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ABOUT

Amenities

The Farmhouse was built with beautifully cut tawny sandstone in the style of Herbert Baker. It’s thick walls and high ceilings render the rooms cool on scorching summer days, and warm when cold nights set in.

It’s both simple and functional, with wonderful spaces for lounging, cooking and dining. There are comfortable sofas, a well-stocked library,  and the fireplaces are stacked with wood.

 

This wondrous and unique home is an ideal backdrop for soaking up the simplicity of life in one of the world's most iconic landscapes.  Savour long languid days and star-filled nights with family and friends.  There is no better place to escape the grind of your daily stresses.  Stretch out and restore yourself, drinking in the peace and sublime beauty of the Karoo.

  • Self Catering (catered meals on request)

  • Laundry and cleaning facilities

  • Natural toiletries to protect the septic system

  • Television and DSTV

  • IPod player

  • Gas stove with electric oven

  • Walk-in fridge and freezer

  • Nespresso machine

  • Microwave

  • Built in BBQ  (wood supplied)

  • Pool no net

  • Wi-Fi

The Farmhouse
About

The sweeping plains of the Great Karoo resonate with antiquity. Quiet and patient, it’s pastel time-washed koppies, valleys and parched riverbeds have endured for millennia. Early hunter-gatherers, pioneers, explorers, prospectors and travellers passed through, while the vast landscape presided regardless.

Marooned in this faded tapestry is Thorn Springs, a cattle farm in Middelburg, Eastern Cape, set in 4,200 hectares of sage, ochre, and luminous greens, if the rains have come.

 

The mid 1800’s saw the arrival of John Distin, who erected the first ever stock-fences in South Africa, a revolutionary idea for stock- farming in the area. The farm changed hands, bought by a wealthy gold prospector, Robert Struben, a Randlord who invited the legendary Sir Herbert Baker to design a farmhouse for him. Over time, the original property was divided into three smaller farms, one of them being Thorn Springs. You can still see the crumbling stone stock camps scattered across the land, dotted with dams and reservoirs.

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