Photos

Northern Cape landscape, near De Aar

De Aar has a desert climate (BWh/BWk, according to the Köppen climate classification), with warm summers and cool winters. The average annual precipitation is 196 mm, with most rainfall occurring mainly during summer and autumn.

There are ancient Khoisan rock engravings on the Nooitgedacht and Brandfontein farms. Additionally, there is a "Garden of Remembrance", which honours the British troops killed in the Anglo-Boer War.

It is the second-most important railway junction in the country, situated on the line between Cape Town and Kimberley. The junction was of particular strategic importance to the British during the Second Boer War. De Aar is also a primary commercial distribution centre for a large area of the central Great Karoo. Major production activities of the area include wool production and livestock farming. The area is also popular for hunting, despite the fact that the region is rather arid.

Wikipedia partial quote