Built on the banks of the Great Fish River and surrounded by a series of hillocks and low mountains, Cradock lies in the Eastern Cape Midlands on the Johannesburg – Port Elizabeth route.

Its fascinating history dates back to the early 1800s when Cradock’s streets teemed with transport riders, hunters, artisans, frontier militias and men of the cloth. During the Anglo-Boer War, British forces used a heliograph to communicate over long distances. They also used it to play chess in the Cradock area, from hilltop to hilltop, during quiet periods.

Author and women’s rights activist Olive Schreiner wrote Story Of An African Farm on a farm near Cradock, and actually lived in the town for four years. Near the entrance to Cradock is the Monument to the Cradock Four, commemorating the Apartheid-era deaths of activists Matthew Goniwe, Fort Calata, Sparrow Mkhonto and Siklo Mhlaul.

CONTACTS: 

• Tuishuise on Market Street (charmingly restored Victorian-era cottages): (048) 881 1322; 
  
• Oude Pastorie Lodge:
  (048) 881 3011; 
  
• Annie’s House:
  (048) 881 5241;
  
• Mountain Zebra National Park (Reservations):
  (012) 343 1991; 
  
• Southern Cross Safaris:
  (048) 886 0606; 
  
• Amanzi River Rafting:
  (043) 735 1008; 082 336 2958;
  
• Cradock Tourism:
  (048) 881 2383; www.cradock.co.za