De Hoop Nature Reserve has been on my bucket list for years, and I was beside myself when I received an invitation to join a travelling media group for a couple of days.
My excitement grew as I hit the gravel roads of the picturesque Overberg. I adore this panoramic landscape, having spent numerous hours wandering these backroads between its coarse-textured coast and regal mountain terrain.
Once through the gate of the reserve, and the fast efficient service of its friendly staff, I was greeted by a multi-coloured vista. I pulled over, admiring the shapes sculpted before me, with only my active feathered friends to agree with me, chirping their delight among their green shrubbery. A greenbelt against a blue sky, rimmed by brilliant white sand dunes that separated the ocean from its inner land mass.
A few kilometres inland is a body of water enclosed by its vegetated earthen barrier. This shapes the setting of the De Hoop Collection. The nature reserve, now run by Cape Nature, is a World Heritage Site once inhabited by the nomadic Khoi and is a treasure trove of natural assets. In the mid 1700s, it became a working farm until it was bought out, piece by piece, by our local government. In 1979, the original Homestead was declared a national monument, and restorations began.
My accommodation was the original Opstal Manor House. This renovated heritage building with its well-built walls, golden wooden floors, restored features, and stylish 19th-century furnishings is an outstanding example of a stock farm in its heyday. The modern-day luxuries of crispy cotton linen, electricity, running water, and other amenities round it off perfectly. I’m sure the pictures will tell the rest.
This 36,000 hectares of coastal paradise is the flagship reserve of Cape Nature. Its riches lie in natural assets. With its large diversity of plant species, some rare endemic, or threatened. Boasting 260 bird species, including the African black oystercatcher, the rare Damara and Caspian terns. It is also home to the vulnerable Cape Vulture, the Denham’s bustard, and our national bird, the blue crane.
The De Hoop Vlei is a safe haven for many aquatic bird species and other organisms where they can get along with their daily lives undisturbed.
De Hoop is also a refuge space for the bontebok, Cape Mountain Zebra, and smaller predators. The Marine Reserve is a favourite calving ground for our visiting southern right whale during migration season and a nursery for the almost depleted galjoen, our national fish.
During my stay, we were introduced to a couple of the reserve’s activities. It included a boat cruise on the vlei, star gazing in this unlit part of the world, an intercoastal educational walk, a game drive, and a visit to the vulture cliff sanctuary in the Potberg part of the reserve.
But there is just so much more to do. Hike your heart out, cycle up a storm (they do have bicycles for rent), and birding is simply a must if you are a bird lover. For the not-so-enthusiastically energetic traveller; lie at the pool, drink wine, go on a game drive, or take a trip to the beach for some R&R.
Here are the activities I did during my stay:
Dining at De Hoop Collection
Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are included in some of the stays option packages, especially for your non self-catering accommodation. However, the restaurant is open for everyone to enjoy.
The Figtree Restaurant also offers picnic baskets filled with all sorts of delights that can be pre-ordered from reception and enjoyed on the beach, under the large wild fig tree, or a favourite spot along the reserve’s vlei.
For groups visiting, the Figtree Restaurant can cater for a boma experience under the wild fig tree.
See below:
My time spent here was a pure romance with nature, and I can’t wait to return to this part of the whale coast of South Africa.
Yes, I am a natural traveller, but I can honestly say that it is the best of both worlds. You’ll always feel super spoilt 😊
Thank you, Cape Country Routes, for the wonderful stay.
Oh, and thank you, Veldskoen shoes, for the spoil.
GoTravelbug 