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Somewhere in the Richtersveld, an area of scrubland in South Africa, is a legendary cavern crammed with diamonds. There is only one problem: The cavern is guarded by the Grootslang, or Great Snake of the Orange River. It is a fearsome 40 foot long serpent with enorous gems in its eye sockets.

Its home may be in the Orange River itself, a pool underneath the King George Cataract, a big rock, or a semi-mythical cave known as the “Wonder Hole” or the “Bottomless Pit”. The cave is said to be the source of the diamonds of South Africa; from there they move down a pipe to the river, which carries them to the sea.

This giant snake is described as being 20 – 39 feet in length with a neck 8 – 10 feet long, and its head is 7 – 8 inches wide. It some tales its body is completely snake-like; however, in others, the body takes on a hippo or elephant-like shape with a long snake-like tail. Its skin or scales are pitch black from head to tail.

The first records of the Grootslang come from a rock painting in a South African province which has yet to be dated correctly. The first sightings started around 1867 and continued to multiple through the last 1890s. In 1963 newspapers began reporting the sightings sending locals into a frenzy.

According to legend, the Grootslang is as old as the world itself crafted by the gods themselves in the early time’s creation. This giant primordial creature would prove to be a terrible mistake, as they filled it with tremendous strength, cunning, and intellect. The gods tried to split their creature into two smaller animals, elephants and the first snakes, but one of the original Grootslang escaped the gods. Hiding in the cave known as the “Water Hole” or “Bottomless Pit” it continued to live and breed creating more of its kind. It would lure elephants into the cave to feed itself and little ones.

According to the local legends living in the deep caves of Africa is what drives this great serpent to covet gems and diamonds. This lust of the gems curves the creature’s cruelty and dark nature leaving a bargaining room for its victims to gain freedom from certain death. In 1917 while searching for treasure in the Richtersveld, South Africa English businessman Peter Grayson and his party were attacked and disappeared. Locals blamed the Grootslang for claim yet again another victim from the lions and coveting the riches the party was rumored to have found.

Guides are reluctant to take expeditions to the cavern. One tough prospector is said to haev tried to explore the hole. He used a winch and cable to reach a ledge. Tunnels led off the ledge, and there was a strong smell of sulphur. He dropped an eletric torch when bats flew in his face and was hauled back to the surface. He did not try again.

So does a giant snake really live in the Orange River? Could it be only a python? Not if you believe there is no python who ever achieved a 40 foot length.

Let's face it, there is only one Grootslang. And it lives in legend.

Resourses:

Strange Stories and Amazing Facts pg. 430

https://abookofcreatures.com/2021/05/21/grootslang/

https://puzzleboxhorror.com/encyclopedia-of-supernatural-horror/grootslang/