Durban - One of the things I love about traipsing around this country is that one so often finds the most ridiculously incongruent things in the most unexpected places.
Oaklands Country Manor, situated 7km from the nondescript village of Van Reenen, is one such place. Exactly three hours from Joburg or Durban, on the edge of the Drakensberg escarpment where the N3 tips into KwaZulu-Natal via Van Reenen’s pass, it is the perfect place for travellers between the two destinations to take a break.
Apart from the most delightful tea garden attached to the world’s smallest church and the Caltex garage where most people stop to fill up with petrol and stretch their legs, the village of Van Reenen is hardly worth a mention.
However, just down the road, nestled in a valley of swaying green and blonde grass with sandstone koppies off in the distance, lies Oaklands Country Manor.
Once belonging to Transvaal cricket captain David Dyer and his wife Jenny, today Oaklands is a Manor House in the best sense of the word. This is because it is owned by a real lady, a South African born and brought up in the “wilds” of Lesotho, who married the late Sir Hervey James Hugh Bruce-Clifton, the 7th Baronet of Downhill, in Ireland.
Following his death, Lady Caroline continues running Oaklands with the help of three talented and fascinating siblings, Annie, Kathy and Simon, all characters in their own right.
Increasingly, people who know about this little gem take the time to book ahead for lunch or dinner and an overnight sleep on their way through Van Reenen’s, but it is also known for hosting international polo tournaments, gorgeous weddings and sumptuous family events.
A large contributing factor to the success of Oaklands is youngest sister and executive chef Kathy Romer-Lee. Kathy joined Oaklands following her divorce.
Her colourful cooking career included a brief stint at Silwood Kitchen in Cape Town, and working as cook for children’s writer Roald Dahl and his wife “Liccy” in the UK, who at the time were working on their book Roald Dahl’s Revolting Recipes.
Romer-Lee also spent time in the kitchens of Londolozi Game Reserve and Boschendal wine estate before opening her own restaurant, 96 Winery Road, with Ken Forrester and Devon Valley winemaker Martin Meinert at his vineyard outside Somerset West.
Romer-Lee is a staunch advocate of “field to fork”, fresh, locally produced food which, considering that Oaklands is adjacent to some of the best farming lands in the country, is something of a boon. She knows the owners of the farms, she knows where all her produce comes from, how it was raised, grown and harvested.
She has seen the cheese being made, the flour being stone ground and the eggs being laid. It shows in the food.
Due to demand, Dargle Valley pork roast (with crackling) and aged Angus steak are permanently on the otherwise ever-changing menu, as is the decadent molten chocolate pot dessert.
Advice for guests staying over is to wake early in the morning and take a short hike up Happiness Rock Trail to enjoy the stunning views. If that seems a bit too energetic, take an easier stroll.
Wander around the small veggie garden with its brightly coloured flapping scarecrows, pass the old variety pink and white roses sagging like soft old ladies in the hedges. Pat the horses and donkey leaning over the white, wooden fences, and smile at the clucking hens in the barn and the little line of waddling ducks as they scoot across the green paddocks.
By the time you get back to the manor house, you may have to shove the enormous Harlequin Great Danes off the couches before you flop down, but you will be welcomed by the smell of home-baked croissants, thick slices of pink ham, strong cheeses, muffins, home-made preserves and coffee. You could not wish for anything more delicious.
If cycling is your thing, you should bring your mountain bike to explore the area. This is a veritable off-road cycling paradise.
But more importantly for cyclists, (and for those who love walking, as I do) one of the excellent mountain-bike trails follows the old ox-wagon path down the escarpment, while other hikes wind through the grasslands and paddocks, past the bird filled vlei, bass fishing dams, forests and rivers.
One of the best alternatives is to go for a horse ride, even if you are inexperienced. Coming as they do from Lesotho and a polo background, if nothing else, this estate knows its horses.
A small oak forest graces the driveway. They were originally planted to supply “duiselbooms” which hitched the oxen via long poles to pull the ox-wagons trading between the coast and inland gold and diamond fields in the 1800s. They also reveal some of this areas’ wonderfully rich Boer War history.
DIRECTIONS:
Oaklands Country Manor is approximately three hours from both Durban and Joburg. It is about 30km from Harrismith (southbound) and about 25 km from the Tugela Toll Plaza (northbound) on the N3. Turn into the R793 next to the Caltex garage in the village of Van Reenen and follow the signposts. Once across the railway line, travel for 7km. Oaklands is on the right-hand side.
(GPS co-ordinates: Latitude: 28°30’43.81”S. Longitude: 29°38’66.54”E)
RATES
Between R750 and R900 per person per night.
Tel/Fax: +27 (0)87 943 8738
Sue Derwent, Sunday Tribune