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36-716: The Kraai River (literally "Crow River") is a tributary of the Orange River (also called Gariep River by locals) that flows near Barkly East in the Eastern Cape , South Africa . The Kraai River originates in the mountains south of Lesotho and flows westward from the confluence of the Bell River and the Sterk Spruit at Moshesh's Ford at 30°51′09″S 27°46′40″E  /  30.852558°S 27.7777527°E  / -30.852558; 27.7777527 all

72-606: A velar fricative in place of the alveolar click , Groote River (derived from Kai !Garib ) or Senqu River (used in Lesotho), derived from ǂNū "Black". It is known in isiZulu as isAngqu. The Orange rises in the Drakensberg mountains along the border between South Africa and Lesotho, about 193 km (120 mi) west of the Indian Ocean and at an altitude of over 3,000 m (9,800 ft). The extremity of

108-483: A complete arch so flanking walls form gravity abutments to the central arch. It was built by Dumez , a French construction company. It must be carefully managed by balancing the supply-and-demand of this water resource usage for its derivatives of electricity generation, irrigation(food) and municipal drinking water. There is trade off in the water usage for electricity and inter-basin transfer for water in other areas like Port Elizabeth . The scheme diverts water from

144-550: A natural pipe through which the diamonds gradually enter the river. Other sites said to be lairs of the creature include the pool beneath the King George Cataract at Aughrabies Falls , which is also said to be a source of diamonds, and a large rock in the middle of the river itself. In this version of the legend, the Grootslang is also said to prey on cattle from the river's banks. As the collection point for

180-537: A strong association with the history of colonial subjugation and has therefore no place under the current democratic dispensation." In South African folklore, the Orange River is often associated with the Grootslang , a mythical being resembling a giant serpent, which is often connected to the river's alluvial diamonds. The Grootslang is described as living in a gem-filled cave connected to the Orange River by

216-1058: Is a river in Southern Africa . It is the longest river in South Africa . With a total length of 2,432 km (1,511 mi), the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibia to the north. It rises in the Drakensberg mountains in Lesotho, flowing westwards through South Africa to the Atlantic Ocean . The river forms part of the international borders between South Africa and Lesotho and between South Africa and Namibia, as well as several provincial borders within South Africa. Except for Upington , it does not pass through any major cities. The Orange River plays an important role in

252-719: Is found in the river headwaters in Lesotho. Seven species are endemic to the Vaal-Orange River system: Gariep Dam The Gariep Dam , at its commission in 1971, was originally named the Hendrik Verwoerd Dam after Hendrik Verwoerd , the Prime Minister before and after 31 May 1961, when the country changed from the Union of South Africa to the Republic of South Africa . However, after

288-460: Is generally not navigable for long stretches. The river has a total length of 2,432 km (1,511 mi). In the dry season , the volume of the water in the river is considerably reduced because of the rapid run-off and evaporation . At the source of the Orange, the rainfall is about 2,000 mm (79 in) per annum, but precipitation decreases as the river flows westward; at its mouth,

324-466: Is in a gorge at the entrance to the Ruigte Valley some 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) east of Norvalspont . The dam crest is some 1300 m (4250 ft) above sea level. The wall is 88 m high and has a crest length of 914 m and contains approximately 1.73 million m³ of concrete. The Gariep Dam is the largest storage reservoir in South Africa. In South African English , 'dam' refers both to

360-645: The Vanderkloof Dam . From the border of Lesotho to below the Vanderkloof Dam, the river bed is deeply incised. Further downstream, the land is flatter, and the river is used extensively for irrigation. At the western point of the Free State, southwest of Kimberley , the Orange meets with its main tributary, the Vaal River , which forms much of the northern border of the province. From here,

396-528: The sluices of the dams being open, a canoeist (or rafter) can easily travel 30 kilometres (19 mi) per day. The lower reaches of the river are most popular, because of the spectacular topography. Commercial tours are available, and these expeditions depart from the border town of Vioolsdrif . The Orange River has no large animals. It lies outside the range of the Nile crocodile , and although hippopotami were once abundant, they were hunted to extermination in

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432-493: The 19th century. The Orange River has a relative paucity of species diversity. Surveys from 1995 to 2001 in the Lower Orange River found 19 different fish species from eight different families. The two non-native species recorded in the surveys were Cyprinus carpio and Oreochromis mossambicus , the latter of which had increased rapidly in abundance since the early 1980s. Another exotic species, rainbow trout ,

