In a kaleidoscope
The Springbok Café is a good place to kick off your flower tour and have a juicy hamburger. The owner, Jopie Kotzé, knows the area very well. He was born in the building that now houses the mining museum in Nababeep.
 “The average person needs 14 days to cover all the regions. You need time, because the weather can be against you,” Jopie says.
We decide to drive to Nababeep first. “You’ll be dazzled,” someone told me earlier, and I’m not disappointed. This unassuming mining town is covered in bright orange daisies wherever we look.
 We get back in the car, turn around and head for the Goegap Nature Reserve, 15km southeast of Springbok. En route to the reserve’s information office we drive past a depression carpeted with sunshine-yellow buttons interspersed with orange arctotis. In the reserve we see fields and fields of flowers… and plenty of tour buses. 
It feels like being inside a kaleidoscope – purple Namaqualand felicia, yellow white-eyed duiker-roots (pietsnotjies), orange and pink vygies and daisies are splashed across the landscape.

Where are the flowers?
Visit the Goegap Nature Reserve, and drive the Spektakel, Wildeperdehoek and Messelpad passes, and the roads to the villages Nababeep and Concordia.
Drive three passes. “Wat een spektakel,” Simon van der Stel is said to have exclaimed when he descended the Spektakel Pass in 1685. From the highest point you have a magnificent view of the Buffels River all the way to the mining village Kleinzee. Glide down the new tar road into the valley.   
Turn left at the Komaggas sign, left at the Soebatsfontein sign and left again at a big four-way stop in the middle of an emerald-green landscape. Now you’re in the Namaqua National Park. Drive slowly to the top of the Wildeperdehoek Pass, from where you can see the sea. Carry on over the Messelpad Pass, past Nuweputs and back to Springbok.
And if it’s overcast? Drink a beer at the Okiep Hotel, and visit the Namaqualand Museum in the old synagogue and the Nababeep Mining Museum.
Contact: Tourism Information 027 712 8035; Namaqua National Park 027 672 1948; Springbok Lodge & Restaurant 027 712 1321; Goegap Nature Reserve 027 718 9906
Where can I stay? Springbok Caravan Park 027 718 1584; Springbok Hotel 027 712 1161 

Crown jewels
“I always send people to Skilpad. There are always flowers, even in bad years,” says the well-known flower photographer Colla Swart.
The farm Skilpad, 21km from Kamieskroon, was the birthplace of the Namaqua National Park. Colla pioneered the photographic workshops that are held here each year in the Kamieskroon hotel. She only started taking photography seriously when she was already in her 50s, which is an inspiration in itself.
We drink coffee and eat Una Thiart’s home-baked cheese cake at Oupa Fanie se Winkel next to the Kamieskroon Hotel. “If you sit on this hotel’s stoep, you’ll meet everyone south of the Sahara – and a few other places,” she says. “We’ve even sat on this stoep chatting to the late Anton and Huberte Rupert.”
Early the next morning my Golf crawls up the Kamieskroon Pass. There are those who claim the “kroon” in Kamieskroon refers to Kardoukop (which looks more like half a koeksister than a crown). Others say the village itself is the crown of the Kamiesberg.
The veld is green at the top of the pass, with a mixed bouquet of Karoo violets, felicias, daisies, pink Cape tulips and yellow-eyed sorrel. A garden gnome wouldn’t have looked out of place.
The road winds up, past the village Nourivier, to Leliefontein. “A few years ago it even snowed for four days during the flower season,” says Anita Smith, owner of Anita’s Tuckshop. “So we had snow and flowers.”
As I descend the Studer Pass which leads to Kamieskroon, I think of the other mountains in the flower region – the Matsikamma, Ceder, Kamies, all crowns in this apparently flat land. 

Where are the flowers?
Visit the Namaqua National Park and take the Kamieskroon and Studer passes past Nourivier and Leliefontein.
Sleep in a reed hut.
Vera Engelbrecht introduces visitors to the Nama culture: Outside Leliefontein, you can stay over in a traditional Nama hut, and enjoy “asbrood, dumplings and bloedpap.” It costs R100 per person, breakfast included.
Namaqua National Park.
Colla and Neil MacGregor of Nieuwoudtville identified Skilpad as a possible nature reserve, and the late Dr Anton Rupert donated the money to buy this patch of land of 933 ha. Today, the park spans about 100 000 ha. “Our plan is to eventually connect the park with a coastal strip between the Groen and Spoeg rivers,” says Bernard van Lente, manager of the park. “We want tourists here all year round, not only in the flower season. “This wilderness area stretches over high mountains and valleys. You won’t find a greater variety of flowers anywhere else.”
And if it’s overcast? Order a biltong scone at the coffee shop in the Namaqua National Park.

