So you want to go and check out the gorgeous fields of flowers but you don't know where to start? Here is a suggested itinerary for you to follow and some info about the towns through which you will pass.

WEST COAST
From Cape Town, head north along the N7. Roughly 200 kilometres later, after passing through Clanwilliam, you'll find yourself in the town of Garies.

GARIES
In 1845, Garies sprang up on land given to the Dutch Reformed Church by the owner of the farm Goedeverwagting. Originally named after the farm, its present name, from the Nama word ‘Th’aries’ meaning "coach-grass", was given to it by former Cape premier John X Merriman. Put your flower tour on hold to visit ‘Letterklip’, which comprises of several huge megalithic boulders on which the names of the early travellers to Namaqualand are inscribed.

A flood of visitors descends on Garies during the flower season and the municipal tourist hall stocks everything but the kitchen sink! For optimal flower-viewing take the Groebriviermond and Hondeklipbaai routes and the Karas road to Kamieskroon.
Tourist information: Tel: (027) 652 1014.

KAMIESKROON
South of Springbok, Kamieskroon is set among the granite rock formations of the Kamiesberg range. Taking its name from the crown-shaped peak towering above it, the town's origins lie in the 1860's, seven kilometres north of its present position. It took the name Bowesville (later Bowesdorp), after the district surgeon, Dr Henry Bowe. As there was little room to expand in the narrow kloof the town occupies, the Namaqualand church council decided, in 1924, to demolish the church and rebuild it at Kamieskroon. A school hostel, police station, post office and shops were also built.

'Kamies' might derive from the Nama word 'kam', meaning two — referring to the twin peaks of the mountain. The 'kroon', a 330m peak crowned with a huge, cleft rock, is a kilometre from the village. Kamieskroon, which offers fascinating photography workshops during the flower season, is also a hiker's paradise.
Tourist information: Tel: (027) 672 1627 or (027) 672 1614.

SKILPAD WILD FLOWER RESERVE
A Namaqualand showcase named after its many tortoises, this 1000ha reserve captures the full grandeur of the flower season. South of Springbok, near Kamieskroon, on the first ridge of hills separating the interior from the coast, the reserve catches much of what little rain blows in off the sea. In years when surrounding areas have less than splendid displays, Skilpad is magnificent.

The reserve, which only operates during the flower season, was established in 1988 by the South African WWF in an attempt to increase public awareness of the floral heritage and to conserve the indigenous flora and fauna.
Tourist information: Tel: (027) 672 1614/672 1948 Fax: (027) 6721675.

SPRINGBOK
Set in a narrow valley bisecting the granite domes of the Klein Koperberge, Springbok — renowned as the Namaqualand flower capital — owes its existence to copper mining undertaken in after 1850 and a ready supply of water.

In the late 1870s, rich copper deposits at Okiep saw most Springbok residents following their dreams to drought-stricken claims. Many returned. The British fort built on the hillock in the centre of town during the Anglo-Boer War was destroyed by dynamite planted by a commando led by General Jan Smuts. Across the town square, at the famous Springbok Lodge, photographs adorn the walls. A fascinating collection of mineral samples and semiprecious stones are showcased.

Easy access, excellent accommodation and a well-developed commercial infrastructure makes Springbok an essential tourist stopover. Visit the Goegap Nature Reserve, which is home to 600 indigenous flower species, 45 mammal species and 94 bird species. Or drive along the Spektakelberg, Wildeperdehoek and Messelpad Passes to catch a glimpse of gorgeous purple Namaqualand felicia, orange and pink vygies and an array of daisies.
Book accommodation in Springbok
Tourist information: Tel: (027) 7122011.

OKIEP
Derived form the Nama word 'U-gieb' meaning "the great, brackish spring", Okiep was, until production ceased in 1918, the world’s richest copper mine. Okiep is the oldest mining town in South Africa where copper was first discovered and mined in 1855. Eight kilometres north of Springbok, it echoes copper’s boom years. Fort Shelton, on the road between Okiep and Concordia, was the main fortification of the Home Guard during the siege of Okiep from 1 April to 23 May 1902. Nine-hundred defenders, mostly Cape Copper Company employees, built nine blockhouses and repulsed General Jan Smuts’s forces’ concerted efforts to take the town. Today, on a hillock, only the remnants of stone walls remain.

For more info, click on the Northern Cape tourism website.