Conservation | Conserve, protect and restore
The Maloti-Drakensberg Park is a transboundary site composed of the uKhahlamba Drakensberg National Park in South Africa and the Sehlathebe National Park in Lesotho.
The 242 000 hectare Ukhahlamba Drakensberg National Park (listed by UNESCO in 2000 as a World Heritage site), spans 200 kilometres North to South and about 50 kilometres West to East.
The Sehlabathebe National Park is located in the Maloti Mountains in Qacha's Nek District, Lesotho, and is part of the larger Maloti-Drakensberg World Heritage Site.
The park is one of the country's biggest conservation areas, and covers South Africa's most inaccessible terrain. The basalt peaks average above 3 000 metres, and elsewhere one will find gorges, valleys, high plateaus, sandstone caves and towering cliffs.
The park is in the List of Wetlands of International Importance (under the Ramsar Convention) and adjacent to the Malotu Drakensberg National Park is the 1900 ha Allendale Mountain Reserve which is the largest private reserve adjoining the World Heritage Site which is found in the Kamberg area which also contains many of the most famous historic Bushman paintings.
Tourism in the Drakensberg is growing which has led to new hiking trails, hotels and resorts appearing on the lower slopes, thus while the high slopes of the Drakensberg remain fairly undamaged as it's hard to reach the grassland of the lower slopes have been greatly affected by agriculture and Tourism. Almost all the original grassland and forest on the lower slopes has disappeared and more protection is needed.
In terms of conservation the The Giant's Castle reserve is a haven for the Eland and a breeding ground for the Bearded Vulture.