S1 - Ep 267 - Kathu - Known as the Town under the Trees!
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- Опубліковано 2 бер 2023
- We had a pleasant and short drive to Kathu from Kuruman where we were greeted with roadworks as we entered the town. The biggest surprise was the huge mining vehicles permanently on display just as you enter Kathu. We could not believe the size of these pieces of machinery. As we drove further into the village, we now understand why it is known as the town under the trees. This place has an incredible amount of camelthorn trees. They even have green areas in town which are protected. It really looked like an organised place and we were truly impressed. Sad that the caravan park is no longer in operation, I think it must have been a beautiful place to stay. #DustBugs #adventuretravel #southafrica #southafricavlog #travelongravel #northerncape #kathu
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The entire town was the highlight for me, WoW, now I can see why my friend said that they will never return to Cape Town after settling in Kathu a few years ago. Its more beautiful than I imagined thanks to your brilliant showcasing of the place. There are 3 scheduled flights to Kathu daily from Johannesburg. Us "Kaapenaars" are oblivious and may I say naive about the stong economic growth happening in the Northern Cape as has been highlighted in this great series so far. Incredible...Thank-you for taking us with.
Yup, I can also understand why your friend wouldn't want to leave Kathu! It was a stunning surprise from the moment we entered town right until we left. 🚜🌳 The name always intrigued us and the town most certainly lived up to it. We were so shocked by this town which we expected to be a fairly small one and to find this bustling, organised, beautiful place in this region of the Northern Cape, was a fantastic experience which we thoroughly enjoyed. 🚙👌🏻
Hehehe, Whow Sonia....a drawertjie
And she tells me I would've been a Penkop! 😁
I thought Kathu was a dry dusty hell hole. Pleasantly surprised to see a beautiful green thriving town!
It certainly appears to be all those things you mentioned and we loved all of it! 🚙🌳
Hi Sonia and Curtis....Please whatever you do , don't ever run out of this beautiful country or ever think to stop looking!! If it were not for you two very many people, world wide according to quite a few comments noted, would be aware of how diverse our country is!.
A comment a know that is worth making......YOU ARE DOING A JOB OUR NATION NEEDS.
Keep doing what few people will be able to emulate. You will import visitors while others watch in awe!.
Thank you so much for your very kind comment! 😊 We're having the time of our lives, discovering and exploring places in South Africa which we never knew or knew precious little about. 🚙🌳 And we love sharing our experiences just as much, so it means so much to us to hear that you enjoy watching our videos. If they inspire tourists from abroad to visit and explore our beautiful shores and locals to venture further and deeper than they've done before, our job is done! 😍🇿🇦
I know two brothers that grew up in Kathu. I used to listen to them explaining the size of the mining equipment and it used to drop my jaw 😁. What an impressive town, thanks for sharing 🏆
I can only imagine how it must be to be working with that kind of equipment on a daily basis! 😳🚜 I've seen them on TV before, but to physically stand next to it, really only put its size into proper perspective. It was awesome to see! 🚙🌳
when my kids were small we stayed there for 2 years and then only that big truck was there and the kids could climb onto it.
So they must've added the excavator later. 🚜😍 You probably saw that the equipment is now fenced, so I wasn't able to climb on. I would've loved to do just as your kids did when you lived in town! 🚙🌳
My father started his own busniss in 1974 in Katku under the name Sishen construction.
My suster was in matric 1980 and I start my first year of high school in Kathu.
Very nice Town 🌈🌈🌈
Indeed, we loved it too! 🚙🌳
Thanks for the trip down memory lane. It's incredible how that place had changed in 20 years. I remember playing rugby there in the early 90's when our primary school went there. We played barefoot and lost badly due to not knowing where the thorn patches were and ended up with sore feet. 20 years ago I did my apprenticeship there at the Sishen Training Centre. The town look much bigger and sad to say, not nearly as beautiful as it was back then. The roads used to be immaculate and the streets were lined with well kept lawns. I had so many good times there... My wife and I passed there 10 years ago on our honeymoon and the large mining machinery at the town entry was not closed off yet. We were able to climb into them and we also took some photos to show the sheer scale of those machines.
