6 Best Sights in The Northern Cape, South Africa

South Africa's largest falls by volume of water, Augrabies plunges 653 feet over terraces and into an 18 km (11 miles) long gorge, which was carved into smooth granite over millions of years. It is strangely otherworldly, mesmerizing to behold. Legend has it that an unplumbed hole beneath the main falls is filled with diamonds washed downriver over millennia and trapped there.

You can hike in the park for an hour or several days, and you don't need a guide. Markers will direct you along routes that range from the short Dassie Nature Trail to the three-day Klipspringer Hiking Trail. You can also drive to the park's beautiful, well-appointed lookout points showcasing the gorge below the falls; scenic stops are highlighted on the maps provided with your entry permit. All are easily accessible and well marked. Unfenced Ararat provides the best views. Oranjekom, which is fenced and has a shaded hut, is particularly welcome in the blistering summer heat. The Swartrante lookout offers a view over rugged, barren areas of the park. Some areas suggest that you've arrived on another planet; others might evoke the Arizona Badlands.

If you have a 4x4, you can spend a good six hours following the 94-km (60-mile) Wilderness Road into some of the reserve's most remote parts. Midway along it is a scenic picnic spot where there are toilets and a braai (barbecue) area.

Depending on how things are with the pandemic, you might have to undergo a quick COVID-19 screening at the main gate. The visitor center, with an information office, shop, and restaurant, is a few miles down the road; this is also where you'll pay entry fees and where boardwalks to the main falls viewing areas and the SANParks rest camp are situated.

If you do one thing in Kimberley, visit the Big Hole, which, at 2,690 feet deep, is the world's largest hand-dug hole. Although water now fills most of its depth, it's still impressive, particularly from the observation post. You also get to explore facsimile tunnels for a sense of what it might have been like for miners—there's even a simulated dynamite blast that can take you unawares. At the end of the tunnels, comprehensive museum displays document the history of both the city and the mine. Replicas of the world's most famous diamonds, including the Eureka, a 21-carat yellow diamond that was South Africa's first recorded diamond discovery in 1866, are also on view.

Touring the extensive, open-air Kimberley Mine Museum, on the lip of the mine, is like stepping back in time to wander through a mining town with a host of authentic 19th-century buildings, many of which were moved here from the city center. They include the first house erected in Kimberley (1877), which was originally brought piece by piece from Britain to the diamond fields by ship and ox wagon; Barney Barnato's boxing academy; and the very popular Occidental Bar, which serves pub-style food and is reminiscent of a Wild West saloon. There is also a hotel, The New Rush Guesthouse, whose good-value accommodations are in a variety of the museum site's old buildings and have antique furniture and slipper bathtubs that enhance the time-travel sensation.

This game reserve northeast of Upington is one of the most child friendly in southern Africa, and children are not only welcomed but also well accommodated. The dedication of the rangers and attentiveness of the staff also allows for flexibility and special opportunities, from sleeping under the stars on the "Malori" open deck to enjoying an in-room Champagne breakfast in lieu of going out on a game drive. In addition, every group of guests is guaranteed its own game-viewing vehicle with a dedicated ranger and a tracker who knows the terrain and the animals intimately.

The reserve plays a very important conservation role. Backed by funds from the De Beers family, its desert black rhino population represents one-third of South Africa's remaining animals. In addition to rhino sightings, the on-foot experience with a colony of meerkats is a highlight, as are visits to 380,000-year-old rock engravings from the earliest residents of these phenomenal landscapes.

If you wish to see a pangolin, consider prearranging a visit with the reserve's specialist researcher. A few hours with Dr. Wendy Panaino will improve your odds of spotting one of these elusive, shy, adorable creatures. You can also explore parts of the reserve on horseback. Two stables welcome riders of all skill levels to participate in anything from short, gentle outings to adventurous outrides that offer utterly unique views of the reserve and its wild creatures.

Your stay will include a meal at the memorable Klein JAN restaurant, a true original in the culinary universe. Other meals will also be fabulous, too, with breakfast and lunch served whenever you please and, perhaps, a surprise dinner on the dunes.

Each spring, this reserve transforms into a wildflower mosaic, which you can explore on either of two short—4- and 6-km (2½- and 4-mile)—walking trails; mountain biking within the reserve is also permitted. A count has recorded 581 different plant species within the reserve, and there are animals to see, too, including Hartmann’s mountain zebras, oryxes, springbuck, klipspringers, duikers, and steenbuck. There are also some 94 different bird species, including ostriches, Cape eagle-owls, martial eagles, Verreaux's (or black) eagles, Ludwig's bustards, and Damara canaries.

Goegap is also home to the Hester Malan Wildflower Garden, which displays an interesting collection of succulents, including the bizarre halfmen or "half person" (Pachypodium namaquanum), featuring a long, slender trunk topped by a passel of leaves that makes it resemble an armless person—hence the name. There are picnic sites, and, during flower season, there's a small on-site kiosk where you can get a bite to eat. Quaint, simple, gas- and solar-powered, three-bedroom chalets cost as little as R1,000 per night per couple. The nightly rate for smaller, more basic "bush huts," with no electricity and shared ablutions, is R250.

About 30 minutes from the Twee Rivieren entry gate to Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, this private nature reserve was established by the late zoology professor Anna Rasa who wanted to focus on the region's smaller creatures. Her son, Richard, now oversees the 9-acre property, where activities include up-close looks at meerkats being nursed back to health; walks to see animals you wouldn't necessarily spot on drives in the Transfrontier Park; sundowner and nighttime drives, where a spotlight makes it easier to see nocturnal creatures such as aardvarks; and nighttime scorpion "hunts" using flashlights to look for these arachnids, which are collected for identification and then later released (except for the few that are fed to the meerkats).

The main treat, though, is the chance to observe the resident meerkat family in its natural environment, walking with them as they move out into the landscape, foraging as they go. There are also some basic rooms (some with en suite bathrooms) and bush-camp accommodations if you don't mind roughing it; overnight guests are able to explore the property on foot.

If you're missing the sea, a sedate sunset cruise on the Orange River could be just the thing. Sakkie se Arkie (literally "Sakkie's Little Ark") is a little family operation offering a 90-minute trip on a double-decker raft complete with a cash bar. You might see catfish, monkeys, and eagles and other birds. But the main ingredients for the fun are the lively crowd, the gentle sensation of the cruise, and the wonderful cocktails made by Sakkie's wife. It generally only operates on weekends, but it might head out during the week if there are enough people interested.