Awesome weekend break: Desert Wind in the Klein Karoo

Posted by Sarah Duff on 5 November 2012

When you find a really special weekend secret spot, you almost don’t want to share it with anyone else. In my case, that’s kind of my job. So, as much as I’d like to keep Desert Wind in the Klein Karoo to myself, I have to tell you about it.

We arrived on Friday night at Desert Wind after taking a wrong turn or two on the long, but scenic, dirt road from Montagu, to find a braai fire burning and two loaves of still-warm freshly baked farm bread on the table next to homemade jam. This was a sign that it was going to be a good weekend. The private 2000-hectare game farm, is the perfect middle-of-nowhere spot surrounded by miles of beautiful wide open Karoo landscapes. We were staying in the 14-sleeper cottage (there’s also a campsite), which offers lovely ensuite bedrooms, a big comfy lounge area, wood-fired jacuzzi, a little garden, overlooked by a family of friendly alpacas – for only R190 a person.

We’d had big plans for all the activities were were going to do at Desert Wind: horse riding, quad biking, clay pigeon shooting, hiking and mountain biking were all on the cards, but we ended up being incredibly lazy. We did do the short walk along the river to the deliciously refreshing rock pool but that was as active as we got. The rest of the weekend we spent drinking beer shandies, eating enormous amounts of food, lazing around in the sun, taking long afternoon siestas, playing guitar and just generally soaking up the laidback Karoo vibe.

On Saturday evening after our braai, we heated up the wood-fired jacuzzi for a midnight dip and then lay on blankets on the grass next to the mooing alpacas and drank red wine while watching shooting stars, and the orange moon rise over the horizon. Karoo bliss.

None of us wanted to go back to the city after the weekend, but even though we’d only been there for two days it felt like we’d taken a long holiday. Desert Wind has definitely earned an entry into my ‘Black Book’ of cool places.

My favourite bits

Arriving to freshly baked bread and roaring fires after a long drive

The honesty wine bar in the cottage – with loads of wines to choose from (you just leave R40 for each bottle you drink)

Zorro the friendly alpaca

Fresh bunches of lavender on our beds

Karoo silence

The farm’s Landy being loaned to us for the weekend to use on the 4×4 routes (where else do you get that?)

Wallace the legendary Jack Russell (ask for his story from Paul, the owner, when you’re there)

Deep purple and Alaskan salmon sunsets

Shooting stars

Desert Wind Private Game and Adventure Farm

The 10-sleeper cottage has three big ensuite rooms, two of which have two double beds and one has three single beds (linen and towels are provided). There’s a big lounge area with comfy couches, and piles of travel magazines, a large dining room table, kitchen with two fridges and two gas stoves (and all the equipment you would need, from pots and pans to coffee plungers). There’s a big fireplace for winter nights, and an outside braai.

The four-sleeper cottage is part of the larger cottage and can be rented out if you’ve got a really big group (you can sleep a total of 14 people if you rent both cottages). It’s got beds in one room, with a small kitchen and ensuite bathroom. The cottage runs on gas and solar power.

There’s a campsite near the rock pool that offers an ablution block and a kitchen area with sinks.

Activities

Desert Wind offers a number of activities:

Quad biking (guided trails are R450 a person)

Clay pigeon shooting (starts at R75 a person)

Mountain biking (borrow the farm’s bikes for free)

Horse riding on Warrior and Black Mamba (only for experienced riders – R75 a person)

4x4ing (borrow the farm’s Landy and tackle their 4×4 routes)

Hiking

How to get there

Desert Wind is 200 km from Cape Town and 40 km from Montagu. It took us a good four hours to get there on a Friday afternoon in Cape Town traffic going through Montagu. This is a more scenic route, as you drive over the Ouberg pass and through endless open Karoo fields but the rocky road can be a bit rough in your 2×4. If you want to get there quicker, take the route through De Doorns – this takes about 2.5 to 3 hours.

Rates

The 10-sleeper self-catering cottage is R1900 a night.
The four-sleeper self-catering cottage is R760 a night.
The campsite is R75 a night a person.

As they say on the website: Karoo hospitality, views, tranquility and fresh air – no charge

Contact

Tel 021-658-7100
Cell 073-815-4800
[email protected]
www.desertwind.co.za