A police helicopter found the couple in the bush after a farmer alerted police to an abandoned vehicle.
The traumatised tourists – Verna Yocum, 67, and Robert Webb, 61, of Texas – had stopped on the Addo Road at noon to capture some of the scenery on film when five men, one armed with a knife and another with a screwdriver, overpowered them and forced them back into their rented vehicle.
The robbers drove to a bushy area close to Monument Crossing and forced the terrified couple out of the car.
Yocum was stabbed in the hand and arm with a screwdriver as they were pushed out of the vehicle and forced to walk about 400m into the bush, where they were tied up and robbed of their belongings, including cellphones, wallets and jewellery.
The robbers also took their luggage from the boot and then fled on foot.
At 1.15pm, a farmer spotted the couple’s abandoned rental vehicle on the side of the road and alerted police.
A police helicopter was dispatched and the couple was found 20 minutes later.
Yocum’s wounds were treated at the Motherwell Clinic.
