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Caledon River

Major river in Lesotho and South Africa

Field	Value
name	Mohokare
name_etymology
mapframe	yes
mapframe-zoom	6
mapframe-wikidata	yes
mapframe-point	none
pushpin_map	South Africa
pushpin_map_caption	Location of the Caledon River mouth
<!---------------------- LOCATION -->	subdivision_type1	Country
subdivision_name1	Lesotho, South Africa
subdivision_type2	State
subdivision_name2	Free State
subdivision_type4	City
subdivision_name4	Maputsoe
subdivision_type5	City
subdivision_name5	Maseru
<!---------------------- PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS -->	length	642 km
discharge1_max
source1	Mont-aux-Sources
source1_location	SW of Phuthaditjhaba, Drakensberg
source1_elevation	2100 m
mouth	Orange River
mouth_location	Near Bethulie
mouth_coordinates
mouth_elevation	1267 m

| mapframe-zoom = 6 | mapframe-wikidata = yes | mapframe-point = none The Caledon River () is a major river located in central South Africa. Its total length is 642 km, rising in the Drakensberg Mountains on the Lesotho border, flowing southwestward and then westward before joining the Orange River near Bethulie in the southern Free State. The river was originally named Prinses Wilhelminas Rivier in 1777, by Colonel R J Gordon.

Geography

The origin of the River Caledon is in the former bantustan of QwaQwa, near the border with Lesotho, southwest of Witsieshoek. It then flows south-west bordering Lesotho's capital city, Maseru. It forms the border between South Africa and Lesotho before entering South Africa's Free State province (north of Wepener). It then flows westward before joining the Orange River near Bethulie in southern Free State, just before flowing into the Gariep Dam. Its total length is about 480 km, and its valley experiences great temperature swings. The land in the wedge between Caledon River and Orange River forms the 22,000-ha Tussen-die-Riviere Nature Reserve.

River

The river is the primary source of water for Maseru, the capital of Lesotho, which stands on the river. During periods of low rainfall, water shortages can ensue. To combat this, several reservoirs have been created with structures such as the Muela Dam and the Meulspruit Dam. In 2003, water was released from here to avert drought.

The Caledon Valley is important in the history of the Basotho people. The area was exceptionally fertile and could be farmed without irrigation. This made it desirable and was one of the causes of the conflict between the Basotho and the Boers. Maize is grown on a large scale in the Caledon Valley.

References

Raper, P.E.. (1987). "Dictionary of South African Place Names".
"Caledon River". Encyclopædia Britannica.
"Tussen Die Riviere Game Reserve". SA Places.
"Caledon River - Dams".
"Drought".
Coplan, David B.. (2001). "A river runs through it: The meaning of the Lesotho‐free state border". African Affairs.

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

tributaries-of-the-orange-river rivers-of-lesotho international-rivers-of-africa lesotho–south-africa-border rivers-of-the-free-state-(province) border-rivers

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