Gamka River and dams
: The name ‘gamka‘ means Lion in the San language. The river originates north of Beaufort West and flows southwest towards the Gamkapoort Dam.
The main tributaries of the Gamka River, are the Dwyka River, Koekemoers River and Leeuw River which all rise in the Great Karoo. They converge and flow in a southerly direction through the Swartberg Mountains. The Olifants River joins the Gamka River south of Calitzdorp where the river is dammed Calitzdorp dam. here they become the Gourits River
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Some of the dams on this waterway include:
Gamkapoort Dam Prince Albert gravity type dam 33°18′1″S 21°38′36″E capacity 44,200,000 cubic metres
Leeu-Gamka Dam has a capacity of 14,300,000 cubic metres. Leeu-Gamka Dam is an earth-fill type dam located on the Leeuw River, near Beaufort West. It was established in 1959 and it serves mainly for irrigation purposes Leeu-Gamka Dam is an earth-fill type dam
Oukloof Dam Prince Albert has a capacity of 4,200,000 cubic metres GPS -33.24755° or 33° 14′ 51″ south 22.09819° or 22° 5′ 54″ east,
Calitzdorp Dam with a capacity of 4,800,000 cubic metres. It was completed in 1918 and is South Africa’s first and oldest concrete gravity dam. It was built primarily for irrigation
Tierkloof Dam has a capacity 50,000 cubic metres.
