Quivers full of love in Kenhardt

Faith and hope are often what sustain those who live in the arid, remote areas of our country. But it's love that makes them stay. Love for the veld, the animals, the plants, the people. And Kenhardt is brimming with all of the above.

- WILLEM VAN DER BERG

You'd be hard pressed to find a more authentic farming town than Kenhardt. And while agriculture remains its biggest industry, the introduction of massive solar- and wind-energy installations in the area has brought more businesses to the little town. You won't catch a glimpse of anything fancy when you pass through Kenhardt. People who are travelling elsewhere – northwards to the Kalahari, Kgalagadi or Augrabies, or south to Cape Town or the West Coast – generally don’t have a reason to pull over. The double lanes of the R27 take them straight through the town.

But the stop signs that were recently erected in the centre of Kenhardt do at least compel travellers to pause for a moment before moving on.

And yet, most visitors who've stayed over say you can forget about spending just one night. Many have tried. Few have succeeded. Because, once you've become acquainted with the locals, you won't find it easy to leave. Their friendliness and hospitality have turned strangers into lifelong friends. And, naturally, a number of these sociable occasions have taken place at the hotel bar...

“WE WANT TO REDO THE BAR and spruce it up, but I can't find it in my heart to paint the walls,” says Eeton Wickens, who owns the Kenhardt Hotel with his wife, Suzette. The walls are covered with names and messages written by visitors who never wanted to leave, who came back, and became like family.