Kenhardt is a small town situated at the intersection of the R27 Provincial Route with the R361 and R383 Regional Routes in the Northern Cape Province of South Africa.
Kenhardt lies approximately 120 km south of Upington and falls within the Kai !Garib Local Municipality under the ZF Mgcawu District Municipality.
This region contains very little vegetation, primarily very low shrubs and yellow grass, in a rocky desert kind of landscape. If you travel south from Kenhardt towards Brandvlei, you will pass through a huge landscape of yellow grasslands and rocky desert-like areas for the next 145 km and more.
During the seasons, several birds flock to the pans when they contain water after some rainfall. It is also very common to experience temperatures above 40°C in Kenhardt.
History
On 27 December 1868, special magistrate Maximillian Jackson and a police contingent were sent to act as a bulwark against the Griquas (also known as Koranna), who were in open conflict with colonial forces. They arrived in Kenhardt and set up camp under a giant camelthorn tree.
With time, the town developed from under this tree, becoming a municipality in 1909. The Hartbees River, with its many sweet thorn trees, provides a green belt irrigated by the Rooiberg Dam. Kenhardt is famous for being at the heart of the Dorper sheep-farming area.