Urban Adventures: B'sorah Luxury Tented Camp

Urban Adventures....Africa at its best! A night in a luxury tent!

My hubby surprised me with an early birthday present and a bucket list adventure. A stay in a luxury tented camp about 50 minutes from Johannesburg. I had wanted to do this for some time now and this was to be a perfect midweek break form the Jozi rat race.

B'sorah Luxury Tented Camp, Magaliesberg - Photocredit/Copyright Kim Williams #adventurekimcom #NikonCoolpix #urbanadventures #midweekbreaks #Bsorah #luxuarytents #Magaliesberg #wildlife #Africa #sunsets

I came off my last night shift and packed to leave at 12h00. B'sorah is a luxury tented camp near the Magaliesberg Mountains. We were booked in at 14h00. The camp is self-catering and they offer breakfast, so we stopped off for a few supplies and snacks. We had planned to braai that evening and spend the time chilling, basically doing nothing.

The tarred road is in good condition and before we knew it we had arrived and turned off the tarred road onto a more traditional farm road. We passed lush green paddocks that had benefited from the recent rains. We then came to park under a tree near the reception, a beautiful old farm house that reminded me of yesteryear and the classic movie, "I have a farm in Africa". Horses grazed on nearby green paddocks and we were greeted by several dogs of assorted sizes. This reminded me of when as a little girl, living on our farm, we had eleven dogs!

The garden around the old farm house is really beautiful, with huge palm trees that were planted around 1920 to 1925. A big pond with water lilies as the centre piece sits in the lush green lawns, with a backdrop of a white paddock fence and huge trees.

I found out from the owner Natalie Durr, that the farm house was built in 1920 by her grandfather. Fifteen years ago a fire damaged the house. The house was then rebuilt to what we see today.For some years the owners had rented the farm out and it was used as a B&B and it was during this time that the fire had occurred.

I was blown away to discover that since 1865, 100 years before I was born in the Hartbeeshoek area, south of the Hartbeespoort Dam sections of land had been owned by various relatives of Commandant Andries Pretorius. Many years later his grandson Colonel Nicolaas Pretorius purchased several sections and by 1924 all these bits and pieces of land was amalgamated into one big farm.

The veranda walls are filled with history and interesting memories from a time gone by.

Colonel Pretrious was also a member of Parliament in Cape Town, where he served for many years and this meant that his wife had to take care of the farm on her own. The painting below is of the owner Natalie Durr as a baby in her mothers arms, standing in front of the old farm house. Natalie put the painting on the floor to get rid of some of the glare. Such a family treasure.

The farm is called B'sorah which translated means "The Good News" and you will indeed, receive a very warm welcome from the family on your arrival. It is evident the family has strong faith and belief in God. A beautiful old family bible takes pride and joy on a table in the reception area.

There are some really beautiful old historical pieces dotted around the drawing room and office. The walls are adored with treasures form the past and everything here is steeped in sentimental value to the families that have lived here.

The huge wrap around veranda has quaint table and chairs set out, this is where we would have our breakfast the following day.

B'sorah is indeed a little piece of heaven and not matter who you choose to worship, this is a place you can mediate, read scripture and take time to pray and gather your thoughts. It is also a place to re-charge your batteries and connect with Mother nature, Africa at its best.

We were escorted by the owners son, Chris. We drove around on the farm road and then onto a paved road all the way to the camp site. We managed the road comfortably with a sedan.

We crossed over a couple of bridges. Everything was very green even though they had had a devastating fire not so long ago that burnt all their grazing areas and outside feed and hay had to be brought in. The land is however recovering slowly but surely.

The camp site is very well situated and covered with large trees and foliage to give you privacy. Yes you can hear the other people talking as the voices do carry in the valley, but you cannot see each other. For the most part we were all alone and it was very quiet and peaceful.

Each of the luxury tented camps has a carport and you have a little woodland, filled with the chatter of birds, that surrounds your site.

Believe it or not but somewhere in there are tented camps. A lot of thought and planning to contain guests privacy went into setting out the camp. Just looking at this you feel all alone and not another living person in sight.

We had our own private wooden deck that overlooked a small wetland and stream below, which was a hive of activity as the birds went about their daily rituals. Down the steps we had our own private boma, where we could build a large bonfire and braai [barbecue]. You can purchase wood at R15 from reception. A spade, matches and a braai-grid are provided, but bring your own charcoal and fire lighters. Oh and do not forget the marshmallows and a good bottle of red wine!

