Help us take care of a forest and grow an eco-retreat, a place of community in Morgan Bay, South Africa

Detalles

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  Descripción

  Our nature retreat on the Wild Coast of South Africa is a small and modest operation with the dream of taking care of the indigenous forest that runs along the stream and land, of maintaining this as a welcoming place of rest and restoration, where visitors and residents can thrive and contribute to the community and natural environment.
  The land is located next to a stream and riverine forest; not far away, the stream becomes a lagoon as it meets the ocean. The nearest city and airport are an hour's drive away, so there is potential for growth in visitors.
  
  This corner of the earth holds tremendous potential as a place for healing, for youth education and for special events. My husband and I have worked in education, research, development consulting and more, and have found community living to be supportive for ourselves and our family. We are calling in people who wish to join us, for short or longer periods, to enjoy the tremendous beauty of this space, and to work with us towards the vision described above. Already in place from the former owners are a campsite, a few cabins, a small pizzeria/restaurant, and a weekly market - all operating in a welcoming and eco-conscious way.
  
  In an area where employment is scarce, creating sustainable jobs is an important goal.
  The incredibly rich indigenous forest is a tremendous natural resource, with much to appreciate an learn from, including a huge diversity of plants, insects, birds and other small creatures. It is also vulnerable to invasion by alien plants, which we are working to reduce and manage. As part of living healthily, we are in the process of establishing garden beds for growing organic vegetables.
  
  The campsite & cabins employs six staff members in maintenance, grounds management, reservations/admin, marketing and housekeeping; some of us work part time. The restaurant is operated by a separate small company, with their own staff.

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  Tipos de ayuda y oportunidades de aprendizaje

  Ayuda en proyectos ecológicos

  Jardinería

  Construcción y bricolaje

  Ayuda en una granja

  Cocinar para toda la familia

  Mantenimiento general

  Ayuda informática
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  Intercambio cultural y oportunidades de aprendizaje

  Our retreat is increasingly a multicultural environment. Among the residents, staff, market traders and visitors, you will meet South Africans of various ages and backgrounds. Most of our staff are Xhosa-speaking, and are able to assist with basic lessons in isiXhosa (valuable if you will be travelling through the Wild Coast or to Cape Town) and are happy to share an understanding of their culture. Traditional ceremonies, food and healing practices are still very much part of life, in the Wild Coast area.

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  Ayuda

  We would welcome help with the following tasks:
  Removal of invasive plants and seedlings from the forest;
  Reforestation (planting small indigenous trees and shrubs);
  Organic gardening;
  Maintenance of buildings and facilities (depending on skills);
  Posting on social media if comfortable to do so;
  Cooking simple meals a few times per week;
  Assist with receiving visitors/calls from time to time. Ideally we would ask visitors to help with two or more types of work, as tasks that need doing vary with the time of year.
  
  I've indicated Cooking as one of the potential tasks - that would be cooking simple shared meals for our family/some staff eating with us: we take turns and if you stay here, you'll have turns too :)
  
  We would ask our guests to work 20 hours per week, in 4 shifts of 5 hours (or 5 of 4 hours, if preferred).

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  Idiomas hablados

  Inglés: Fluido

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  Alojamiento

  Outside December, we usually have a simple cabin with its own self catering facilities (bar fridge and gas stove) avaialble, residents make use of the showers and toilet in the camp site ablutions. If for some reason we are very busy or receiving a large group, we may ask a Workawayer to stay in a tent with a stretcher bed, temporarily.
  
  Workawayers are expected to take care of their breakfast and one other meal per day themselves; a small grocery store about 1km away has all basic provisions, and our gardens are already delivering fresh greens.
  
  Once per day we will share a meal which we take turns to cook, which may include meat or hearty vegetarian ingredients (vegetarians or vegans can be accommodated, do note we cook with simple local ingredients).
  
  We will not ask a fee - the accommodation and daily meal is in exchange for the work offered. Workawayers are responsible for their own transport costs, and meals outside the one meal per day we offer.

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  Algo más...

  For lovers of nature and outdoor activities there is plenty to enjoy here. The lagoon and beach are 1.2 and 1.5km away, and beach walks and kayak paddling are possible daily. Right on our land there is a swimmable pool in the stream to cool off in on hot days, and the nearby municipal dam offers long distance swimming against a glorious forest backdrop. The local beach also offers opportunities for fishing.
  
  A little further (you would need to hike a bit, or arrange a lift, or cycle) there are opportunities for rock climbing, mountain biking, hikes above the Cliffs with tremendous views, kayaking on a huge river mouth, taking a ferry ride across a river. Besides our own small restaurant, there are two more in the village when you feel like a meal, a drink or just hanging out somewhere else.
  
  Note that there are no taxi services within our village and you will mostly need to travel on foot, which is safe, or you could rent a mountainbike from us at reasonable rates. When we are travelling to the next (slightly larger) village we'll happily offer a lift, and there is a shuttle service to the nearest city, which operates on demand.
  
  This is truly one of the most beautiful parts of our country; it is not much of a party spot. A few times a month there is some kind of social gathering with live music/a quiz/etc. and our weekly market is really the social highlight for locals and traders alike.

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  Un poco más de información

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    Acceso a Internet

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    Acceso a Internet limitado

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    Tenemos animales

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    Somos fumadores

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    Puede alojar familias

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  Puede acoger a nómadas digitales

  We have a decent wi-fi connection, adequate for most tasks eg emails, internet searches, zoom meetings. Very occasionally it can be of poor quality or briefly interrupted due to weather events, but we work online and depend on it too :) There is a table in the reception area where you may sit, and you can also sit at a picnic table in the restaurant area (which is mostly very quiet). We do not always have an office space available, and the cabin for Workawayers has a bed but no desk.

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  Espacio para aparcar autocaravanas

  Part of our land is a campsite/caravan park, so (outside of December) we can easily accommodate Workawayers in motor homes or caravans. Electrical points are available, with sufficient power for a small fridge and lights.

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  Podría aceptar mascotas

  Small dogs are welcome; do however discuss with us directly please.

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  ¿Cuántos voluntarios puedes hospedar?

  Dos

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  Horas esperadas

  5 hours a day, 4 days a week