Learn to take better pictures.
Photographic workshops are held at the Kamieskroom Hotel, www.kamieskroonhotel.com
Contact: The Kamieskroom Hotel is a good starting point 027 672 1614; Namaqua
National Park 027 672 1948
Where do I stay? Verbe Caravan Park 027 672 1776; Pendoringhoek 027 672 1752; Vera Engelbrecht 027 672 1972.

Story time
“Before Garies, turn left onto the gravel road at the Hondeklipbaai – Koiingnaas sign,” explains Nelis Engelbrecht, a fourth-generation farmer in the area.
Around me, the hills are covered in pink and orange splotches. I drive deeper into the Sandveld to Sarrisam, where I’m staying over.
It’s near this farm that the former boxer and infamous spy Robey Leibbrandt was landed on the coast by the Germans in 1941. This is but one of the yarns you hear while enjoying a lamb chop.  The people in Namaqualand like to talk, and we stay up late, talking.
It’s a good thing the flowers open so late in the morning…
We drive to Groenriviermond in the afternoon.
When we reach the mouth, we’re greeted by the sight of dilapidated houses and beautiful, bright pink giant mat vygies in bloom. These holiday shacks, which have been here since 1967, are illegal and the government has said the occupiers have no title to the properties.
But they aren’t the only ones who love the West Coast.
In December, holidaymakers arrive with their caravans and set up camp all along the coast. There’s not a single Pam Golding sign (yet) on this stretch of coastline with its remote beaches and freezing water.

Where are the flowers?
Take the Groenriviermond and Hondeklipbaai routes and the Karas road to Kamieskroon.
 Along the dunes. From Groenriviermond you can also take a 4x4 trail to Hondeklipbaai. You will need a permit for this route because part of the road belongs to the De Beers mining company. Call Kleinzee Tourism on 027 807 2999.
And if it’s overcast? Every year during the flower season, Sonja Jordaan organises the Garies Tourism Exhibition, where you can buy country bric-a-brac such as leather hats, oil lamps, crocheted products and dates.
Contact: Garies tourism exhibition 027 652 1220
Where can I stay? Sarrisam farm accommodation 027 581 1021; Garies Hotel 027 652 1042; Garies municipal campsite 027 652 8000
 

Bulb hotspot
The clouds hang heavily and ominously. The old Bedford bus threatens to stall. I sit in front, next to farmer and conservationist Neil MacGregor. He coaxes the bus into a throaty growl and we set off for a tour of his farm.
Neil is one of the founding members of the Namaqua National Park, and his farm Glenlyon outside Nieuwoudtville is also a wild flower reserve. During the season he offers flower tours (R120 per person). The bus is packed with local and overseas flower watchers.
 “In Nieuwoudtville you get one of the biggest collections of bulbs in the world,” Neil says. A signpost as you drive into the town declares Nieuwoudtville “the bulb capital of the world”.
The town is high in the Bokkeveld Mountains in the Hantam Karoo, and its average rainfall is considerably higher than on the Knersvlakte. Four types of vegetation occur in the area: fynbos, renosterveld, dolerite soil vegetation and Karoo veld. It’s a good place to visit late in the season because of the altitude and the higher rainfall.
“Matjiesfontein is the farm with the biggest concentration of bulbs per square metre in the world,” Leana vanWyk of the Matjiesfontein Farm Stall told me earlier today when I stopped by.
It’s wonderfully warm in the stone building where they serve tripe, stews, bobotie, sweet peaches and fresh griddle cakes. For R8 you can wander around the veld and look at the flowers.
“People love seeing the dwarf babanias, soetkalkoentjies and, of course, the striking orange broadleaved bulbinellas, on our other farm, Boereplaas.” Leana’s son, Kobus, says, “These bulbinellas are such a deep orange because of the dolerite soil in which they grow. This is a phenomenon of the higher-lying areas.”
Kobus guides people on a 4x4 trail on Boereplaas.
This is certainly not a typical capital city. Here the flowers outnumber the humans by far!

