Blue Hill Escape
Accommodation and mountain fynbos reserve
Western Cape, South Africa
About us
We are a family in custody of 2300 hectares of former livestock farm land in the Little Karoo which we are turning into a Nature Reserve under the Cape Nature / Eastern Cape Parks stewardship program. We wish to preserve the areas endemic mountain fynbos vegetation and associated wildlife. We aim to be as self-sufficient as possible, to live with, and learn from the land.
What we do
Guest House
We operate a small eco-tourism enterprise and aim to give our guests a
back-to-nature experience in a friendly and informal setting. We aim to
keep our impact on the environment and wildlife to a minimum by using
as many of our own resources and produce as possible, recycling our waste,
saving water and restricting car use on our property. Most food and other
products are bought locally and we contract people from the local community.
Conservation and research
Conservation is very important to us and we would like to contribute our
bit to making this world a better place. We believe that conservation
is not possible without proper monitoring and scientific research, so
we aim to offer placements to students from local universities which will
have several benefits: The students advance in their career, we get information
that helps us understand better what is needed to preserve this area and
our guests will benefit from our knowledge. Positions are currently available.
Volunteer program
Our volunteer program is designed for people who would like to share our
way of life and, depending on interests and abilities, contribute to our
conservation efforts, sustainable living and eco-tourism enterprise.
Who we are
Alan, Anja and Elena
Chris and Elaine’s son and daughter-in-law met in Paraguay, got together in Peru and married in London. Alan is a field biologist, having just completed his PhD on parrots and macaws in the Peruvian Amazon. You can see his photos of macaws and wildlife of the Peruvian amazon here. Growing up in South Africa instilled in him a love for nature, wildlife and conservation. Alan is in charge of area management, wildlife monitoring, conservation projects and research. He is currently exploring postdoc options based in and around the Baviaanskloof. Anja is a translator and language teacher from Germany. After extensive travel and work in South America and more recently in South Africa, she has grown to love wildlife and conservation. Anja is the farm’s hostess and manages the guest house. Elena is the youngest family member. She's in charge of bringing life to Blue Hill Escape, and a constant reminder why we do what we do.
Chris and Elaine
A geologist and educator respectively, they were looking for a way to escape Johannesburg’s madness and found the perfect place in the Little Karoo. They enjoy the healthy outdoor life, slow pace and tranquillity of the area. As a geologist, Chris is intrigued by the rocks and the ancient continental surface of the area. Elaine looks after their garden, orchard and poultry. She is the family's artist and aromatherapy expert. Both like to travel and have visited most of the national parks of South Africa, as well as places as far away as Alaska and Kamchatka (Russia).
We are an ordinary family trying to live and make a living in the most pleasant way we can. Our atmosphere here is quite informal but you can be sure that we will do everything we can to make sure that you get the experience here that you want and our service to you will be second to none.
You can now read all about us and our adventures at http://bluehillescape.blogspot.com/