Durban - Reserve manager Daryn Hiltunen pumped my hand, paused, then shook it again. “Are you sure you’ve never done this?” he asked.
It turns out I’m a natural at clay pigeon shooting – something I’ve had a yen to try for years – and was sending little orange shards of blasted clay bits over ZuluWaters Game Reserve, much to Hiltunen’s admiration.
The shotgun was the only thing that broke the peace of this beautiful private reserve about two hours from Durban, not far from Giant’s Castle with views of White Mountain and rolling hills.
About a decade ago, Australian entrepreneur Ian Gowrie-Smith bought up abandoned farms in the foothills of Giant’s Castle, dropped fences, reintroduced indigenous game and removed alien flora.
The game farm is now flourishing.
Gowrie-Smith chose visionary architect Richard Stretton to design an eco-friendly compound and to create an aesthetic that would work in the 3 100ha game reserve along a 15km stretch of the Bushman’s River.
ZuluWaters is now an exclusive game lodge, the first private property in KwaZulu-Natal to be proclaimed a nature reserve. It has three luxury, eco-friendly homesteads: Shaka Lodge, Nandi House and the Lake Cottage.
In 2010 it was the first recipient of the AfriSam-SAIA Award for Sustainable Architecture. Shaka Lodge and Nandi House are 100m or so apart.
Nandi can be booked either in conjunction with the lodge or as a self-catering option, while self- catering Lake Cottage is tucked away near the gorgeous dam.
We were welcomed to Shaka Lodge, which used to be the owner’s three bedroom, en-suite residence. This was straight off the pages of top décor and architectural glossies: exposed beams, steel plates, a mix of wood, beautiful lines, bespoke furniture, and a generous wraparound veranda – with a powerful telescope – that overlooks the sloping lawns and mountains.
The top floor included a Jacuzzi, and we quickly eased ourselves into it with a bottle of hard-to-find fine wine from the excellent selection, while our personal chef, Mbongiseni Makhaye, and housekeeper Sandile Dlamini, rustled up our grub. You can make your own cappuccino or help yourself to a bite in the kitchen, but the staff do it better, as evidenced by the inventive meals and treats, often made with produce from the reserve, which has its own butchery.
Early morning coffee on the veranda was taken quietly so as not to disturb the game grazing just below. Then we set off on a tour of the reserve.
Trundling carefully over the rocks above what, in summer, is a deep, delightful swimming hole on the river, guide Joe Sithole stopped to show us the grooves in the rock created by San Bushmen sharpening their spears and arrows – the inspiration for the ZuluWaters logo.
The winding river is full of trout. Fly fishing, game drives, guided walks, horse trails (there are magnificent Appaloosas) and tennis are on offer.
The tennis court is set unusually far from the lodge – no doubt to allow peaceful sleep. Spa treatments can be booked, but we made do with a few spells in the Jacuzzi and the Charlotte Rhys products in the bathrooms.
We had great fun and left smiling after our pampered break in the serene luxury.
l Call 036 352 0100, email: [email protected] or visit www.zuluwatersgamereserve.com
Sunday Tribune