OUR EXPERT

Esma Marnewick

“I have several favourite Capenature reserves. In the Hottentots-holland Nature Reserve ( 028 841 4301) you can walk along an easy jeep track (7 km) to the Landdroskop Hut. The hut is surrounded by high mountains – it feels like you’re deep in the wilderness even though the bustle of Somerset West is not far away.

“Marloth Nature Reserve ( 087 087 3039) is about 3 km north of Swellendam at the foot of the Langeberg. You can walk into a cool indigenous forest or climb high in the mountains past peaks with evocative names like Eenuurkop, Misty Point and Keurboomrug. I’d recommend the 2 km-long Duiwelsbos Trail, which leads to a pool that looks like a mug of Milo.

“Anysberg Nature Reserve* ( 087 087 3036), south of Laingsburg, has lots of activities – hiking, MTB trails, horse rides… It feels like your own farm in the Karoo. You can sit on the stoep of your cottage and watch the shadows move across the landscape. When the day heats up, you can swim in the big cement dam or laze in the sun on the deck. Late in the afternoon, gemsbok canter across the plains as the sunlight ebbs away…”

*The cottages at Anysberg are temporarily closed, but you can still camp and visit the reserve.