Orkney

Orkney is a mining town with a laid-back ambience that lies on the banks of the Vaal River, approximately 180 kilometres from Johannesburg. The town was proclaimed in 1940 on the farm Witkoppen, where the owner, Simon Fraser, had first started gold mining.

Fraser hailed from the Orkney Islands off the coast of Scotland, hence the name of the town. "Orkn"? is the ancient Islandic word for sea lion, and "Ey"? is a Nordic word meaning island. The sea lion is the emblem of Orkney.

Attractions in Orkney include a bird sanctuary, the Likkewaan hiking trails, the Orkney Vaal Resort (a perfect picnic venue, popular with anglers and water-sports enthusiasts), the Vaal Reef Gold Mine (where tours through the largest gold mine in South Africa can be arranged on request), and the rather more obscure Ground Nut Factory (the biggest nut-shelling factory in the southern hemisphere).

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