Maclear, South Africa


Maclear, officially Nqanqarhu, is a small town situated in the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, near the Mooi River, north of East London and northeast of Elliot.
It lies just north-east of Ugie. The land to the east and south was part of the former homeland of Transkei.
The Eastern Grasslands landscape around Nqanqarhu includes sustainable grazing and wool value-chain initiatives involving Conservation South Africa.

History

Maclear was founded in 1876 as a military camp, called Nqanqaru Drift and developed rapidly, reaching municipal status in 1916. It was named after Sir Thomas Maclear, a famous astronomer who laid the foundation for a trigonometrical survey of the Cape Colony.
In 2021, the town was renamed Nqanqarhu.

Tourism

Nqanqarhu is a trout-fishing resort.

Geographic location

Nqanqarhu lies between Mount Fletcher and Ugie, in the foothills of the Drakensberg mountains, and at the intersection between the R56 and R396 roads.