Thank you for sharing your memories of Kathu! I especially enjoyed the story about you not knowing where the thorn patches were on the rugbyfield! 😁🏉 It was our first visit to Kathu and we thought it a beautiful and green town. 🌳💚 I have no trouble believing that it was even prettier in the past though, but they're doing a fantastic job keeping it and its facilities in good shape. As far as the roads go, it seems to be a common problem as in the rest of the province and indeed most of the country. 🤷🏼♂️🛣️ I wish the mining equipment weren't fenced off, but they would most probably be vandalised, so better that way I guess. 🚙🚜
@@DustBugsTravel I just love those Heavy Duty Trucks & Cranes ...
Worked across the road from Concor Roads Couldn't help myself admiring those Massive Vehicle's .
Best time of the year was when Vehicles returned back for year end shut down .
Hi you two! Thank you for this really beautiful outing. It is so surprising to see a modern town in that area under those wonderful green camel-thorn trees and so wide and spaciously planned.
Actually, everything was stunning; from the neat CBD to the green country club, the beautiful church, the educational establishment, the model of the Taal Monument and the huge mining machinery on display. Kathu has has much to brag about, and nothing to hide. I hope they do not run out of iron ore.
I could not help but notice that for most of the visit there were mostly blue skies and that you were punished with rain for leaving town!
Can't wait for our next trip!
Keep safe!
Kathu is an incredibly impressive town and we think its residents must be very happy in that gorgeous enivronment, where so much thought has been given to maintain some of the camel tree forest. 🌳💚 You listed all the places and things we found so interesting and we loved every single one of them. We did not expect to happen upon such an organised town when we decided to visit Kathu. The rain was rather heavy there as we were leaving, I'm glad Kathu wanted us to stay and I wish we could have lingered a little longer. 🚙🌧️
Wow, what a beautiful town. The trees are stunning. The shade is so much needed when the heat build up in that part of our country. Thanks guys once again well done. These days I am like a small child waiting for his weekly childrens magazine!
We need trees in the really hot parts as well, please! Draw a line from De Hoek to Somerset East - in between lie the hottest regions in SA, but people somehow don't know. Worcester saw 54 in the shade, 76 in the sun, as measured and certified by UCT Entomology dept. Tarmac often melted there. Ek ly aan afasie, kry nie die woord nie. Al die warmste dorpe op dieselfde breedtegraad. Dit moet daarmee te doen hê.
@Marius Roos And we are happy to deliver your weekly magazine with four stories right to your door! 😁🚙 Kathu is really an exceptionally beautiful town and I can only imagine all those trees providing lovely shade when it gets really, really hot. I think we lucked out with the weather and of course the rain helped a little in that department too! 🌧️🥵
Hi,i like your programs,I'm from Kathu,working at Khumani Assmang iron ore mine,the ttucks I'm loading is much bigger and takes a load abot 260 tons on truck😎😊
I'm glad you enjoyed our video of your hometown! 🚙🌳 That's super impressive, you play with huge toys every single day, what a responsibility to operate big machinery like that. Thanks for sharing that with us, much appreciated! 👌🏻🚜
Those truck was parked there once it was replaced by a bigger one!
It was great to visit this town through your eyes. Never new Kathu was so big.
Me neither! I was super surprised at both the size and the beauty of this town! 😳🌳 Thank you for tagging along, I'm glad you enjoyed it! 🚙😁
Seems to be a spread out town with so many roads. Lovely and green.
You're right, Kathu is a sprawling and beautiful green town! It was fun driving through the gorgeous tree-lined streets! 🚙🌳
It’s enviably green and lush - and all of those magnificent trees everywhere you look!
