FREE STATE CAMPSITES

More about camping in Free State

The Free State is underrated and most overlanders drive through it to get somewhere else. That's their loss. The eastern highlands - the Maluti foothills around Clarens, Fouriesburg, and Ficksburg - are legitimately beautiful: sandstone formations, trout streams, and a visual palette that shifts from yellow to gold to deep amber depending on the season. Naude's Nek Pass, technically in the Eastern Cape but approached through the Free State highlands, is one of the highest and most remote mountain passes in South Africa. The Golden Gate Highlands National Park in the northeast sits below the most photogenic cliff faces in the country - the Brandwag Buttress at sunrise is worth setting an alarm for. South of Bloemfontein the landscape opens into wide Karoo plains; north of Bloemfontein it's highveld grassland with big skies. The province doesn't demand a 4x4 for most of its best campsites - it rewards people with a bit of curiosity and a willingness to take the gravel alternative to the N1. The Free State is also a logical overnight stop on any long-haul route, and a well-chosen campsite here beats a roadside lodge every time.