.
* [http://www.civilization.ca/cwm/boer/battlehartsriver_e.html Canadian War Museum - Battle of Harts River] . Includes a map.
* [http://www.britannica.com Encyclopædia Britannica]
* [http://www.dwykadiamonds.com/Pages/african.html#Newlands Dwyka Diamonds - Newlands Kimberlite Mine]
* [http://www.nwpg.gov.za/soer/FullReport/water.html North West Provincial Government - Water Resources]
* [http://www.sabirding.co.za/birdspot/070101.asp South African Birding - Birding Spots - Barbers Pan and environs]
* [http://www.dwaf.gov.za South African Department of Water Affairs and Forestry Website]
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