Where are the flowers?
Visit the farm Glenlyon, the Niewoudtville Flower Reserve, and drive out along the Matjiesfontein and Loeriesfontein roads.
And if it’s overcast? On the Loeriesfontein road you can stop at the Nieuwoudtville waterfall and the quiver tree forest.
Contact: Contact the Nieuwoudtville Tourism Bureau 027 218 1336; Matjiesfontein Farm Stall 027 218 1217; or Glenlyon flower tours 027 218 1200. Visit www.nieuwoudtville.com or www.nieuwoudtville.co.za
Where can I stay? Van Zijl guesthouses 027 218 1535; Kokerboom Guest House
027 218 1249. If you want to camp, call the Hantam Municipality on 027 218 8700.
 

Desert and waterfalls
“Have a seat here,” Christo Paulsen from the Vanrhynsdorp Tourism Bureau says, indicating a chair behind the counter. The first visitors start trickling in, chatting about where the flowers are in bloom.  
“Even in the dry years, you’ll see beautiful flowers next to the Koebee road,” Christo says.
The Koebee road starts about 9km outside Vanrhynsdorp on the R27, direction Calvinia. First you drive through the Knersvlakte.
The road rises slowly, until finally you reach a sign reading “Koebeepas”. Most people turn around here, but this pass leads to the remote Koebee valley, where there are only a few farmsteads.
“Why do you want to go up that steep pass?” asked Gert Basson, a local farmer.
You seldom get out of second gear. The Knersvlakte shrinks behind and below you the Koebee valley lies green and lush. Crest the hill and speed down the other side of the hill to the bottom of the quiet valley. Continue at a leisurely pace and admire the fynbos.
At a fork in the road I turn around. I’d rather not bother the few farmers living in this beautiful, quiet nature’s garden.

Where are the flowers?
Take the Koebee Road, the Urionskraal route and the Gifberg route.
Go in circles. The Gifberg route is circular – it includes the Gifberg plateau, and offers a nice contrast to the Knersvlakte. At the top of the plateau, waterfalls tumble down sandstone cliffs and the fynbos thrives. You turn onto this road shortly after the Vanrhynsdorp Caravan Park.
Enjoy lunch on the wooden deck at Jan and Héla Huisamen’s Gifberg holiday farm.
And if it’s overcast? Hike one of the short trails on Gifberg (there’s a waterfall on each route); or visit the Latsky Radio Museum in the town.
Contact: Christo Paulsen at the Vanrhynsdorp Tourism Bureau 027 219 1552
Where can I stay? La Rochelle 084 511 6601; Gifberg Holiday Farm 027 219 1555; Vanrhynsdorp Caravan Park and self-catering units 027 219 1287
 

In the valley
I am too late for the flowers in the Biedouw valley, I’m told at the tourism office. But I drive there nevertheless. The road winds through the Cederberg wilderness area, past patches of rooibos tea plantations and C Louis Leipoldt’s grave, to the top of the Pakhuis Pass.
I stop on the plateau, the blue Biedouw Mountains to my left and the Krakadou Mountains to my right. Below are fields of yellow and orange daisies and purple violets.
I drive down Hoek-se-Berg Pass and turn left at the “Biedouwvallei” sign. The gravel road meanders through the valley, and I’m lucky enough to see clumps of snow-white star-of-the-marsh. The road ends at the Doring River, which runs hip-deep. 
 Between April and November, when the river is dry, it is possible to drive through to the R355 and then take the Botterkloof Pass to Calvinia or south to Ceres.
I return to Clanwilliam. Most of the wild flowers may have stopped blooming, but I’m still in time for the annual Wild Flower Show (usually the last week of August) in the tiny old Dutch Reformed church building. 
Seeing the beautiful exhibits of the different flower regions, I can almost imagine being in the veld – minus the heat and the flies. The only other missing ingredient is the sound of birdsong.
 

