Back to Stutterheim

As interns we are allocated 22 days of leave annually, and we are allowed a maximum of eight days per four months. This ensures that we don’t miss out too much of any of our rotations, but necessitates some fine planning if one wishes to take a break.

So instead of going very far for a weekend breakaway, we learn to explore the gems spread around the Eastern Cape.

Recently, GeekBoy and I opted for a quiet weekend in Stutterheim. You might remember that my colleagues and I took a day trip there earlier this year.

We stayed in a little place called The Shire Eco Lodge. Wooden open-plan cabins that sleep four (two in bunk beds high up in the rafters). The Shire is in the middle of the Kologha Forest, and at night you hear the whistling of the wind through the trees. It’s magical. Stutterheim is not a city. It’s hardly even a town, and it shows in the millions of bright stars at night.

Stutterheim is in the Eastern Cape Highlands – mountains, forests and waterfalls. Hiking is the name of the game. It’s quiet and gorgeous. If I wasn’t so tired out I’d have gone trail running – but we did go for a few steep walks.

The roads are a little rough getting there; but one does not need a 4×4 to navigate the area. Additionally there is hardly any cell phone signal – which was honestly a good thing for a weekend of unwinding.

Oh, another bonus: an outdoor shower! It was a little too cold (mountains and winter) to really enjoy that so I mostly use the inside shower, but I can’t wait to try it out in the warmer months. Because yes – I definitely plan on going back there.

If you’re ever in the area, try it out for a few days. They are on AirBnB here.

There are only four cabins at the moment, and I love how quiet and private it is. It’s quite special because the owners and their family designed and built the cabins themselves. They are currently planning building a social area into one of the hills (like a hobbit’s burrow!).

Pure bliss.

Disclaimer: this is NOT a sponsored post, I just loved my stay.