Kowyn Pass
| Kowyn Pass | |
|---|---|
| Elevation | 1,448 m |
| Location | between Graskop and Bushbuckridge |
| Range | Drakensberg |
| Coordinates | 24°57′39″S 30°51′46″E / 24.96083°S 30.86278°E |
Kowyn Pass is situated in Mpumalanga province, on the R533 road between Graskop and Bushbuckridge (Bosbokrand), South Africa. The pass was completed on 3 October 1959. It descends from an altitude of 1,448 metres above sea level near Graskop, by 500 metres to Bushbuckridge, which implies an average slope of 1:14.[1]
History
The pass is believed to have been built along an ancient pedestrian route which connected the lowveld to higher areas towards the west.[2] It is named for the 19th century Bakwena chief Kobêng Moxane, who the Voortrekkers referred to as Kowyn.[3] He settled his faction of the Pulana tribe on the Graskop escarpment, after the Swazis scattered them from a former settlement near Pretoriuskop.[2] They were Sotho-speaking people who were initially displaced from the highveld by the disturbances of the Mfecane,[4] and subsequently migrated northwards to escape raids by the Swazis.
Rock fall shelter
A major rock fall occurred in 1973 at a point where the pass skirts a very steep hill. When rock falls continued despite the area being anchored, the Transvaal Provincial Roads Authority decided in 1977 to construct a reinforced concrete rockfall shelter as a permanent and fail-safe protective measure. The construction of the shelter, some 170 metres long, was completed in August 1980.[5]
References
- ^ Erasmus, B.P.J. (1995), Op Pad in Suid-Afrika. ISBN 1-86842-026-4
- ^ a b Rowe, Christine. "Heritage management of archaeological, historical and industrial resources on the Blyde River Canyon Nature Reserve" (PDF). repository.up.ac.za. University of Pretoria. Retrieved 20 April 2016.
- ^ Potgieter, Dirk J., ed. (1972). "Kowyn's Pass". Standard Encyclopaedia of Southern Africa. Vol. 6. Cape Town: Nasou. p. 452. ISBN 978-0-625-00322-8.
- ^ Bulpin, T.V. (2012). Lost Trails on the Lowveld (5th ed.). Pretoria: Protea Book House. pp. 79–80. ISBN 978-1869195557.
- ^ Kirsten, HAD (1982). "Design and construction of the Kowyn's Pass rockfall shelter" (PDF). sabinet. Die Siviele Ingenieur in Suid-Afrika. pp. 477–492. Retrieved 20 April 2016.