Berkman takes to the bush... in luxury

Calling in the ancestors

"At Bushmans Kloof it is as if time concertinas to bring all of human existence and imagination into each moment and then expands again to leave us blissfully alone."

Full speed ahead. (Image: Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Wellness Retreat)

The Praying Mantis lives in the tuft of hair on the forehead of the great Eland. This, according to legend, is what the San Bushmen believed of their god. Listening to Simone Wood-Callander, field guide at Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve and Wellness Retreat, decode the rock art on our first outing into the Cederberg Mountains with her stirs something in me. I can't quite put my finger on it - do I feel connected to these ancient peoples looking at their elegant brush strokes that have lasted over 10, 000 years as a record of their lives or is it that I feel the weight of open space around me?

A moment later, we see a green mantis in the grasses, still dewy from the early morning. How wonderful, I think, that the San imbued this tiny creature with the holiness of a god while the giant Eland only comes second in their deity. Perhaps it is an indication of how they thought that we, puny and slight compared to the vastness of nature, can feel powerful despite our size.

Simone points out a curled-up figure painted around a hole in the rock. She explains that the San believed that cracks in the rock were an opening to the god-consciousness and such images might represent their transitioning between our world and the next.

The great appeal of a stay at Bushmans Kloof is that you decide how to use your time - sleep-in and spend the day around the pools or in the spa or, as we did, be as active as possible and try to learn something about ourselves from our ancestors.

The guides are on hand to tell you all about the rock art. (Image: Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Wellness Retreat)

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Imagine having free access to the Rudner collection - a priceless and museum-quality display of original magic sets, beading, hunting kits and "knives" or to their resident archaeologist. This is one of the reasons why a two-night stay just isn't enough.

The morning nature drive is an eight-am send off into the reserve with coffee and rusks packed in to see over 35 species of mammals like the Eland and Bontebok, with their colourful coats or the 43-strong herd of Cape Mountain Zebra, the largest privately owned of this endangered species. There is also a large herd of springbok that pronk by jumping into the air with all four legs forming a pirouette when they hear the sound of the vehicle. There the Wildebeest seem more confused than usual and here, she points out, a bachelor heard of kudu. There are no large predators at Bushmans Kloof, which means that the usually skittish animals are more relaxed. It also means that guests can walk around the reserve on their own - a rare treat when visiting game lodges.

Scented air

The heavy scent of orange blossom and star jasmine in the air also attracts midges, which descend on us given half the chance, but as soon as the wind picks up, as the earth warms, they dissipate. Seeing the swallows and swifts swoop in loop the loops overhead to catch them is some comfort. It also means that the air is rich with pollens and as a hay fever sufferer, I was very glad for the extra stash of meds.

Caveman diet

What I loved most about our stay was being able to explore by ourselves. The mountain hikes are well marked with piled-up stone cairns every few meters pointing the way and the feeling of squeezing through a crack in a low cave to come face to face with rock art you weren't expecting is thrilling.

Look - but DO NOT touch. (Image: Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Wellness Retreat)

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Taking the mountain bikes down to the dam for an early morning paddle is a great way to get the day going and it also makes it easier to enjoy the extraordinary food included in your room rate. As a follower of the Paleo diet, I found many easy choices and opted for fillet steak with a green salad for lunch. The afternoon tea buffet is a tempting display of cakes and savouries as well as fresh fruit.

If you enjoy wine, they have an enviable cellar and very clued-in sommeliers that can help you discover an interesting wine rather than just push the most expensive bottle. As a Red Carnation property, the company that also owns Bouchard Finlayson Estate, their wines are available at cellar-door prices. I was pleased to overhear a wine sampling between a winemaker and the food and beverage manager and was impressed by the passion and depth of knowledge I witnessed.

The rooibos tea bush (Aspalanthus linearis), the Cederberg's most famous export, was in flower during our visit and it boggles the mind to think that the San knew to dry and ferment it before brewing it.

