GHOSTLY GOLD TOWNS & other haunts

Iʼd driven the R71 a hundred times before I ever noticed the sign. Lowvelders know to obey the 60km/h speed limit through the tiny town of Gravelotte, and watch for cops under the acacia trees. That could be the reason so many people bypass Leydsdorp, an even smaller town 10 kilometres to the south-west.

I was met at the Leydsdorp Hotel by Andries Masete, the hotelʼs jack-of-all-trades who carries your bags and takes your drinks order at the bar. After a scorching day driving around with a broken aircon, my small room in the hotel felt like air-conditioned heaven.

Two khaki-clad locals eyed me as I ordered a Black Label. In a town where the last census tallied six, strangers tend to stand out.