Klawer

Less than three hours drive from Cape Town lies Klawer a charming little town on the banks of the Olifants River which winds through many award winning vineyards.

Winemaking in the area with its rich soils and south-facing slopes that receive a cool nightly breeze from the nearby Atlantic ocean, is a tradition that Wine Cellars around Klawer continue with pride. Before the market value fell, raisins were produced on the many irrigated vineyards, which now produce wines. The Klawer cellars may be visited.

Klawer was named for the indigenous wild clover that abounds here. Farms offer various agricultural activities and picnicking while the nearby Doring River is absolutely ideal for all kinds of watersports. The town plays an important role in the Olifants River Irrigation scheme.

If you yearn for some peace and quiet and to escape from hectic city life, or if you yearn to get back to Nature, then this is your destination. Here landscapes that vary from citrus orchards and unspoilt fynbos in the south to the spring flowering splendour of the otherwise semi arid Namaqualand region in the north. Come and relax in surroundings that will soon heal your soul.

The town has a distinct rural atmosphere and character. The River flows from Klawer to Vredendal and writhes its way through hills and vineyards flowing eventually into the Atlantic Ocean.

Klawer is an excellent starting point from where you can discover the rest of the Olifants River Valley. In the flowering season the fields miraculously turn into a fairyland of color, contrasting sharply with the hard rocks and red earth and contributing to a magnificent sight. Tourist, who love history, will find the historical farm, Windhoek situated about 7km outside Klawer. Its on this farm that General Smuts and the British troops had a skirmish in 1902 during the Anglo-Boer War.

This rural settlement forms a junction from which the towns of Vredendal, Strandfontein, Lamberts Bay, Clanwilliam and Vanrhynsdorp are connected.Originally known as Klawervlei, named after the wild clover that grew abundantly in the locale, it was renamed Klawer when the railway line and bridge were completed in 1915. The town developed rapidly after the railway was completed.

* 4x4 Trails
* Birding
* Bulshoek Dam
* Doring River
* Hiking trails
* River Rafting
* San Rock Artwork
* Trawal
* Wild flowers
* Wine Estates