Relax at the spa. (Image: Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Wellness Retreat)

The fynbos and Rooibos in particular is used extensively in the menu under the toque of executive chef and deputy GM Floris Smith and, as if being part of this great floral kingdom weren't enough, another chef here also has a flowery names, Florid Brand.

Tinderbox of Stories

The standout experience of this visit was a private dinner at Kadoro - a shell of an 18th century farmhouse under a huge Blue Gum tree. If the main lodge feels like a million miles from city life then Kadoro, just 30 more minutes away, feels like another galaxy. Translated from the !Xam dialect of the San, Kadoro means Tinderbox of Stories. We arrived after dark and first saw the spindly shadows of Blue Gum branches cast by the candles and paraffin lanterns that marked the path. Huge logs were ablaze in the fire pit and as chef Matthew van Vuuren prodded at the embers a cloud of sparks rose up to the stars. That's one of the legends the San tell about how the Milky Way was formed, Simone says.

In the blue-black sky, the stars are brighter than I have ever seen. Simone and her laser pointer seems to reach the stars with as much ease as they reached us - Scorpio is rising above the horizon, she says as she draws around the question-mark tail with the red light. Here it is so dark that shooting stars or, she explains, shards of space debris even as tiny as a grain of sand, appear to streak through the sky trailing light. I counted four "shooting stars" while we were outside.

Ancestors in the stars

Sitting around the fire pit after dinner of salads, braaied fish and lamb chops, curried quail potjie and sugary temptations with cheese to end got me thinking again about our ancestors - about those who have trodden this path before us. Some 10, 000 years ago it was the San, later the Khoi Khoi, later still the Boers who farmed here and the English who tried to wrestle control. More recently, the McAdam family sat around a fire here and imagined returning the agricultural land to its natural state and about preserving the ancient rock art heritage.

Just one of the many examples of wildlife you can spot. (Image: Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve & Wellness Retreat)

Later still The Tollman Family sat around a fire here and imagined this property as a world-famous premium hotel that would win every international hospitably award worth having and now I sit around this fire, looking up at the same stars, feeling the same magnetic pull from some of the most ancient rocks on earth.

At Bushmans Kloof, it is as if time concertinas to bring all of human existence and imagination into each moment and then expands again to leave us blissfully alone. Noticing the careful details in the room while preparing for bed I can see why a stay here is so desired. There's a set of watercolour paints and art paper on the sitting room table if the mood takes me and two yoga maps neatly rolled in the bathroom if we feel a yogasana coming on.

The rooms are decorated with a collector's eye and further enrich a stay. Our Rock Pools 2 room has a signed Salvador Dali Burning Giraffes print in the bathroom and Mother of Pearl-inlaid chairs that might have come from an ancient palace in Timbuktu. There's also a wonderfully weathered leather couch that begs you to flop into it and stretch out and three pillows each of varying sizes and softness on the bed.

Everything at Bushmans Kloof Wilderness Reserve and Wellness Retreat is designed with you in mind. Unabashedly a luxury experience but one which is much more affordable and necessary than you might imagine.

(This article was first published in the January 2014 issue of Juice, Mango's in-flight magazine.)

For more go to www.Bushmanskloof.co.za

Bushmans Kloof in numbers

18,533 - The number of acres of Wilderness
5 dams
4 swimming pools (1 heated)
270km from Cape Town (3 hours by road, 45-minutes by air)
150 bird species
130 rock art sites
7 luxury rooms, 7 deluxe sites, 1 suite and 1 supreme suite.
1 Koro Lodge, a villa that sleeps 8
1772 - the year Dutch botanists rediscovered Rooibos tea
755 indigenous plant species
20 - the number of awards received since 2007
1 gazillion - the number of stars you can see there.
32 - the maximum number of guests
43 of the global 1,600 Cape Mountain Zebra live here.
72 - the number of times you will say Fabulous during your stay.