I ♥ Barkly East because ...

Hi, I’m Kate Nelson from Rosstrevor Guest Farm in Barkly East in the Eastern Cape.

BARKLY EAST IS BEST KNOW FOR tran­quil guest farms, spec­tac­u­lar moun­tain scenery, snow in the winter and fly-fishing in the sum­mer.
GET YOUR PICTURE TAKEN hav­ing a snow­ball fight dur­ing winter, or bathing in a moun­tain jac­uzzi in the sum­mer.
THE BEST SCENERY PICTURES CAN BE TAKEN AT the top of any of our 8 moun­tain passes, espe­cially Lundean’s Nek, Joubert’s Pass, Bastervoetpad and Naudés Nek.
OTHER HAPPY SNAPS AT at Rhodes Village and Lady Grey.

WHEN THE WEATHER'S GOOD, I LIKE TO get a lung­ful of pure moun­tain air. Call Wild Mountain Adventures for hik­ing, moun­tain bik­ing, horse rid­ing, fly-fishing, 4x4 trails and river raft­ing.
WHEN THE WEATHER'S BAD, IN LIKE TO sit in front of a roar­ing log fire and drink Gluhwein.

I THINK THE BEST TIME TO VISIT depends on what you enjoy the most. We are for­tu­nate to have four dis­tinct sea­sons, so come for snow and cosy fireside even­ings in the winter, lambs and won­der­ful bird­ing in the spring, lush green vis­tas, wild flowers and full rivers in the sum­mer or spec­tac­u­lar autumn col­ours. The choice is yours ... or you could just return again and again for a dif­fer­ent exper­i­ence each time!

MY FAVOURITE BREAKFAST SPOT IS a home cooked farm­house spread at our guest farm (The Old Dairy Restaurant). Especially when the eggs have been col­lec­ted fresh that morn­ing and you can enjoy your cer­eal watch­ing the cows that donated your milk.
FOR LUNCH, I SUGGEST Walkerbouts Inn in Rhodes for their tasty ‘design your own’ piz­zas straight from their oven.
MY FAVOURITE RESTAURANT IS Intaba Lodge at the bot­tom of Barkly Pass, Try the mouth-watering juicy steaks.

BEST LATE NIGHT SNACK is from the fridge! Our nearest fast food shops are 120kms away in Aliwal North and we cel­eb­rate being a KFC-free zone!
MY FAVOURITE FLY-FISHING SPOTS ARE on the Diepspruit, Vlooikraal and Joggem rivers.

FOR A NIGHT OUT ON THE TOWN try driv­ing 350kms to Bloemfontein! Seriously, you won’t find casi­nos, nightclubs or theatres any­where in Barkly East. But pop into the golf club or any of the pubs in town and you will meet wel­com­ing warm-hearted people.

IF YOU WANT TO MEET LOCALS, stop by the side of the road to take a photo and a friendly farmer is sure to stop and ask if you’re OK or need help!

BARKLY EAST'S BEST KEPT SECRET IS that it exists at all. It’s the undeveloped, uncom­mer­cial­ised ‘wild’ vibe that makes it so special.

MY FAVOURITE THING TO DO WITH FRIENDS IS saddle up the horses and hoof it up the moun­tain. It’s much less effort than hik­ing to the peaks! For some LIVE MUSIC I like to listen to the dawn chorus. Wonderful sop­ranos are per­formed by the Cape Robins, com­bin­ing with the deep soul­ful bas­soon of the Sussex bulls and the sweet gurg­ling melody of the moun­tain river. God’s own orchestra

TO RELAX AND RESTORE MY SOUL, I LIKE TO lie back under the crys­tal clear night skies and admire galax­ies that seem so close you feel you could reach out and touch them. After a few glasses of wine I’m pretty good at mak­ing up my very own constellations!

