Page 25 - Fourways Gardens October 2020

Nature

more by the world’s rst humans. Some
scientists now believe our predecessors, the
‘man-apes’ (Australopithecus africana) which
abounded in this region, used stone tools.

Not far away are the fossil-rich, world
famous caves of ‘The Cradle of Humankind’
where our ancestors lived and developed
their skills and tools.

There’s a mysterious group of 10 overgrown
mounds near the crest of Stone Hill -
unmarked Boer War graves. Mark and
Caroline are hoping some knowledgeable
visitor will one day work out what
happened there.

Apart from the exhilarating walks and
wayside benches, it was the design of the
cottages that intrigued me. Caroline put a
lot of thought into it.

Each timber-built cottage has a large,
separate braai facility with a sheltered
inglenook – and an elaborate outside
shower with a facility for washing dogs
muddy, perhaps, from rolling in the river
which is some distance below the cottages.

Each cottage’s amenities include a
solar geyser, DSTV, electric blankets,

air conditioning and a replace. The
kitchen has everything one can think of,
including many thoughtful little touches
– a welcoming sherry and, in a small box,
a souvenir piece of quartzite from the
hills. Sunken into the kitchen wall is a
brilliant arrangement for waste-disposal
- three chutes with covers labelled ‘paper’,
‘plastic and tins’ and ‘compost’. There’s also
a powerful rechargeable wall light and
another portable light for when Eskom fails.

Caroline (who owns several dogs and cats)
can arrange a dog-sitter for those who want
to go out. There’s even a mobile dog spa
that will come to one’s cottage.

Although we did not have time to visit it,
there is an adjacent farm - Happy Acres
Old Mill - which has 12km of ‘dog-friendly’
walking trails and an environmental centre
with a fungi house, a butter y house and an

educational zoological exhibit.

When we paid for our Stone Hill
accommodation, I was pleasantly surprised

how a ordable it was.
For more information, contact Stone Hill on
www.stone-hill.co.za.

Fourways Gardens • 23 • October 2020