Hooikraal Tented Camp

Hooikraal Tented Camp is an eco camp on a working farm between the Cape Overberg and the Garden Route, about 8.5 km from Heidelberg and just over three hours from Cape Town. It’s tucked under the thorn trees with the Langeberg mountains as a backdrop, and it’s deliberately rustic - fully off grid, no plug points, and a shower you heat yourself over the fire. That sounds like hard work, and it isn’t: it’s the thing that makes the place.

Getting there

Jarred drove out of Cape Town on the N2 past Caledon and Swellendam, stopping for breakfast at the Ou Meul Bakery in Riviersonderend. From there it took just over an hour to reach the turn-off, which is right off the N2. The drive in to reception is on a well-maintained gravel road - any car handles it comfortably, so there’s no need for a 4x4 or high clearance.

Check-in

Everyone reports to reception first, and check-in runs from 2pm to 7pm (check-out is before 11am). Arrange it ahead if you’re going to arrive late. From reception it’s a short drive further on gravel to the glampsites - keep an eye out for the wooden sign boards, as each tent is named after a buck or a small predator. Reception is also where you get firewood and ice.

The tent: Steenbok

He stayed in the Steenbok safari tent, a two-sleeper that suits a couple. Inside there’s a queen size bed with wooden side tables and a two-burner gas stove, plus basic cutlery, crockery, cookware and utensils, cleaning supplies and the gas bottle stowed underneath. Bedding and towels are provided, and there’s an extra blanket and a hot water bottle for cold nights - a small touch that tells you they’ve actually slept here in winter.

Outside there are two wooden chairs, a braai area and your own wood-fired hot tub, with a campfire kettle for boiling water. The bathroom is a few steps from the tent and completely private, with a wash basin, toilet and shower, and a washing-up area just outside.

Living off grid

The camp runs on no mains power at all. Lighting is solar or battery powered and there are no plug points, so bring a power bank or a car charger. There’s no fridge or freezer either - a good cooler box does the job.

The shower is the part people ask about. You heat water in the campfire kettle straight in the fire or braai, carry it through, and mix it with cold water in the bucket until it’s right. Pour that into the shower bag, hoist it up on the rope and wrap it off so it can’t drop, then use the small tap to control the flow. Fully open it lasts about four minutes; open it less and it goes further. It sounds fiddly written down and takes about two minutes in practice.

The hot tub works on the same logic - a wood fire in the metal coil on the side, no pumps. Start big, about two bags of wood, then feed it around the outside of the coil. It takes roughly two to two and a half hours to come up to temperature, so light it well before you want it. Stir the water now and then or you’ll get a hot layer sitting on a cold one. The top outlet gets seriously hot, so don’t sit with your back against it, keep children away from the fire side, and no soap in the water.

Firewood isn’t included, but bags are waiting at your tent - 10 at the safari tents and 5 at the domes - and you only pay for what you burn. Ice is available from reception, or from the farm stall next door if reception is unattended. Don’t collect wood off the farm - there’s a fine for it.

Boil the kettle on the fire, mix your own shower, light the tub two hours before you want it. Hooikraal makes you slow down whether you planned to or not.

The other tents

There are six tents in total. Grysbok is the other two-sleeper safari tent, much like Steenbok with a double bed and its own wood-fired hot tub - the difference is that the bathroom is attached to the tent, with the wash basin a few steps outside. Bosbok and Duiker are four-sleeper family safari tents with a double bed and a bunk bed, suited to two adults and two children, each with a spacious private bathroom attached and a hot tub and braai area a few steps away in what feels like a private entertainment space.

Rooikat and Ratel are the dome tents - the budget option for people without their own gear. Each has two single beds with bedding, a table and chairs, a private braai area and a fire-heated bath tub. There’s no bathroom at the domes, so you use the campsite ablutions, and you’ll want to bring towels, a torch and your own crockery.

There’s also a regular campsite for your own tent, off-road trailer or caravan, pitched under the thorn trees. It has braai areas, a communal splash pool, a communal washing-up area, and taps and bins nearby, with bathrooms at either end of the site - toilets and outdoor showers, plus a donkey boiler for hot water. No electricity there either.

Fishing, trails & the padstal

Most of the dams on the farm hold bass, tilapia and carp, all catch and release. He was up early the next morning to try for bass and the fish simply weren’t interested, which happens. The farm roads are excellent for mountain biking and walking, and there are dedicated single tracks less than 10 km away at Grootvadersbosch. Boosmansbos Wilderness Area, Bontebok National Park at Swellendam and the Breede River at Witsand are all within reach for a day out.

Under a kilometre from camp is Die Skeerhok Padstal, a vintage, rustic farm restaurant serving proper country food, bread, pastries and cakes. The Hooikraal Market next door sells home decor, gifts, fashion, jewellery and toys from local artisans, and the Hooikraal Farm Butchery has locally produced meat for the braai including springbok and wild boar. He came back with wild boar boerewors, made roosterkoek over the coals, got the hot tub going and watched the sun go down over the canola fields.

Wild boar boerewors on the coals, roosterkoek, a hot tub you lit yourself and canola fields turning gold as the sun went down.

Making a weekend of the Overberg? Grootvadersbosch Nature Reserve is barely 20 km up the road, Falcon River Reserve sits on the Breede just outside Swellendam, and Vloedbos is an easy stop on the N2 near Caledon.