Bethlehem - Recently a 91-year-old reader phoned me, saying that every week she looked, in vain, for an article on her hometown Bethlehem, in the Free State. She longed for a nostalgic walk down memory lane.
How could we not oblige someone of such a venerated age! Especially as Bethlehem is also the place of my birth…
Older men might recall the town with less warm memories. Not because the locals are unfriendly or because the town spurns youth or men… but those who served their military conscription in the Defence Force’s camp in the town will certainly recall icy winter nights spent in tents – as was the norm before brick barracks made life more comfortable.
Travellers taking the route via the Free State to the Cape (rather than through the Transkei) will inevitably pass through Bethlehem in the eastern part of the province. It is a bustling centre, with much to interest passers-by.
The Voortrekkers who settled in this town in 1864 on the farm Pretorius Kloof, being a God-fearing bunch, gave it a biblical name. It even has a River Jordan, which can occasionally burst its banks.
The town’s Pretorius Kloof Bird sanctuary is named after the original farm. It is tranquil with pretty scenery, where the Jordan River meanders through high-walled gorges. Shady trees provide an ideal spot for a picnic.
In my youth we often took amazing walks along paths which meandered all the way to the base of the wall of the town dam, Loch Athlone. During my last visit to the town, people threw up their hands in horror on hearing I hoped to repeat this little adventure, saying it was now the domain of the “outies”. Perhaps the municipality has cleared it up. Check, though, before you wander too far afield in the kloof.
Loch Athlone, with 50 self-catering chalets as well as 200 caravan and camping sites, is popular with both locals and holidaymakers. There is a large swimming pool and Super Tube fun for the family, while some of the finest boating and angling in the Eastern Free State is to be found here. A famous cement replica of the “Athlone Castle”, painstakingly built to scale in the 1950s, housed a series of restaurants over the years. At the last count the latest restaurant had closed its doors but the ship still “sails” serenely on the edge of the lake.
During one intense drought, the dam (which supplies Bethlehem with its water) shrank to not much more than a puddle behind the dam wall, making it possible to walk across the cracked, dried-out mud surface. The kids loved those days of water shortage. A local bottling factory gave the residents crates of free cooldrinks to make up for the lack of water. Can you see that happening nowadays? I doubt it.
South African Hot Air Ballooning Championships are held each year in the town during the third week in May.
The Spring Bowls Tournament is held in October each year.
The imposing sandstone Nederduitse Gereformeerde Kerk Moedergemeente (founding community) holds sway over a large, grassy town square.
The town hall, Anglican and Presbyterian churches, magistrate’s court and Strapps Shop all recall the early days of the town.
The 91-year-old in question, Mrs Ray Budde, shone a spotlight on another bit of history, saying that the Bethlehem Golf Club’s original clubhouse was built from the remains of cantonments (semi-permanent barracks) formerly used to house British soldiers.
Attractions in the region include Golden Gate and Clarens as well as the cherry-growing areas around Ficksburg and Fouriesburg.
The Lions Rock Big Cat Sanctuary would probably appeal to the whole family.
Here they can see big cats which have mostly been rescued from zoos in Europe. You can also stay here.
Accommodation in town, or on guest farms, is plentiful.
Saturday Star