The rather little Village of Kranskop lies just 36km North East of Greytown in the Midlands of KwaZulu Natal. In Afrikaans a 'kop' means a 'Peak' and because rests in the shadow of a rocky ridge that is undoubtedly the reason for its name change from the original 'Hopetown'. Kranskop's rocky escarpment is something of a landmark, a feature of the landscape, towering 1175 metres over the Valley below. The Village may have been here since 1894, the sandstone outcrop with its two openings has been an integral part of Zulu local folklore for far longer.

The name is of Zulu origin, it is said by some to mean ‘beautiful place’, and by others ‘place of dispute’. Roughly 26km east of Vryheid, lies the rural village of Hlobane – little more than a train station and a local school. Like much of the countryside in this part of KwaZulu-Natal, the area is home to a Battlefield that lies at the foot of the Hlobane Mountain. Hlobane was the site of a British disaster in March 1879 when mounted troops led by Lt. Col.