WINTER is here. Well, up in the peaks of the Drakensberg at least.
Temperatures in the southern Drakensberg plummeted on Wednesday night and led to the first snowfall of the season high up in the mountains.
But to get to it, you’d need a 4x4 and mountain climbing gear, and you’d have to hurry.
Nazeera Paruk, of the Eland Valley Resort, told The Witness yesterday that the snow that fell there had already begun to melt by 11 am.
“Snow falls heavily around June and July. So in this sunshine, it has already melted,” she said when contacted at around 2.30 pm.
Derek Parsons, general manager of the Himeville Arms Hotel, and Wanda Beynes-Petterson, of the Sani Pass Hotel and Leisure Resort, said there had been light snow on the mountain on the Lesotho side.
“It hasn’t been very cold, but last night the temperature just plummeted,” said Parsons.
According to the weather service, the cold weather over the Berg is not expected to last, with temperatures due to rise steadily again over the weekend.
“It’s going to be warm for the next few days, and it will peak at 28 on Saturday,” said Jacques Jonker, of the weather service.
He added that early mornings would become cooler as winter approaches.
