Profile information
Host rating
85 %
Last replied
7 Apr 2024
Reply rate
100.0 %
Usually responds within 1 day
Feedback
-
Email verified
Details
Description
We are a family of three generations who have made the choice to aim for self-reliance over the life we knew before.
Collectively, we chose to leave the city. My father sold his land in Johannesburg and settled all debt, and together, we providentially guided and chose a small farm for a price cheaper per square meter than any other online property for sale. Myself, my partner, and my laatlammetjie son, along with my father and his wife and my uncle and his daughter, took what we could move with us and made this outlying town our home. The farm has spring water and a lot of hardwood that can be sustainably harvested.
We came here in 2018 and since then have built a home for our small household while the rest of my family moved into the original farmhouse of 1897. The three of us, your hosts, lived in our tipi until December 2022. We can now look beyond our own comfort and plan a strategic five-year roadmap. We aim to close the loop in our water capture and distribution, also sustainable reforesting as well as growing strategic crops beyond our zone 1 kitchen garden.
Our neighbors are a big part of our assembled community, with whom some of us have created a heritage NPO and our most southern neighbor and world-famous adventure farm, Tranquilitas, has mountain bike trails that cross and wind on our side of the hill.
The opportunities in the area are ripe with the sweetness of a forward-thinking small community with very real opportunities to lead the way in the opposite direction from the political and economic decay of small town circumstances.
We are guided by permaculture. We are not politically inclined. We chose self-reliance to unburden us from systemic dependence. We seek like-minded freedom-loving, nature-worshiping, permaculturally inclined, adventure-seeking people, and people with skills for natural building and survival, carpentry, or just the desire to dive into learning self reliance with us.
Types of help and learning opportunities
Art Projects
Language practice
Help with Eco Projects
Elderly Companionship
Teaching
Gardening
DIY and building projects
Animal Care
Farmstay help
Babysitting and creative play
Creating/ Cooking family meals
Help around the house
Hospitality/Tourism
General Maintenance
UN sustainability goals this host is trying to achieve
Cultural exchange and learning opportunities
Permaculture is the way to save planet Earth as a home for peaceful and productive living. This calls for meeting goals that support outcomes we can be proud of. We cannot do it alone. We have a responsibility to preserve the natural habitat of the local fauna and flora. The benefit we offer will be the experience of the beauty of this part of the world. Nature is abundant here, but it is in a state of decay due to human impact. If you want to join our cause, you can enjoy the return of nature in all it's glory. We embrace African culture and tradition and look to impliment local innovation and tradition where needed.
Projects involving children
This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.
Help
Following the guiding ethics of permaculture, we are expanding our development of self-reliance to zones 2 and 3. Orchard development, reforesting, water capture and distribution, shelter for the community, and strategic crop guilding
Our immediate objectives for 2024 include activities central to repair and maintenance for the first six months.
From February to July, the priority is fire breaks and doing controlled burns before the wildfires blow through. We have a system that works, and we are safe provided these tasks have been done.
Languages
Languages spoken
English: Fluent
Afrikaans: IntermediateThis host offers a language exchange
I am learning isiZulu on Duolingo with enthusiasm
Accommodation
tipi - 6meters wide inside, double or single beds, minimalist. Fully immersive nature experience up above the clouds.
Three meals a day is what we can offer that is plant-based. We don't provide meat meals because we don't have the livestock to sustain supply. We do not have any food-type indoctrination. We eat what we feel is best for us and respect your choices. Plant-based is universal. Please provide any special food needs you have and be prepared to get your own sustainable supply of any unusual or hard-to-find products. We are more than happy to assist in finding quality products locally.
Breakfast would be a cereal (oats, sorghum, maize meal) or bread (baked at home, or locally bought at the supermarket). Beans, lentils and whole grains make up our staples for main meals. We have a variety of herbs and vegetables in the garden year round and can increase yields for more people, and exponentially with volunteers that help to work the food production on the farm. There are a number of fruiting trees providing abundant fruit from November to February, including pears, prickly pears, grapes, loquats, plums, tangerines, to name a few.
Food production and growth is fundamental to the farm mission and is a priority objective and volunteers will have opportunity to increase growth of food if that is their passion and even to take to market for a commission. Economic opportunities are a part of the farm development plan so that for the hours they work, they get food and lodging, as well as opportunity to generate income within the local community.
What else ...
Local climbing mecca; this area is full of hiking trails, mountain biking trails, fishing, and immersive nature; fish eagles are among the many varieties of big birds; and birdwatching is a big thing for people here. Dog-friendly accommodation all around us, close access to the lowlands, the animal kingdom of Kruger National Park, the east coast of South Africa, Swaziland is very close, as is Mozambique. Mpumalanga is a lush and beautiful part of South Africa, not yet densely populated. Nelspruit is the nearest city for official travel businesses and Johannesburg and Pretoria is only 260km west. The weather is more temperate than in the lowveld, and winters are enjoyably cool and the summers are hot with enjoyable thunderstorms and summer rain. In Winter our highest priority work includes controlled burns and fire breaks to avoid the damage of typical seasonal runnaway fires.
We hope to include livestock in our expansion of self-reliance, but hope we can find volunteers eager to support in horse care, poultry and or aquaponics..
A little more information
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
Can host families
Can host digital nomads
Connection through mobile networks are either very good or down depending on weather,batter theft from towers or service failure however, due to the N4 highway running directly past our town there is has seldom been a time when there is zero network On the farm we have an LTE network and are reliably connected consistant with very few interuptions. We are off grid and have to manage our power so we turn it off and rely on mobile network coverage between sunset and sunrise. With a power supply, our connection can remain 24/7 and data package can be increased should you want to pay for more bandwidth than what we have. The speed varies, text incl email is 100% reliable with even the feintest signal, sometime we get a download speed of 10 mb/s, but can rely on about 3mb/s on avg and stream music all day every day that we have enough sun for the solar system to run the speakers. South Africa's infrustructure is in decay but we are off grid and find off grid solutions. Star link is available in eSwatini, a very short distance away from here and future supply might improve on a global level for the southern hemisphere.
Space for parking camper vans
Theres space you can park with vehicle access, but not developed for this purpose. It is done by visitors who have assessed the risks for themselves and were happy for extended periods before
Can possibly accept pets
With reservation. We have a hand-reared bird that we don't want to cage to protect from a volunteer's dog or cat that cannot resist temptation. We are animal lovers and welcome your animal companion, should we agree on the particular animal you bring with you. We want to get horses and have other livestock when the moment presents, and the system can manage it.
How many Workawayers can stay?
More than two
Hours expected
4 hours per day Mon - Wednesday with social team project for 4 hours on Thursdays and Fridays