Where are the flowers?
Visit the Ramskop Nature Reserve and Wild Flower Garden, and drive the Ou KaapseWeg.
The merry-go-round. Drive a circular route:Take the R364, over the Botterkloof Pass, via Calvinia, Nieuwoudtville and Vanrhynsdorp, and back to Clanwilliam.
And if it’s overcast? Clanwilliam has coffee shops, curio shops and an art gallery or two. Also pop in at the Strassberger Shoe Factory and buy a pair of vellies or leather sandals.
Contact: Tourist Information Office 027 482 2024; www.clanwilliam.info.
Where can I stay? Clanwilliam Dam Resort 027 482 8012; CederbergWilderness Area (self-catering and camping), CapeNature 021 659 3500

To the sea
If it’s a good year, you’ll probably see white, yellow and orange daisies along most West Coast roads. But the most beautiful place to see flowers is the Postberg Nature Reserve in the West Coast National Park near Langebaan. This part of the park is open to the public for only two months of the year, August and September.
“In a good year, the entire West Coast is carpeted in flowers,” says the manager of the Tietiesbaai Campsite, whom everyone knows as Dekker. “Here at Tietiesbaai you’ll see the dune sea pink – that’s our prize flower – pink Bokbaai vygie, harlequin hesperantha… and gazania there at the very southern point below the fog horn.”
The Tietiesbaai Campsite is in the Cape Columbine Nature Reserve near Paternoster.
“You have to get out of your car and walk among the rocks and dunes,” Dekker says. “You’ll see the most beautiful little flower gardens.”

Where are the flowers?
West Coast National Park, Cape Columbine Nature Reserve.
Be prepared. Write down this date: 1 June – that’s when bookings open for the two-day hiking trail in the Postberg Nature Reserve in the West Coast National Park. This part of the park is open only in August and September, and it’s one of the best places to see fields of flowers while you smell the sea air, and see springbok, bontebok, eland and wildebeest too.
And if it’s overcast? Sit on the wooden deck at Pearly’s in Langebaan or eat curry at Geelbek Restaurant in the West Coast National Park.
Contact: West Coast National Park 022 772 2144; Cape Columbine Nature Reserve 022 752 2718
Where can I stay? Langebaan Tourism 022 772 1515; www.langebaaninfo.co.za. There is self-catering accommodation in the park and you can pitch a tent at Tietiesbaai.
 

Flower station
“Would you like a glass of wine?” asks my hostess, Pat McKay, when I put down my backpack, exhausted. She and her neighbour are sitting on a veranda. A cat slinks past. It’s mid-September, and her garden is in full bloom.
“People think that when Namaqualand’s flowers are finished, the flower season is over. They don’t realise there are still plenty of flowers in Darling. We have a great variety, and therefore you have different flowers at different times,” Dianne le Roux at the information office tells me later.
The Darling Wild Flower Show is from 14 to 16 September. There are a number of wild flower reserves in Darling and surrounds. “But you won’t see much if you drive by at 60 km/h. You have to get out and go on your knees in the reserves. It really is a personal experience when you get up close to the flowers,” Dianne says.
It’s overcast when I visit the Tienie Versfeld Reserve outside town. Almost 50 years ago, Tienie Versfeld donated 20 hectares of his farm Slangkop to the National Botanical Institute to conserve the rich variety of flowers.
I get to a gate with a sign that reads “Contreberg Wildflower Reserve”. I see the most beautiful wild flowers – purple-and-red wine cups, pyjama bush, rose-flowered sundew and bright orange kalkoentjies – in the long grass. I kneel and start taking pictures. And then a fat brown snake slithers through the grass barely 2 m from me. I back off quickly.
Once my heartbeat has returned to normal, I squat to take another picture. And then another snake heads my way, this time a white one. In a flash I’m back in the car – safely behind closed doors.
Phew, this is looking more and more like the Garden of Eden!

Where are the flowers?
Tienie Versfeld Reserve, the farm Contreberg, Waylands, Oudepost, Groenkloof Reserve, Renosterveld Reserve, Rondeberg Private Reserve and Buffelsfontein Game Reserve.
Bonus. Entry to most of the wild flower reserves is free, and you can simply walk in. Get a map from the tourism office in the Darling Museum.
For culture vultures. Darling’s Voorkamerfest is held from 31 August to 2 September. For a good dose of flowers and culture, book now at www.voorkamerfest-darling.co.za.
Are we there yet? You’ll want to drive a few circular routes or gravel roads, or drive
through a reserve or two. Always go to the tourism office first and get a good map. Most are free. Ask about the condition of the roads and where the best displays are.
And if it’s overcast? Find a scarf at The Marmalade Cat, buy home-made jam at the Vyge Vallei Farm Stall or have a giggle at Evita se Perron.
Contact: Museum information office 022 492 3361; www.darlingtourism.co.za or www.darlingwildflowers.co.za.
Where do I stay? Strathnaver B&B 022 492 3810; Waylands Guest House 022 492 2873; The Granary 022 492 3155.
 

