| KOWIE RIVER: Topography, geology and soils |
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eWISA Home | KOWIE: MAIN INDEX | ALPHABETICAL LIST OF RIVERS | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Map of the KOWIE River |
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| TOPOGRAPHY | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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The general topography of the Kowie
catchment from the Grahamstown hills which have an average altitude of
600m is one of a gently sloping coastal plain with undulating hills.
The relatively straight coastline is backed by coastal dunes which reach
a height of 61m in places.
According to Mountain (1962) the Kowie river has a meandering course which has cut deeply into the Bokkeveld shales which make up most of its catchment. (Ref 1 |
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Van Wyk (1961) states, "The main stream has an annual number of bends, and the upper reaches of the tidal water lie in a narrow valley, the slopes of which are steep, high and densely wooded". (Ref 1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| GEOLOGY | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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The geology of the Kowie and surrounding area has been described by Moutain (1962), and Lock (1974). That the major part of the Kowie river lies within a strip of the Bokkeveld Series which runs along its length down to the coast i.e. in a north-westerly to south-easterly direction. The Bokkeveld Series consists "mainly of shale with subsidiary sandstone bands"; pronounced dipping and folding are evident, as can be seen in the quarries and cuttings of Port Alfred. (Ref 1) | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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Along the coast overlying and resting on the
shale, one finds a succession of thin marine sediments which are
referred to as the Alexandria Formation. This is exposeda in a
cliff on the eastern banks of the Kowie River above the Port Alfred
railway station as well as along the western bank about 0,8km from the
mouth. Dune rock in turn covers the Alexandria Formation which is
apparently not distinguishable lithologically from the calcareous dune
rock (Mountain, 1962). The windblown origin of the dune rock is
evident in the characteristic layers or bedding one finds in this
formation.
Unconsolidated beach deposits and bare dunes occur right at the coast. Along the river, alluvial floodplain deposits are present, for example, in the meander bends and particularly in the lower reaches of the estuary such as the Centenary Park are and the West and East Banks upon which the lower part of the town of Port Alfred has been established. (Ref 1) |
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| SOILS | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| References | |||||||||||||||||||||||
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Ref 1: ESTUARIES OF THE CAPE- Report no. 10 KOWIE (CSE10) CSIR RESEARCH REPORT 409 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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