Ultimate house sitting adventures in the Waterberg
Waterberg – Limpopo – South Africa
House sitting with a difference
What is better than camping at the best bush camp in the Waterberg? House sitting adventures at that same campsite. You are most welcome to tell me if I am a tad biased but I think you will agree with me. This was not the first time but what a privilege it was once again to be given another opportunity by friends that will trust us to look after their wildlife paradise, Matamba Bush Camp, while they go on a well-deserved break.
Does one even need a break from such a beautiful place? It would not seem like it, but yes, even if only for a change of scenery. Who can object if they need that vacation? Not us!
This year when lockdown levels were slackened and Alan and Sue were going to - of all places - the Kgalagadi for a wildlife getaway, they asked if we could house sit for them. One would think they would want to get away from the bush. Their son Mark who helps manage Matamba was going on a walking safari in the Kruger National Park at the same time. Yet another bush break! That just shows how committed they are to nature and its wildlife.
About Matamba Bush Camp
What makes Matamba so special? An exclusive campsite in the bush for lovers of nature and animals – what’s not to love? It is a great place to have a digital detox and escape from city life. Once you are at your campsite, you park your vehicle and only drive it if you have to leave Matamba. In other words you are not allowed to drive around to look for wildlife. To be honest most of the time they come to you.
Can you spot the giraffe?
View from the inside of one of the bathrooms at Matamba
Once you have set up camp you can relax and unwind at your peaceful campsite. If you feel more energetic you can go for numerous walks around the bush and explore nature. There are no large predators so you can walk at your leisure. If you are a bird lover you won’t be disappointed, bearing in mind there are some migratory birds.
Tau Camp
One of the bathrooms at Matamba
There are no shops at Matamba, so you would need to come prepared and self-contained. The nearest towns are Vaalwater, approximately 30 kilometres away and Lephalale about 60 kilometres away.
“Matamba offers a unique camping experience. Inspired by a lifetime of travelling in Africa, Sue and Alan Jarman have built two exclusive upmarket bush campsites, for the discerning bush lover.
· Mara’s Camp situated in the middle of the farm is a private camp for one party only. This beautiful campsite in a thick woodland, with huge wild Syringa trees, is very reminiscent of Zimbabwe or Zambia.
· Tau Camp spread over four hectares has four individual campsites. Drongo, Hornbill, Francolin and Oriole. These sites are about 200 meters apart. Set in a beautiful open woodland this is a very tranquil, peaceful camp.
Both camps have rustic, but superb facilities, they are unfenced allowing the game to wander freely through. Wake up to find a herd of Eland or Sable grazing between your tent and the bathroom, or watch the Giraffe amble past while sipping sundowners.
”
Oriole - one of the campsites at Matamba
Some of the duties we have as housesitters
Our responsibilities are to look after the pets at the house but also to keep an eye on the wild ‘pets’ as well. We meet and greet the campers at the gate and escort them to their campsites. Every day we do campsite duty to make sure the campers are happy.
Scullery and sitting area
The wildlife is fed occasionally to keep them healthy and in prime condition. John is the most popular person then, and the wild animals cannot wait for the food. This of course is also the absolute BEST for the dogs and they cannot wait for feeding time because they get to accompany John.
Our daily exercise is a walk to the stables where two of Alan and Sue’s horses have their own retirement retreat as well where they enjoy the greener pastures of the bushveld.
Some unexpected duties at Matamba
Being a bush camp with a beautiful road winding through trees with arching low branches to the campsites, as mentioned we guide campers from the main gate to the place where they can pitch their tent, park their caravan or trailer. When we find large motor homes or long caravans waiting at the gate we are somewhat daunted. We have even had bicycles balancing on top of the vehicles which makes for difficult passing under those low branches. After all, we don’t want to damage the trees or the vehicles. It makes for some interesting moments.
Nyala
One of the unexpected duties was to chase nyala out of the garden at the main house. They can be rather cheeky and pesky and have discovered they can easily jump through the gaps in the fence around the house. Although they love grazing in the bush they have discovered succulent edible flowers and leaves in the garden. Sometimes it takes a few attempts to get them to disappear in the bush because as soon as I turn my back they often jump through the fence again.
We have to be careful as it is natural instinct for the dogs to want to chase them, so it is a bit of a scramble to get them out in time but also not to put them in a panic so they feel trapped and hurt themselves.
