Let peace creep into your soul — day drives in and around Richmond

Daily Maverick

5 days ago

Discover Richmond, the 'Book Town' and explore a place where art, literature and Northern Cape Karoo history intertwine.
Richmond in the Northern Cape was once a sleepy little farmers' village where N1 travellers from Johannesburg or Cape Town stopped for refuelling and refreshments before resuming their journeys.
Today, Richmond is a town with a constantly evolving social landscape. Now branded as a Booktown, it has seen the arrival of 'semigrants' from urban life, impressive investment in accommodation facilities and the establishment of a huge creative space in the form of the Modern Art Project of South Africa – MAP-SA.
Your first day in Richmond is all about a local meander.
Most visitors begin on the main street (Loop Street) with the Richmond Horse Museum (the only other one in existence is based in Kentucky, US), where curator Johan Tolken is only too pleased to provide an insightful tour of the wagons, saddles, histories and South African War artefacts.
Then we go right next door to Richmond Books, Art and Photography, a converted house and courtyard full of literary tomes covering a variety of local and international subjects, in fiction and non-fiction forms.
Karoo Creations, also on Loop Street, is where you'll pick up a selection of fine woollen duvets for cold winter nights.
Lunch can be taken in the shady courtyard of Die Vetmuis Restaurant on the main street. After a brief rest out of the hot Karoo sun, we visit the MAP Gallery down the road and wander around the huge displays of South African contemporary art.
The next morning we're off to Hanover, about 65km north of Richmond. We're leaving well before dawn, so that we can ascend the little hill (Trappieskoppie), watch the sun rise over the vast Karoo landscape and, if it's summertime and we're lucky, see thousands of Lesser Kestrels flying off in all directions for a day of feeding.
After a late breakfast at the Hanover Lodge Hotel, we'll visit the Hanover Museum on Viljoen Street for a deep dive into the town's history. And then it's on to a tour of the magnificent Dutch Reformed Church across the road. Before the era of electricity the church chandeliers were powered by methane gas sourced from sheep dung.
The day ends back in Richmond at the Saddles Bar, an atmospheric local drinking spot that keeps to the Karoo Equine theme of the region. And yes, the barstools are actually saddles.
We leave Richmond as the first morning rays begin to tickle the steeple of the Moederkerk on the main road, and we drive west on dirt roads, following the signs to De Aar and Merriman.
Today, we are going to look at what's left of Deelfontein, once a railside settlement during the South African War that bustled with the cacophony of military matters: troop trains leaving, hospital trains arriving, mounted regiments passing through with news from afar, daily traffic in the massive tent city and the occasional outflow of celebration from the officers' mess.
In its time, it was said to have been the largest military field hospital in the southern hemisphere. At the height of its one-year existence as the Imperial Yeomanry Hospital, Deelfontein had 800 patients and 200 staff.
Nearby stands the portico of The Yeomanry, a once-classic Karoo hotel that was inspired by the Lord Milner Hotel in Matjiesfontein, Western Cape.
Know before you go
Take your time meandering around Richmond and surrounds. The longer you stay, the more peace creeps into your soul. If you'd like to have a look inside the impressive church, ask for the verger ('koster'). In the restaurants the food is good and the portions generous. Visit all the bookshops and the antique shops, and remember that some establishments close over lunch. DM
For an insider's view on life in the South African Heartland, get the Karoo Quartet set of books (Karoo Roads I-IV with black and white photographs) for only R960, including taxes and courier costs in South Africa. For more details, contact Julie at