DIEPWALLE, KNYSNA FOREST

I’ve never been a fan of crowds; I’ll always choose the bundu over a busy resort. As soon as we’re free to travel again, I’ll head straight to Diepwalle in the Knysna Forest. I miss the smell of Suurberg cushion bush under the canopy, and the sound of babbling water the colour of rooibos tea.

Diepwalle is a forestry station in the heart of the forest. It has a small tea garden and a museum where you can learn more about the history of the area’s woodcutters and elephants; you can also buy indigenous plants at the on-site nursery.

But I just want to camp in the forest. Diepwalle has four decks on the side of a hill, perched high in the canopy. There’s a power point, an awning and a place to light a fire. The awning is to protect you from rain, the canopy will shield you from the sun’s rays, and if you don’t feel like cooking you can order a curry vetkoek in the tea garden.

Diepwalle is a great base to explore: Knysna and Noetzie are each about a half-hour drive away, and other forest attractions like Jubilee Creek, Millwood and the Dalene Matthee Big Tree are relatively close by.

But when I settle in at Diepwalle, I don’t want get back in my car. I might walk a section of one of the two Elephant Trails with my wife Marilize and our one-year-old daughter Essie, to admire the tall stinkwood and yellowwood trees, and to swim in river pools.

Then I just want to sit on the deck and listen to the sounds of the forest. It will be wonderful after months of hearing only Egyptian geese and hadedas in the Northern Suburbs of Cape Town. Cost: Conservation fee R38 per adult; R19 per child; free with a Wild card. Camping from R230 per night for two people, plus R94 per extra adult; R47 per child.

Contact: 044 302 5606 (Garden Route National Park);

012 428 9111 (bookings); sanparks.org