Ermelo, Grass & Wetlands

Situated in the Grass and Wetlands region of the Mpumalanga province lies the town of Ermelo. Two of South Africa’s most famous musicians come from Ermelo, namely Jennifer Ferguson and the late Lucky Dube.

Ermelo was established on the site of a church built in 1871 by the Reverent Frans Cachet. The site was named after his loyal friend from a town named Ermelo situated in the Netherlands. Ermelo was for a long time, used as a stop over place for wagon trains travelling between Lydenburg on the Mpumalanga Escarpment and KwaZulu Natal. The area was well known for its excellent horse breeders and small livestock. Unfortunately, Ermelo was totally destroyed during the second Anglo-Boer War. Since then, it has been rebuilt and has again become the focal point of the Eastern Highveld.

Today, Ermelo is the educational, industrial as well as commercial centre of a proud 7,750m² district in the Mpumalanga province in South Africa. As you wander through this lovely town you will notice the gorgeous scattered maize, cattle, wool and sunflower farms to mention a few. Anthracite, coal and torbanite mining also takes place here.

Ermelo boasts magical beauty as it is ideally situated amongst the grass and wetlands region of the Mpumalanga Province. This spectacular area affords visitors the opportunity to enjoy numerous adrenaline pumping watersports as well as fishing, swimming and bird watching. There are several nearby spectacular dams that also provide excellent fishing and other forms of watersports. Game viewing can be enjoyed in the Ermelo area.

For a historical experience of the area, there are a few ruins of a settlement dating 1400 which can be found and explored. In addition, there are a few fascinating San paintings located on the Welgelegen farm. Of special interest are the Leghoya Stone Huts that can be found on the beautiful Tafelkop Mountains. These huts date back to the 14th century.