De Aar – Wool Commercial Center
The small town of De Aar is located in the central Groot Karoo along the railway line between Cape Town and Kimberley, which was established in the late 1800s. De Aar is the commercial center for the wool production and livestock farming industry in this semi-arid region of South Africa. The town itself receives an abundant supply of water from an underground source, which is referred to as "the artery" or De Aar.
Visitors to De Aar will find a number of points of interest in the area. The house which once served as home to renowned feminist, Olive Schneiner, now serves as a restaurant where patrons can enjoy traditional South African food in an ambiance reminiscent of by-gone days. Visitors can also walk through the “Garden of Remembrance” which honors British soldiers who lost their lives during the historic Anglo-Boer War. Outside of town on the Brandfontein and Nooitgedacht farms, visitors can view ancient Khoisan rock engravings.
With perfect weather conditions for long-distance paragliding, more than fifty percent of the world’s long-distance paragliding records have been set in De Aar. Regular events attract international and local paragliding pilots, who flock to De Aar in a quest to make and break world records. Visitors can arrange for a flight which will give them an exciting bird’s eye view of the stark, but beautiful, Groot Karoo landscape.
