The Tankwa Padstal: “a little bit of everything in the middle of nowhere…”
“In South Africa, the Karoo is always ‘over the mountains’. Wherever you come from, you must cross high blue mountains by dangerous passes that corkscrew up into the sky and then let you down again on the other side. It is very beautiful. It is very big. It is very dry – except when rivers run in flood and whole towns could be swept away. It is the heartland of a nation and the stone heart of a continent.” – Lesley Beake, The Time Trackers
After about 100 km on the stony gravel road (still 180 km from Calvinia), you will see a strange silver disk on a hill in the otherwise deserted landscape. As you get closer, you see it is a flying saucer that has crash landed, with two figures looking on in alarm. A little further is a blue 1979 Peugeot 504GR that also appears to have crash landed. These are just the start of the curiosities to be found at the Tankwa Padstal.
The Tankwa Padstal describes itself as “a little bit of everything and a lot of something in the middle of nowhere…” The shop itself has exactly this – where else can you buy cassette tapes, tinned sardines, bike parts and an alpine cow bell?
It is an important community hub for the Tankwa too. It is a general dealer for the farm workers who live in this remote area, the only place to buy food, medicine and essential supplies. For tourists, one can get refreshments at their quirky bar or restaurant, and stock up on typical local farm-stall produce. You can now also pick up a Time Trackers flyer to find out more about our book.
We donated a copy of The Time Trackers to the library it houses in its community centre. Hein and Susan Lange organize other important community services, such as welfare for the donkeys that pull donkey carts for farm workers who often travel long distances. They host medical checks, church services, cultural events and do fundraising work for other local causes.
The Tankwa Padstal has an active online community as well, promoting the beauty of the Tankwa Karoo as a tourist destination as well as other events in the region. We are grateful that The Time Trackers has been shared with this network of Tankwa-lovers too.
Find out more about the Tankwa Padstal and their community work on their website.
TANKWA 