The Sterrewag Camino is a nine-day gravel road experience that starts at the famous red post-box in Calvinia and covers a distance of 192,8 km to Sutherland. A certain degree of fitness is necessary to walk the Sterrewag Camino. It is not a “walk in the park” and is most definitely not for beginners. “Sun-seared”, “harsh”, and “forbidding” are the words that spring to mind when confronted with the vast and daunting landscape of the Roggeveld Karoo.
 

The small village of Middelpos on your way to Sutherland is a good example of an authentic, isolated Karoo village. The dust and wind are constant reminders that this is the Karoo. As you round the bends, the blue-yellow, brown, and grey colours of the koppies appear, emerging left and right as you walk along the Fish River, with flat-faced rocks framing the view – and on the dusty horizon, sleepy Sutherland finally appears.

At first glance, Sutherland seems less than ordinary, with no commercial shops insight. Only a few unfamiliar businesses line the main street - the art deco Sutherland Ko-op, a white-washed, flat-roofed building named ‘Zellies se Winkel’, and a stone building with red and green letters reading ‘Roggeveld Handelaars’. On closer inspection, you notice a PEP Store and an OK Bazaar at the end of town.

The small things about Sutherland, like snowy winters, starlit nights, and dramatic landscapes, might surprise you, and if you haven’t been to Sutherland before, this definitely gives you something to look forward to!