468-526: The Gariep Dam and the Vanderkloof Dam. The hydroelectric power station at the Vanderkloof Dam was the first power-generation station in South Africa situated entirely underground. The towns Oviston and Oranjekrag were established to facilitate the construction and operation of the new infrastructure. Irrigation in the vast area downstream of the Vanderkloof Dam, which has turned thousands of hectares of arid veld into highly productive agricultural land,

504-534: The Orange River have grown in importance. Irrigation in the Eastern Cape has also received a tremendous boost, not only from the additional water being made available, but also owing to improvement in water quality. Without this improvement, the citrus farmers along the Lower Sundays River would almost certainly have continued to suffer losses of productivity. The Lesotho Highlands Water Project

540-638: The Orange River inside Lesotho is known as the Senqu . Parts of the Senqu River freeze in winter because of the high altitude. This creates droughts downstream, which mainly affect goat and cattle production. The Orange River then runs westward through South Africa, forming the south-western boundary of the Free State province . In this section, the river flows first into the Gariep Dam and later into

576-530: The Orange, where the river descends 122 m (400 ft) in a course of 26 km (16 mi). The Orange empties into the Atlantic Ocean between the small towns of Oranjemund (meaning "Orange mouth ") in Namibia and Alexander Bay in South Africa, about equidistant between Walvis Bay and Cape Town . Some 33 km (21 mi) from its mouth, it is obstructed by rapids and sand bars and

612-477: The Orange. Today, several commercial diamond mines operate along the final stretch of the Orange River and around its mouth. Because of the lack of dangerous animals and high water levels during summer, the river is used for recreational canoeing and rafting . Orange River rafting has become very popular with many companies using their camps along the river from which to operate. The most popular trips are four-day and six-day river trips that take place either along

648-684: The South African economy by providing water for irrigation and hydroelectric power . The river was named the Orange River in honour of the Dutch ruling family, the House of Orange , by the Dutch explorer Robert Jacob Gordon . Other names include simply the word for river, in Khoekhoegowab orthography written as !Garib , which is rendered in Afrikaans as Gariep River with the intrusion of

684-666: The Tugela River-Vaal River pumped storage scheme , which used the Sterkfontein Dam , located near Harrismith in the Free State. In 1867, the first diamond discovered in South Africa, the Eureka Diamond , was found near Hopetown on the Orange River. Two years later, a much larger diamond known as the Star of South Africa was found in the same area, causing a diamond rush. This was soon eclipsed by

720-413: The color of its tributary, the Vaal River , which name is derived from the name ǀHaiǃarib "pale river" ( vaal being Afrikaans for pale or grey). Since the end of apartheid , the name "Gariep" has had greater favour in official correspondence in South Africa, although the name "Orange" has greater international recognition. In Lesotho, where the river rises, it is known as the Senqu River, derived from

756-405: The diamond rush to mine diamonds directly from kimberlite at Kimberley in 1871, although alluvial diamonds continued to be found in the Orange. Today, several commercial diamond mines operate on the last stretch of the river, as well as the beaches around its mouth. Diamond mines also operate on the middle stretch of the river. During the temperate months of March and April, given good rains and

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792-523: The end of apartheid , the Verwoerd name was considered unsuitable. The name was officially changed to Gariep Dam on 4 October 1996. Gariep is Khoekhoe for "river", the original name of the Orange River (the longest river in the South Africa). The dam is on the Orange River about 48 kilometres (30 mi) north-east of Colesberg and 208 kilometres (129 mi) south of Bloemfontein . It

828-735: The gorge below the Augrabies Falls or along the Richtersveld area. The Orange River Project (ORP) was one of the largest and most imaginative projects of its kind in South Africa. It was constructed by Hendrik Verwoerd 's government at the height of the apartheid era. The ORP was built to exploit the waters of the Orange River—which, without the Vaal River, represents some 14.1% of the total runoff in South Africa—and in

864-479: The land area of South Africa (1,221,037 km (471,445 sq mi)). Around 366,000 km (141,000 sq mi) (38%), however, are situated outside the country in Lesotho, Botswana, and Namibia. Some of the earliest precolonial inhabitants called the river ǂNūǃarib , referring to its black colour, or sometimes just Kai !Arib ("Great River"), from which is derived the Afrikaans version Gariep , and translation "Groote Rivier". The early Dutch name for