I cannot possibly top the wonderful comments others have left, so I just LIKED them all.
Green and lush is exactly what Kathu is, from the first moment to the last. 🌳💚 It was a wonderful surprise to find a town which is both beautiful and appears to be super functional and organised. We had a great time! 🚙😁
And it takes 1 small man to operate that massive machine! Lots of beautifull trees.
I know, that blows my mind too! 🤯🚜 Kathu is a very pretty town, quite literally under trees. 🚙🌳
We actually have a lot of ladies with manicured hands operating the machines as well
Hi guys wow is the word size of the mining equipment I understand what Sonia said small afrikaans language memorial 😅 beautiful tree lined streets big church stunning schools a plenty always amazes me the size of the sports fields Hugenoue memorial interesting where I live in kent Rochester there is a Hugenoue museum also a small square of houses only for descendents of the Hugenoues .country club looks top class with thatched roof entrance shame about caravan park. All in all a great town thanks for the video cheerio till the next one
Good for you for catching Sonia's Afrikaans there about the little Language Monument, which was such an accurate replica. 🏛️ Interesting that you also have a Huguenot Museum and area where descendants of the Huguenots live, that's cool! I'm glad you enjoyed the drive through this beautiful, leafy town! 🚙🌳 The facilities at the Country Club were spectacular, as were the school and recreational facilities in town. We were super impressed with everything we saw in Kathu! 😁🚜
YOU guys are MAGNIFICENT.👍🏼
Town in a forest!! Lovely to drive through. Green Kalahari can be beautiful during and after the rainy season.
A fantastic town in a camelthorn forest! 🌳💚 We loved driving through it, it was an absolute feast for the eyes! 🚙😁
Such beautiful scenery brings back memory. I lived in South Africa for 24 years. Wish I could return there one day. And I'm Chinese. Thank you for the video.
Thank you for showing us this part of the world that looks dry, red and lifeless from Google map 🤦♂️, look how green and beautiful is kathu
That's a good point! It does look brown and dry on a lot of satellite images, but I imagine that it does look that way when the area hasn't had good rains. Fortunately for us there was so much greenery around, which made for a very pretty sight as we were driving around town! 🌳💚 Thank you for coming to Kathu with us! 🚙🤩
You guys past my house, thank you for for visiting our town. Lovely staff
You must be working in the mine, land value in Kathu quite high
Hey! Not fair! Wheres your jaffel, Sonya? Oh wow! That bigfoot! I also love to watch heavy vehicles at work. You guys seem to snuffel out all the interesting stuff. So good to visit a town that loves trees. The little Taalmonument is so cute! Ja, dit is ons erns. thats such a beautiful church, wish we could see inside The cloud outside the Kalahari country club is magnificent! As you were leaving. That would be a painting. Rain? No surprise. Pity the caravan park is no longer maintained, the playground takes me back to my childhood. I would have been climbing on everything.
Sonia also had a jaffle, don't you worry! 😁 Those mining vehicles certainly do have big feet, we just loved seeing them! Judging by how beautiful that church and its grounds were from the outside, I can only imagine how stunning it must be inside as well! 💒 The weather really turned on a dime and it was pouring by the time we left the beautiful town of Kathu. What a fantastic place to have visited, glad you came along! 🚙🚜
Well done guys. Highly appreciated. I never go to bed without watching. Love love love.