We were warned that we would be woken up early by the noisy birds. There is a large variety of birds to keep you happy for many hours, identifying calls, bird spotting and taking photos. I slept like a log, probably all the red wine and I did not hear the birds until hubby woke me up at 06h00 to go for our morning walk. Back home we are blessed to have a large wooded garden and have many of our own birds that start up early!

I have an app on my phone that identifies bird calls and we heard and spotted African Dusky Flycatcher, African Reed Warbler, Black and white Mannikin, Black Coucal, Black Crake, Red Brested Cuckoo (piet-my-vrou), Black headed Weavers, Black-throated Apalis, a Giant kingfisher that flew past us on our walk, Blue breasted kingfisher that flew past us while we were drinking our afternoon tea (very civilized it was Earl Grey!), Grey Lorries, Broad-billed Roller, Chestnut-throated Analis, Common waxbills, Grey headed kingfisher, Hadidas, Guinea-fowl and I was thrilled to see a Red Billed Hornbill right near me, the bugger flew off the moment I went for my camera! There were many other birds that I could not identify and between the chirping tree frogs and the birds it was hard to believe we were only an hour away from the hustle and bustle of city life.

B’sorah is situated near the ancient Magaliesberg Mountains, one of my favorite hiking areas and it really does have some of the best landscape for hikers and birdwatchers. You are surrounded by both historical and natural landmarks of Hartbeespoort and the Magaliesberg. Note the Luxary Tented camp is eco-friendly and they operate using solar power.

This is the solar panels that light up our tents and campsite. there is also a plug point for your cellphones to charge. Please remember that you cannot use a hairdryer, its time to go a little wild ladies!

Here at the camp, hikers are free to go off the beaten track and explore rocky outcrops, valleys and streams, and enjoy some of the best views over the Hartbeespoort area. Talking about hiking they have been around since 2009 and have hosted many hikers and hiking clubs. Currently they have a 7km and a 12 km hike and are hoping to add a 17km hike in the new year. You will be happy to know that they do have a stunning picnic area with braai facilities for hiking groups. Currently the cost is R40 per adult and they are open to hikers from Sundays to Fridays. Saturdays the whole farm takes a well earned break from running their Red Brahman stud with their prize Brahman cattle among other things. I will be back with my sister and some mates to try out the longer hiking trails and a blog will follow on that little adventure.

Our luxury tent was fantastic. We had a very large carpeted room with one of the most comfortable beds ever with a table on either side with a solar powered lamps. Large tent windows on both sides of the tent walls created a great atmosphere and soft lighting. Very romantic!!

Two comfie armchairs and a table with books invite you to snuggle up and read. A silver ice bucket sits in the corner, begging to be used. At the french doors we found a light switch that lit up the large room.A large chest deep-freeze is provided, it works on solar power and works more like a fridge. We kept salad in there with no problems. A large shelf houses the cutlery, cooking utensils, glasses, mugs and plates, with tea, coffee and sugar.

You then walk into a well appointed bathroom. It had a large wooden cupboard for your clothing and a spare blanket (in winter a gas heater is provided). The basin is beautiful with sleeper wood finishes. The loo had a huge window and a awesome view.

To get to the shower and dressing area, you walk down a L shaped passage, a bench is provided for your cloths and a long mirror sits on the wall. Soap, shampoo and body cream is provided. The huge shower is fantastic and unique, bringing you close to nature even though you are inside! There is a huge tree standing in the shower, the shower head comes out of it. While you take a shower you could either close the blinds or leave the huge window open and scare off the birds or give the warthogs a heart attack. It was really epic!

On the deck in the covered section, a kitchenette is provided with a double gas hotplate, kettle and solar powered lights for both the deck, kitchen area and down by the fire pit/boma area. The cupboard underneath provides pots and pans as well as cleaning materials.

We had a large umbrella, with a wooden table and chairs out on the deck. It was really lovely to sit out here with our tea or coffee while watching the birds in the wetland below. We had a thunderstorm that interrupted our braai and we had to run back to the deck until it passed.

We could hear distant thunder as we watched the storm build up.

The boma is really lovely and we would liked to have spent more time with a bigger fire. When the storm did come and it rained the fire was still going, with a bit of a touch up, another glass of wine, some snacks and a dip we were ready to braai, in the typical South African way!

The fire pit was cleverly designed in that once you had made you huge bone fire and it had started to die down you could push the coals into the protected braai area, a large metal fork is provided for this purpose.