900-563: The last 800 km (500 mi) of its course, the Orange receives many intermittent streams (such as the Fish River ), and several large wadis lead into it. In this section, the Namib Desert terminates on the north bank of the river, so under normal circumstances, the volume of water added by these tributaries is negligible. Here, the bed of the river is once again deeply incised. The Augrabies Falls are located on this section of

936-578: The majority of South Africa's water, the Orange River plays a major role in supporting agriculture, industry, and mining. To assist in this, two large water schemes have been created, the Orange River Project and the Lesotho Highlands Water Project . Historically, the river played an important role in the South African diamond rush , with the first diamonds in the country being discovered in alluvial deposits on

972-476: The original Khoemana name. The Eastern Cape Geographical Names Committee has advertised its intention to consider a name change from the colonial name, for that portion of the river that forms the border between the Eastern Cape and the Free State, with suggestions being IGqili or Senqu . The advertisement placed in the Aliwal Weekblad newspaper states that the "present name is perceived to have

1008-525: The process, to satisfy an increasing demand for water. The main objectives of the project were: The Gariep Dam near Colesberg is the main storage structure within the Orange River. From here, the water is supplied in two directions, westward along the Orange River (via hydroelectric power generators) to the Vanderkloof Dam and southward through the Orange-Fish Tunnel to the Eastern Cape. Eskom operates hydroelectric power stations at both

1044-538: The rainfall is less than 50 mm (2.0 in) per year. The factors that support evaporation, though, tend to increase in a westerly direction. In the wet season (summer), the Orange river becomes a brown coloured torrent. The huge mass of sediment carried constitutes a long-term threat to engineering projects on the river. The total catchment of the Orange River (including the Vaal) extends over 973,000 km (376,000 sq mi), i.e. equivalent to about 77% of

1080-512: The river flows further westward through the arid wilderness of the southern Kalahari region and Namaqualand in the Northern Cape province to meet with Namibia at 20°E longitude. From here, it flows westward for 550 km (340 mi), forming the international border between the province and Namibia's ǁKaras Region . On the border, the river passes the town of Vioolsdrif , the main border post between South Africa and Namibia. In

1116-510: The river was just that translation, Groote Rivier, meaning "Great River". The river was named the Orange River by Colonel Robert Gordon , commander of the United East India Company (VOC) garrison at Cape Town, on a trip to the interior in 1779. Gordon named the river in honor of William V of Orange . A popular but incorrect belief is that the river was named after the supposedly orange color of its water, as opposed to

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1152-400: The structure and the water volume it retains. Gariep Dam has a total storage capacity of approximately 5,340,000 megalitres (5,340 hm ) and a surface area of more than 370 square kilometres (140 sq mi) when full. The hydro-electrical power station houses four 90 MW generators. The structure is a concrete gravity-arch hybrid dam. This design was chosen as the gorge is too wide for

1188-486: The way to Aliwal North , where it joins the Orange River at 30°40′02″S 26°45′06″E  /  30.66715°S 26.75177°E  / -30.66715; 26.75177 . The river flows almost entirely over sandstone rocks of the Clarens Formation . The Kraai is fishable, containing rainbow trout , brown trout and smallmouth yellowfish . In 1881 a sandstone arch bridge called the J W Sauer bridge

1224-632: Was completed over the river. The bridge linked communities in the Kraai River basin with Aliwal North . The Sauer bridge and the Loch Bridge on the farm Tyger Krantz, are now Provincial Heritage sites. This Eastern Cape location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article related to a river in South Africa is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Orange River Quthing , The Orange River (from Afrikaans / Dutch : Oranjerivier )

1260-912: Was conceived to supplement the water supply in the Vaal River System. Water is delivered to South Africa by means of the delivery tunnel which passes under the Lesotho South Africa border at the Caledon River , and then under the Little Caledon River south of Clarens in the Free State, and discharges into the Ash River about 30 kilometres (19 mi) further to the north. The scheme became viable when water demands in Gauteng reached levels that could no longer be supported economically by alternative schemes such as

1296-512: Was made possible by the construction of the Gariep and Vanderkloof Dams. Old established irrigation schemes such as those at Buchuberg , Upington , Kakamas , and Vioolsdrif have also benefitted because regulation of the flow is now possible. On the Namibian side of the river, Aussenkehr produces grapes with the help of water from the Orange. In recent years, the wine-producing areas along

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