Thank you so much, I'm happy to hear you enjoyed visiting beautiful Kathu with us! 🚙🌳 I approve of your bedtime viewing material! 😁
Aha de hugenoten. Mooi monument. Via mijn oma Du Buy ben ik ook een descendent. Er zijn meerdere Du Buys in Zuid Afrika terecht gekomen. Mijn ‘tak’ ging na 1685 naar Berlijn en uiteindelijk naar Amsterdam. Wonderlijk hoe de geschiedenis loopt, voor hetzelfde geld had ik nu in Kathu gewoond. Ben ik er dankzij jullie alsnog geweest. En … heel schattig, jullie Dusty beertje 😍. Nu Sonja nog een keer in beeld en dan kennen we iedereen in de auto 😁
I found it interesting that you're also a descendant of the Huguenots, so I'm extra glad that I stopped at Huguenot Park to have a look. We were happy to take you for a drive through Kathu, which is a really pretty town and surprisingly much bigger than we thought! 😳🌳 Dusty is the faithful third member of the DustBugs crew. 😍🧸 The second member, also known as Sonia, is still not keen to be filmed or photographed. 🚙🤷🏼♂️
Surprisingly beautiful town. Worth a visit by the looks of it.
I can't imagine changing tyres on those trucks. In the army, I changed tyres on Samils and other military vehicles, but those trucks are in another league.
Was there no train station to see in Kathu?
Most definitely worth a visit, we were blown away! 🌳💚 Interesting to read that you changed tyres on military vehicles back in the day. Those tyres on the iron ore truck are most definitely on another level, they dwarfed our little car! 😳🚜 We didn't happen upon a station in or near Kathu. We would've definitely stopped and had a look around. I imagine there would be one close to the mine, but we were warned repeatedly against filming there, so opted not to go. 🚙🤷🏼♂️
@@DustBugsTravel Yeah. Second year army in Potch.
Oh. Did I say tyres? I mean changing the flat tyres. Jacking up, replace and give to someone else to fix the puncture :-)
No worries, I got what you meant with the tyres! I was also stationed in Potch back in the day! 😁🚙
Wow, just wow...a few of my friends are working in kathu on the mines there....they told me how beautiful the place is but i never believed them until this very video....guess they were right all along...😁 now i will have to visit when i am in prieska again to prove them right....hehehe
Believe them! It's a crazy beautiful town, perhaps you should ask them for a tour when you visit the area again, I'm sure they know spots which we as visitors with no connections in the town, know nothing about! You'll have a fantastic time! 🚙🌳
Thanx for this trip you two !!!!!!!!! Travel safe and keep up the good work. I hate to know what you fuel bill is..... !!!!!!! xxoxxoxoxo
Thank you, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed our video of Kathu, a really great town! 🚜🌳 We've seen the fuel costs for our trips rise sharply over the last year or so and are always so grateful that we rent the smallest and most economical car available. What we get to see, is worth every litre and every Rand though. 🚙😁
Love your show best wishes allways from New Zealand
OMW Always wanted to see Kathu -My niece Naden lives there .
Your niece is a very lucky girl! Kathu is a really beautiful town! 🚙🌳
Did an audit there a long time ago - worked for a company supplying those huge earthmoving tyres. Mine was something to see back then 1980's. Got very drunk at Kimberly as my flight back was delayed. So we boozed it up in the airport lounge. Boss wasnt happy as I went straight home after arriving at Jan Smuts and he was waiting for my report. (it was 8pm - but he was one of those dick heads that expected miracles).
We would've loved to get close to the mine, but folks in town were already warning us against filming, so we gave it a skip. If I have to go by the number of mining vehicles we saw in and around town, it certainly looks like one massive operation! I couldn't believe the size of the mining equipment and still can't get over the fact that our car was half the size of the tyre on that truck! 🚙🚜
My word…. A very beautiful unique church👌👌👌👌 And the manicured lawn around it…..👍
Those grounds and the church were in immaculate shape. It was a joy to see. 🚙💒
Hi Curtis and Mossie😘 I'm busy watching ye video on Kathu and I've never seen soo many trees in one city or town, it's great!! "I love Mossies" I had such a good laugh when Curtis gave you that answer😂😂😂 You both have such a good sense of humour😀❤🌻🌈🙏
Yhooooooooooo!!!!! What are those mahussive trucks😳😳😳😳😳😳
They're called iron ore trucks and they transport the raw material around the minesite. It was incredible, especially if you look at our little car next to it. It was great to see! 🚙🚜
Lovely green town 👌👌👌
Absolutely insanely green! No wonder they call it the town under trees! 🌳💚
A very neat golf course👌👌
What an absolute oasis for the townsfolk to come and relax at! We were there on a random Thursday and people were making good use of the facility. I love that! 🏌🏻🚙
Jaffles & Tonka Toys, Kathu is a place for boys? 😂 RG Le Tourneau invented the electric powered wheel more than a century ago, and his inventions shaped the face of our planet.
