The refurbishment of the lodge at Melozhori has put this private game reserve between Cape Town and the Garden Route back in the spotlight. I’d taken a chance, and wow, what a pay-off.
Few people know that the farm town of Bonnievale, about two hours’ drive east from Cape Town, is home to an astronomical observation centre. Its job is to monitor the heavens for meteors and threats to satellites and is here because the conditions are near-perfect for stargazing. I was on a hillside a couple of kilometres away, having braved stormy weather to soak in an open-air hot tub. And in that magical half hour, the clouds parted to reveal an exquisite array of stars in a sky of black velvet. I was speechless. Earlier, field ranger Coenraad Nell, our host, along with his wife, Lientjie, had cancelled the sundowner game drive because of inclement weather. Not a bad thing, considering the alternative that I was enjoying. Stargazing is offered as a feature at Melozhori Private Game Reserve, where I’m staying for a couple of days. It’s ideal for the kind of slow-paced marvelling at the heavens that I’m doing right now, when the weather allows.
If one is after a slower pace, this is the place: 2 300 hectares of scrubland hills on the fringe of the Breede River Valley. It has become a favourite for quick breakaways as well as a halfway holiday for visitors travelling the popular route between Cape Town and the Garden Route. We’re in the foothills of the Riviersonderend Mountains here, surrounded by farmlands and small rural settlements. The area is as captivating for anyone as it was for the owner, a Capetonian businessman who acquired the farmland in the early 2000s. He established the reserve and guest accommodation, which today incorporates a four-bedroom, exclusive-use lodge; two contemporary pods; a plush, double-storey “treehouse”; and a two-bedroom cottage. The lodge was refurbished last year.
He also began the long process of rehabilitating the veld to support a range of game, including giraffe, eland, gemsbok, kudu, zebra, waterbuck and wildebeest. Cape leopard occur across the region, but are not limited by fences and are almost exclusively spotted by camera traps. The absence of large predators on the property means that Melozhori is open for walking and cycling, an opportunity I now grasp. I follow a jeep track towards a ridge, pausing frequently. The views towards the Langeberg, not yet tinged with snow, are still spectacular. I also see the towns of Swellendam and Bonnievale and the pass via Stormsvlei, which once connected the old wagon trail from the Cape to the hinterland.
Stormsvlei once had a hotel, blacksmith and wagon maker. “It must have been a sight,” says Coenraad. “But over the years, almost all the trees were chopped down for their wood.” Melozhori still has some of the tell-tale signs of decades of farming, but old contour berms are slowly disappearing under natural species like renosterbos, kraalbos and other grassland species.
Coenraad says that the owners decided on the final location of the lodge after camping in various areas of the property. It was eventually built in a kind of natural amphitheatre, taking advantage of the views, the shelter from occasional strong winds and its proximity to the fishing dam.
The thatch roof, curved spaces, decor and furnishings reinforce its continental association. Natural fibres, earthy colour schemes and texture diversity are its hallmarks, along with features that make it immensely photogenic. The main lounge, with plush couches and chairs and a stone hearth, opens through large glass doors onto a broad veranda. Beyond that is a rim flow pool dissected by a walkway to a doughnut-shaped islet with cushioned seating and a brazier. A row of umbrellas and loungers are arranged with regimental precision alongside the pool.
The catering has equal pizzazz, prepared at the lodge by chef Marthinus Erasmus, who’s not necessarily always hidden away in the Melozhori kitchen. He offers cooking demonstrations. While I’m there, Marthinus shows us how to smoke salmon, and he has also hosted pizza making for younger visitors.
As an aside, this family-friendliness is perhaps reflected somewhat in Melozhori’s name, which in part is derived from a nickname given by the owner’s children to their mother.
The kitchen also takes care of requirements for the pods and treehouse, which can be self-catered or partly catered. During a game drive, Coenraad and Lientjie take advantage of a gap between guest departures and arrivals to show us around. They point out the helipad and airstrip for fly-in guests and the other accommodation available: divine boltholes in secluded parts of the reserve. One of our group remarks on the number of fireplaces that cosy up almost every part of these spaces, including in our rooms back at the lodge.
Visitors who want to venture out into the region have a smorgasbord of choices. The river cruise on the Breede River is always a hit, says Lientjie. But there’s plenty more to see in the area: the whale-watching hotspot of De Hoop is a 55-minute drive away. Within 40 minutes’ drive are the renowned wineries of Weltevrede, Arendsig, Springfield, Van Loveren and De Wetshof, as well as the quaint villages of Montagu and McGregor.
As for me, I’m quite happy to wallow a little longer in the outdoor tub – a fire-heated affair at the dark end of a path. The only soundtrack is the occasional sizzle of water splashing against the hot stove. It might be my last evening here, but I bet the stargazers at the observatory aren’t having this much fun.
- Photographs: Dook Photography and Clifford Roberts
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