As suddenly the storm had appeared, so the blue sky reappeared with incredible cloud formations and the wetland became alive once more with the chirping of birds near their nests getting reading to settle in for the night.

On the one side we had blue skies with a pink sunset starting to form.

Behind us was a different and darker sunset, with a burst of oranges and greys. It was hard to believe we were sitting in the same place with two different sunsets.

As the sunset disappeared behind the tree line we looked to the wetland and very soon the sky erupted with brilliant oranges, lilacs and pinks. What an incredible sight. We had found a little piece of heaven right here in the Magaliesberg.

What an incredible birthday treat Mother Nature had just given me. They sky was a magnificent pink, purple and lilac. We watched the sunset as we ate our dinner, drank our wine, while listening to the calls of the francolins’ . Life felt really good and it was fantastic to relax and wind down listening to all our African wildlife and the calls of a nearby jackal, this is Africa at its best!.

A security guard patrols at night and the huge We slept really well and we woke up to a misty morning with bits of blue sky peeping through the haze. A cup of coffee with Woolies shortbread was in order and we then made our way along the 1.5km nature walk.

The farm is large and sit at 1600-hectares. You will find a variety of habitats all close by of dense bush, open grassland and riverine vegetation, which runs along streams flowing into the Skeerpoort river.

The trail starts and the end of the last tent and as we made our way along the trail, we found impala and kudu spoor. They had walked here this morning, so we kept quiet so not to scare them off and hoped we would spot them.

The morning skies were magnificent, with dramatic cloud formations and lighting from the storms and skies we had last night. The dew was heavy and many birds and insects were out. We hear a lot of rustling in the bushes.

There were many wild flowers that had sprung up and the short bright green grass made it easier to spot and their colours really stood out.

There is game which includes kudu, nyala, waterbuck, impala and blesbuck, as well as warthogs, baboons and nocturnal species such as brown hyena and jackal.

We walked along the well marked trail and I was super excited to find a family of Nyala's, the male was very skittish and headed for cover, while the females hung around grazing long enough for me to get in some photos. The owner told me that in the past when the farm was rented out, people used to come in and poach the animals and they had become very skittish. When they had the recent fire and had to bring fodder in the buck, especially the female Nyala's would come up fairly close and wait for the feed to be prepared for them.

We continued to follow the trail along the stream and into woodlands before we came out into a clearing and we could see the hills and koppies.

We crossed over the stream and walked back towards camp. The wild flowers were really magnificent and I came across a stunning butterfly. I have only seen them twice before. We found 4 of them around the stream.

At the stream crossing we found this rather resourceful black headed weaver who had taken up home on a suspended barbed wire fence. We watched his antics for some time and marveled at his dexterity while he meticulously worked on his home.

We headed back for a shower and another cup of coffee on the deck. We packed and headed back to the farm house for breakfast, which is served between 8 and 10am.

We came across a mongoose who took its time to cross the road and gave us the beady eye for disturbing his day.

Along the way we came across a mommy warthog with her little ones in tow, they could not have been more than a month old. Mom was very skittish, the little ones had not learnt about the dangers of man, so they took a little longer to catch up to her.

When we arrived for breakfast, the resident cat came rushing out to great us and even posed a bit for me while I was taking photos of the water lilies in the pond.

The coffee and lattes were really good, with homemade bread and marmalade. We had the option of yogurt, fruit and muesli or cereal.

We then moved onto a hot breakfast of eggs, sausage, mushrooms, grilled tomato. It was really delicious.

This is a really affordable treat and break that you should all try at least once. I really recommend this place, when you need to go somewhere quiet and switch-off. A time to relax, read, bird watch and take easy leisurely walks and get off the grid for a day or two.

Note: that the farm also hosts tours of their Brahman cattle for preschools, primary schools or anyone interested in this magnificent breed. Brahman bring back so many childhood memories for me as we farmed cattle and had a few Brahman on our farm. With regards to the preschool groups, pony rides can be arranged as well as a picnic meal for the kiddies.

For more info regarding our Red Brahmans, e-mail Alex at alexrdurr@gmail.com

For more info regarding farm tours, send us an e-mail at info@bsorah.com

Please check out their website for more details:http://www.bsorah.com/

The Team Zodwa Project ™

Member: FGASA (Field Guides Association of Southern Africa)
Member: Vincent de Paul Victory Park (St Charles Catholic Church)

Photo Credits: Kim Williams Copyright

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