A giraffe roadblock
On occasion giraffe have also entered the garden but fortunately not on our watch, although we found a section of the fence destroyed which we presume were these gangly animals.
Paul’s favourite job is feeding the bulk of the wildlife every couple of days in the middle of the afternoon with John. The feed is conveyed on the back of the vehicle while Paul drives to the different feeding stations that are scattered throughout the farm and John fills the containers.
Mara says: Paul, I think you are getting too close to that giraffe! It’s a lot bigger than me!
Mara happier having the animals further away
We are convinced the animals can tell the time. The giraffe, eland, zebra, impala and wildebeest start gathering well ahead of time where the feeding starts. It is an amazing sight to see the mini migration of animals as they follow the vehicle to their feeding bowls.
Paul’s view while he is driving the vehicle during feeding times
My favourite responsibility of course is feeding the sable and the nyala. I head into the opposite direction towards Sable Rocks and round up my lot. Sometimes there is not an animal soul in sight until they hear the quad that I drive on. Within a couple of minutes they surround me, waiting for their food.
This time the sable are waiting for me
We both feel like the animal whisperers having the animals come running towards us at our beck and call. Just a thought, maybe it is us at theirs.
NB
Please be aware that we do these jobs with caution as a wild animal is exactly that – wild. Although their intention is not to harm us, a good kick with their hooves or a jab with their horns can lead to serious injury.
Of course keeping an eye on the rest of the farm such as checking up on leaking waterholes or fixing pipes that have been damaged by porcupines kept us (or rather Paul) busy. Nothing we couldn’t handle or fortunately we could wait for Alan, Sue or Mark to return. Not shirking our duties of course, just delegating!
Rock water hole needing repairs
Unanticipated delights and experiences of looking after Matamba.
Dealing with the public one meets interesting people who you would love to have lengthy conversations with. I’ll admit, sometimes we overdo that but who can blame us?
One such time was when we met Christoff and his lovely wife, Venessa from Get.Out.Go. We follow each other on social media and we love watching Christoff’s honest video reviews of rustic camping and bush camps. Be sure to watch his videos and subscribe to his YouTube channel. He has a wealth of online information about overlanding.
Paul asked me if there was a bloggers convention at Matamba that same week. Previously I was reading through the campsite bookings and came across a name that I recognized. Was it just coincidence or was this another blogger that I follow?
Jennifer from JenfromAfrica and I had communicated a few times over the years and planned to meet for coffee one morning in 2020. Then lockdown happened. Somehow we never got the opportunity to meet up again until she and her husband camped at Matamba. What are the odds?
We never took a photo of the two of us but maybe that is because we just chatted nonstop. Two kindred souls had so many stories to share and still hadn’t scratched the surface, even after sharing a bottle of wine. I’ll have to reciprocate one day so we can continue our conversation.
Another experience that was really a wow moment for us was meeting Reilley Mooney, the project coordinator of Waterberg Wild Dog Initiative. We spent a special hour watching the wild dogs, about 20 kilometres away from Matamba. These are one of the few free roaming packs left in South Africa. In other words, they are not kept in a reserve but are free to roam wherever they can.
Great research is being done to keep them wild, although that can be a challenging and interesting task. I have written an entire blog about the painted dogs or wolves as they are also known. Suffice to say Reilley is a hands-on woman, doing fantastic work with the dogs.
You can read about my experience amongst the Wild Dogs here.
We are forever grateful to have had another opportunity to look after this truly unique bush camp. I sincerely hope we didn’t scare the animals, chase the campers away or destroyed Matamba too much!
Where is Matamba Bush Camp?
Map
Quick links to related blog posts:
Roaming Fox amongst Wild Dogs in the Waterberg
The Best Bush Camp in the Waterberg
What you need to know about Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
Capturing the quintessential spirit of the Kruger National Park
Highlights of Botswana and how to self-drive overland
Zimbabwe Adventures in Africa with cute and clever Elephants
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aBOUT THE AUTHOR
ALMA VAN AS | ROAMING FOX
Alma is a South African travel blogger and writer. She hopes to inspire you with facts and fables about her adventures, road trips and international travel.
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The Best Way to see a country? Take a road trip! Have you ever had that feeling when you hit the open road on your road trip? Freedom. Anticipation. Exhilaration.