Krugersdorp forms part of Johannesburg’s West Rand area and is a mining town largely regarded as the industrial hub of western Gauteng. Gold, manganese, iron, asbestos and lime are mined in and around the Krugersdorp area. The region is steeped in mining history, which was set in motion following the discovery of gold on the Paardekraal farm. There are still a variety of old buildings and churches that give the area a sense of age-old beauty, but in recent years the town has certainly developed and modernized.
Nature lovers will be interested in the Krugersdorp Game Reserve, which measures 1400 hectares and is easily drivable in a day. Visitors are guaranteed seeing a range of game, including buffalo and hippo, zebra and giraffe, as well as a pride of lions in a separate enclosure. The South African National Bird of Prey Centre is also found in the vicinity, as well as the Railway and Steam Train Museum, where train fanatics can feast their eyes on around 90 old steam train locomotives.
Krugersdorpis also home to a World Heritage Site in the Sterkfontein Caves. Here, one can see a myriad of stalagmite and stalactite formations and there are guided tours through the limestone structures via an enormous underground lake, which makes for an exciting day out. Known as the Cradle of Humankind, the caves have produced nearly half of the world’s hominid fossil discoveries, making this area synonymous with archaeologists and historians around the world.
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