Just a scenic drive from the capital city, where the air turns crisp and the horizon stretches endlessly, lives a herd of legends.

The Kaapsehoop wild horses are the unofficial sovereigns of the escarpment – they belong to everyone and no one at once.

For the people of this mist-shrouded village, including the Kaapsehoop Conservancy, the mission is to keep them safe, healthy and, above all, wild.

However, preserving this freedom comes at a cost. The challenges range from safety concerns to habitat encroachment across the 13 000ha they roam.

A recent disappearance reopened old wounds, prompting an intense search for a herd that had been unaccounted for since the end of March. Fortunately, the group – seven horses comprising a stallion, three mares, two fillies and a colt – was sighted onMay 1, returning with a new foal.

The herd had simply moved beyond their usual grazing area.

The conservancy even offered a R5 000 reward for information about the herd’s whereabouts. According to spokesperson Carli Scheepers, the reward was claimed by a young woman who wished to remain anonymous.

“She was reluctant to take the money, but offered to donate it back to the organisation for our projects,” Scheepers said.

ALSO READ: Herd of Kaapsehoop wild horses found after sudden disappearance

The ‘old wounds’ refer to an incident in September last year, when three horses were suspected to have been poached. Their severed heads and hooves were found, along with the unborn foal of one of the mares, just 200m into the forest.

“Since then, a number of wild horses have been killed in incidents linked to poaching, and their numbers are dwindling. We currently have sightings of 28 wild horses,” Scheepers said.

As the saying goes, it takes a village – here, a dedicated network of volunteers works to ensure the horses thrive.

Scheepers said the conservancy provides veterinary care and runs campaigns to safeguard the animals while allowing them to roam freely. The non-profit has also embarked on a major safety initiative.

“We are consulting experts and conducting research into introducing electronic tracking, such as collars, for a pilot herd. It is going to be an expensive project – we estimate that the veterinary cost alone to collar one horse would be around R7 000, excluding the tracking device itself.”

She emphasised that the organisation does not claim ownership of the horses, but aims to protect them as an integral part of the Lowveld’s heritage.

Since last year, monitoring has been formalised through 14 volunteer mountain rangers, as well as trail cameras placed around Kaapsehoop to detect suspicious activity.

According to Scheepers, the conservancy has also partnered with security companies in the Lowveld and the Ngodwana police to help curb crime in the area, including illegal mining. Roadblocks and visible policing are regularly conducted, along with snare patrols and clean-up campaigns.

ALSO READ: Kaapsehoop’s beloved wild horses perish in runaway blazes

“Our aim is to preserve our historic village and promote conservation of the wild horses, wildlife, and flora in the surrounding eastern escarpment,” she said.

Members of the public can support the organisation by making contributions to the Kaapsehoop Conservancy.