I can live with both jaffles and big toys, so Kathu was a great place for this boy! 😁🚜
Camel Thorn trees....yes
Love your videos. Have to say I'm shocked by the state of the roads in these towns. I understand that money is scarce from a government point of view but loss of infrastructure like roads & electricity is a bad sign.
Was wonderlik om Kathu te sien. Ek was gebore daar op Sacha 1938. Was ons plaas en Kathudorp is ontwikkel op Sacha en Sims. Daar was vyf plase en die plaashuise is gebou om die onuitputlike fontein water te benut. Nie een van die plase het ooit boorgate of windpompe gehad. Dit was die rede waarom Yskor ons plaas gekoop het,want met die ontwikkeling van die ryke yster erts op Sishen,het Sishen nie water gehad. My ouers wat amper 60 jaar daar geboer het en die plaas nie wou verkoop, moes later toegee. Plase is een na die ander verkoop en Yskor het die water bekom! Jare later het Yskor myn sterk water ontdek,op Sishen,maar Kathu was reeds ontwikkel. Die oorspronklike Kathu was my oom se plaas en hy het n posdiens daar gehad en dus bekend as Kathu poskantoor. Dit het bekend gestaan as die Kathupan,Weens die Baie fontein water wat in n groot pan afgeloop het en dit was die diere se drinkplek. Kathu het n ryk geskiedenis waarvan die huidige inwoners nie veel kennis het. Vir my was dit “a travel down memory lane “met die video, ek kyk dit in my woonplek in Australië. Baie dankie vir die video’s….baie insiggewend. Veilig reis deur mooie Suid Afrika.
You guys are the BEST, awesome, can't believe we get to travel with you & Sonja, we are blessed, thank you
Thank you, we're glad you enjoy being on our backseat as we visit and explore these amazing places. Kathu was another revelation and we just loved every minute we spent in town! 🚙🌳
our company worked there for almost 3 years, used to go there often. Stayed on the golf course, and played there as well, Speedball its a resturant pub and Katexas
I saw the residential estate at the Country Club, but filming wasn't authorised there. It looks lovely, you must've been very happy there and have many good memories of the place. Kathu is a stunning town and we thoroughly enjoyed visiting it. 🚙🌳
Feels extremely weird seeing your reaction to some stuff but I've been living here for my whole life
Lovely Northern Cape town. Thank you for taking me on another interesting trip.
Kathu is indeed a lovely town, I'm glad you enjoyed our drive through this beautiful place. 🚙🌳
What a beautiful town and all those trees how amazing just loved it. That big mining truck almost unbelievable. What a lovely experience to see such a triving comunity. Thank you for this lovely episode
Thank you for coming along to Kathu! 🚙🌳 The town was a surprise in so many ways, from the huge mining equipment to the camelthorn trees which were just everywhere! It was a real joy to visit this town, which obviously has its act together. 👌🏻 It's a bustling place with probably as many mining vehicles as regular ones, so it's clear that mining is what keeps this town going strong!
I saw Steers……. I love me some Steers👍👍🥰
That makes two of us! 😁🍔 Their flame-grilled patties are to die for!
The original town was called Sishen. In the 1970's they discovered that some of the richest iron ore was right under the town itself. Thus the town was moved and the new town of Kathu was built.. To start off some of the trees that grew in the area were declared as endangered and their positions recorded. You had to get special permission to chop down a tree . I don't know if these laws still exist.