IF YOU'RE FEELING ADVENTUROUS, TRY an off-road 4x4 trail or moun­tain bik­ing any of one of the 8 moun­tain passes. (Wild Mountain Adventures on +27 (0)79 536 3996).
MY FAVOURITE HIKE IS the 4 day Wartrail Skywalk slack­pack­ing trail. Breathtaking views, fant­astic guides, deli­cious food and a comfy bed at the end of each night – awesome!

MY FAVOURITE PADSTAL IS between Barkly East and Lady Grey. Pop in there for deli­cious jams and quirky hand-made crafts. ("pad­stal" = farm­stall / road­side cafe)
MY FAVOURITE BIRD-WATCHING SPOTS ARE the New England loop, Otto Du Plessis pass and the vul­ture breed­ing colony near Lupela Lodge between Lady Grey and Barkly East.

IF YOU'RE HERE IN JUNE, JOIN IN THE FUN AT at the Lady Grey McNab party. A full Scottish ban­quet with hag­gis, bag­pipes and kilts is a sur­pris­ing find in this sleepy part of South Africa.

MY FAVOURITE NATURAL MUSEUMS ARE the stun­ning and well pre­served San rock art sites in the area. Check out the rock art tours expertly guided by local archae­olo­gist Dawn Green
MY FAVOURITE BUILDING IS the 1890s sand­stone barn on Rosstrevor Guest Farm, recently con­ver­ted from an old diary into a rus­tic yet eleg­ant func­tion and wed­ding venue.

TRAVELLING WITH CHILDREN? A FUN OUTING IS to go to Woolly’s of Wartrail craft shop and tea gar­dens. It’s a bliss­ful spot for par­ents to enjoy watch­ing their kids run around in free­dom and safety. Stunning views, a jungle gym, river swim­ming pools and anim­als to pet to keep chil­dren old and young amused.
BEST CHEAP AND CHEERFUL OUTING IS to go out and build snow­men in the winter, or play in the water­falls and river pools in the sum­mer.
WHEN MONEY'S NO OBJECT, I LIKE TO stay at Tenahead Lodge — at 2,500m above sea level it is the highest 5 star resort in South Africa. Where heaven meets earth!
MY FAVOURITE WEEKEND GETAWAY IS to sleep under the stars in one of the huge river­side sand­stone caves in the area and real­ise how little has changed in the area since the San did the same hun­dreds of years ago.

WHEN I WANT TO GIVE BACK TO THE COMMUNITY, I buy locally-made products includ­ing jams and marmalades at the Padstal and hand-made scarves and bean­ies from Woolly’s of Wartrail.

I ♥ Barkly East because of its tran­quil­lity, safety and lack of pol­lu­tion – it’s lit­er­ally a breath of fresh air!

Rosstrevor Guest Farm

Rosstrevor Guest Farm provides a relax­ing and com­fort­able base from which to explore Wild Mountain coun­try. You can enjoy fly fish­ing in our wild trout filled rivers, chal­lenge your­self with excit­ing adven­ture activ­it­ies or simply relax and enjoy the tran­quil­ity and nature of this remote work­ing farm. Rosstrevor’s beau­ti­fully pre­served Victorian farm­house is full of char­ac­ter and com­bines coun­try eleg­ance with a warm ‘home from home’ atmosphere ...

Visit Rosstrevor Guest Farm
View Rates or make a Booking

Desirable Digits

Rosstrevor Guest Farm: +27 (0)79 536 3996
Intaba Lodge: +27 (0)45 931 1402
Walkerbouts Inn, Rhodes: +27 (0)45 974 9290
Die Padstal: +27 (0)51 603 7076
Woolly’s of Wartrail: +27 (0)45 974 9900
Rock Art Tours: +27 (0)45 971 9078
Tenahead Mountain Lodge: +27 (0)45 971 8901
Wild Mountain Adventures: +27 (0)79 536 3996

Useful Barkly East Links:
Barkly East Attractions
Things to Do in Barkly East
Barkly East Map
Barkly East Accommodation
Barkly East Guest Houses
Eastern Cape Guest Houses
Eastern Cape Hotels
Eastern Cape Accommodation