When is flower time?
“The best time for flowers? No one can say; sometimes the flower season might be a month earlier,” says Jopie Kotzé of the well-known Springbok Lodge in Springbok. “There’s only One who knows,” he says, glancing up.
The start of the season, the length of the season and quality of the flowers depend on a few things: enough rain, good follow-up rain and no hot berg winds.
 The season usually stretches over six weeks, somewhere between July and September, with August being the high point. It’s safest to phone the tourism offices in flower country or get someone to ask their uncle in Garies to find out what the old people are predicting.
Because the flower season can’t be pinned down, it’s not always wise to book years in advance. There is plenty of accommodation available, from hotels and guesthouses to self-catering cottages and campsites. And, in most of the towns, the residents (including the farmers) make spare rooms in their homes available for flower seekers. You might also get the bonus of a few lovely farm meals and a nice chat thrown in with the room. Always ask about farm accommodation when you phone the tourism offices.
Which flowers grow where?
Namaqualand is much more than just fields of bright orange daisies – there’s also a variety of colourful shrubs, herbs, succulents, creepers and bulbs to see. Nieuwoudtville and Darling are famous for their bulbs, and the West Coast, Namaqualand and the Knersvlakte are the places to see those bright carpets of daisies.
In general, though, you get a bit of everything everywhere, but you have to get out of your car and go looking. 
“Usually, the first blooms appear in the low-lying areas such as the Knersvlakte and West Coast, because these regions warm up first,” explains Christo Paulsen of the tourism office in Vanrhynsdorp. “About a month later, when the low-lying flowers have finished blooming, the flowers in higher parts around Kamieskroon, Nieuwoudtville and Springbok start blooming.
“A good time to come if you want to see both regions is August, because that’s normally the middle of the flower season.”
Buy yourself a wild flower guide and see how many flowers you can identify.
How long should I stay?
If the weather co-operates and the sun shines every day, you can see more than enough during a long weekend. The different flower regions aren’t too far apart.
A good plan would be to spend two days driving around Garies and two days at Kamieskroon, or two days in Darling and two days in Clanwilliam. 
For the best experience, you should spend at least two days in a particular region. But remember, there’s a good chance you might also have a few misty days, and then the flowers won’t open. 

The Canadian photographer Freeman Patterson gives some tips:
Change your stance. “If you don’t spend half your time on your knees, you’ve missed out on a lot. All of us have a so-called holy height from which we take most of our pictures. This is usually the height of your eyes. But you have to be willing to look at this world from every imaginable angle. Bend your knees; sit on the ground; pretend you’re the height of a dog.”
Think small. “When I take people on photography excursions, we’ll never cover more than 2 km in four to five hours.”
Film favourite. “Film still gives the best results,” says Colla Swart. “Nobody wants to spend more than two hours in front of a computer.”
 

Goggas! Bear in mind that there are plenty of horseflies and other insects buzzing around the flowers; so remember to pack a hat and insect repellent.
Cash is king. Keep enough cash handy, as many places don’t have credit-card facilities.
Fill up. Make sure there’s enough fuel in your car in case you decide to take a detour.
Sun catchers. Plan your trip so you drive with the sun behind you, because the flowers turn their faces to the sun.
Something to read. Namaqualand: Garden of the Gods by Freeman Patterson; Wild Flowers of Southern Africa by Colin Paterson-Jones; Namaqualand: South African Wild Flower Guide by Annelise le Roux and Ted Schelpe; and Wildflowers of South Africa by John Manning.
Let someone else do the driving. You can book a tour that includes a train trip from Johannesburg to Worcester, and a bus trip on a circular route via Tulbagh, RiebeekWest, Moorreesburg, Hopefield, Langebaan, Velddrif, Clanwilliam, Wupperthal, Vredendal, Vanrhynsdorp and Nieuwoudtville. Contact JB Tours 011 913 2442; www.jbtours.co.za
 
(Note: Prices accurate in July 2009)