Situated on the Mpumalanga escarpment, two and a half hours from Gauteng, the village of Ohrigstad has a chequered history. Founded in 1845 by Voortrekker leader Andries Hendrik Potgieter, its original official name was a real mouthful comprising as it did, 14 words, all Dutch. The name was subsequently changed to Andries-Ohrigstad honouring its founder and George Ohrig, a merchant who had sent gifts to the Voortrekkers.

During 1849 Andries-Ohrigstad, then consisting of some 40 dwellings and the shops and facilities servicing them, had to be abandoned due to floods and a serious outbreak of malaria.

With the conquest of malaria, the valley was resettled and the name shortened to Ohrigstad.

Ohrigstad's original existence, as a centre serving the surrounding agricultural community, has been expanded to include accommodating the tourist trade lured here by Mpumalanga's many attractions,

Visit Bourke's Luck Potholes at the confluence of the Blyde and Treur Rivers. These are a series of bizarre cylindrical shapes caused by the action of water and pebbles on soft rock. The Museum of Man with its stone age artefacts and Echo Caves are also close by.