I am blown away by Kathu, never expected that size. 1688 the French Hugenots came to SA via Holland, but settled mainly in the eastern Cape Grahamstown areas. I would love to know what the connection is with Kathu. I enjoy every minute traveling with you.
I can't find anything specific online, but I assume that since some French Huguenots partook in The Great Trek towards the northeast of the country in 1836, some may very well have headed in the direction of what we now know as the Northern Cape. I really am not sure though. 🤷🏻♂️
Hey Hey, Fun fact my Grandfather was in charge of the project that got those machines to the place they are standing now.
His handiwork was most probably the highlight of our visit to Kathu! We loved those monsters! 🥰🚜 Thank you for sharing that with us!
Be extremely alert in Kuruman and Vryburg!!! Major smash and grab problem. Particularly at garage forecourt. Do not leave car/van unattended . Hide valuables!!!
We haven't visited Vryburg just yet, but will keep your warning in mind, thank you. We were surprised by how many people cautioned us to be vigilant in Kuruman, we never expected that! 😨
@@DustBugsTravel we had phone stolen out the car at Engen in Vryburg with my hubby at the car. Gang of 7. Had wood stolen off roofrack in Kuru. While driving nogal. Ps vanzylsrus worth a visit. Love love love your channel
I used to drive on the N14 between Joburg and Kathu far too many times. Kuruman, Vryburg, De La Reyville and Sannieshof are all dangerous. Once I stopped at Vryburg to buy food, and a local warned me to hide my phone as it could get stolen.
Beautiful suburbs !
Agreed, absolutely gorgeous! 🚙🌳
Kathu has the biggest macaroni hole factories in the world. The largest macaroni hole farms are there, it grows meters high due to the fertile ground.
How astonishing! We love macaroni holes! 🚙😁
kai appel was n baie lekker plesier park gewees met n dam en als , maar ongelikug het die myn nie meer onderhou nie en privaat gemaak toe gaan als agteruit , was as ek reg is so 2015 gewees
Thats a MOKSI
I was wrong about Grahamstown. The British Setlers went there. Franshoek area was the area for the French.
That truck called a T rex
Just a little information on the T Rex truck
It have a capacity if 185 tons but it's not safe to load it at that capacity
There will be only 140 tons on it because it tild over very easy
For Safety the truck will only been loaded a 145 tons
The drivers who operate it must have a trinning of 5 weeks then thy been tested by a Instructor if the pass they get a special license to operate it
Hope you know mòre about it
Enjoy your channel and keep up the good work
Thanks a lot
Franz
Was it Sishen before? Some maps indicate Sishen other maps Kathu..
It's very easy to confuse the two. Sishen is the name of the iron ore mine at Kathu. 👌🏻🚙
Dust Bugs Travel.......yes it makes sense!! It was just strange that travel maps showed Sishen as a "town"..👍👍
@@gideonsmit4344 Sishen used to be the first town south-west of Kathu when the mine started. As the mine expanded to the north, Kathu was established and most of the mine employees moved. Sishen became Dingleton where a lot of families settled but as the mine again started exploring and expanding back to the south, the people were moved out of Dingleton and the town was basically flttened. The mine in itself is however locally still known as the Sishen iron-ore mine.
Ive watched all the latest videos, now going back to the beginning, and watching ones that i haven't watched. I see Khai Apple Resort was/is a Government owned facility. No need to say anything further. Sad.
My husband was relief manager in Sishen about 60 years ago. How things have changed
I can only imagine how different it must look today from when you lived in the area. This was our first visit and we thought it was a very pretty town! 🚙🌳
Thank you for a lovely entertaining evening. I will have to follow your journey.
hi hi , ja nee die voortrekkers bestaan nog ,my sister is nog betroke en hulle kinders , en daai wapen met die vakkels , en hou koers het my pa en ons kinders gemaak baie baie lank terug ,