In close proximity to Cresta Center, Blackheath is a quiet, wooded community located on the lower slopes of Northcliff hill.
Beyers Naudé Drive, one of the city’s main thoroughfares named after the anti-apartheid pastor Beyers Naudé, starts in Auckland Park and runs all the way through to Randpark Ridge, which is lined with several shopping malls, the largest of which is Cresta. It is bordered by Linden, Darrenwood, Windsor, and Emmarentia and has access to one of the busiest shopping areas in the northern parts of Johannesburg.
However, once you are off the main highways, life in Blackheath is rather calm, and the tree-lined neighbourhood only gains from the neighbourhood’s convenient access to major roadways and commercial centres in and around the bustling metropolis. When in Johannesburg, there are always things to do and see, and living in Blackheath gives you a good idea of what it’s like to live in a typical northern Johannesburg suburb.
Blackheath is relatively distant from Emmarentia Dam, the northern suburbs’ green lung. The Botanic Garden and the dam, where city inhabitants frequently dine and play ball on weekends and where ramblers and their dogs like to hang out during the week, are accessible after a brief walk through the charming Linden neighbourhood.
The Botanic Garden, which boasts one of the world’s finest plant collections, over 30 000 trees, a stunning rose garden, and rolling green lawns, rises from the dam up to claim the title of best passive recreation area in the city. Another reason to stay in this area of Johannesburg is to attend the summer sunset concerts at Emmarentia.
