Heritage Day: Mokala’s ancient art accessible again as Covid restrictions are relaxed

The park came into being after the Vaalbos National Park was successfully claimed by the local community.

The park contains San rock art that is accessible to the public at a number of sites.

South African National Parks (SANParks)’s Tess White has been working in Mokala (named after the local Camel Thorn trees) since its inception.

“We knew when we acquired the property that there is cultural heritage that is very unique to this area,” says White.

“The interesting thing is that we have engravings, not paintings, which is quite rare.”

The area has been studied extensively by researchers in order to verify and document the rock art.

 Listen to White below:

White says while the rock art has been a tourist attraction in the past, the restriction on movement of people during lockdown brough a halt to this. 

However, since the relaxation of lockdown restrictions on travel they have seen a sharp increase in bookings and are already fully booked at some sites in the park up to December. 

"I think everyone just has cabin fever," jokes White. 

Listen to White below: 

The MNP serves a strategic function as a breeding ground for other national parks and has no large predators (although there are smaller predators like jackal). 

"Because we don't have the normal ecological chain, we have to look very carefully at the carrying capacity of the park," explains White. 

"We are basically known as the gene pools for the national parks. We are one of the few parks that have more than one game capture per year."

Among the parks' wildlife offering count Sable and Roan antelope, as well as disease-free buffaloes. 

MKP is especially popular among bird enthusiasts with a number of rare and endangered species found in the park, including the white-backed vulture. 

Listen to White below: 

Rad also: