Close To Nature

The Kockott family is living the ‘green dream’ in what was once a rundown caravan park overgrown with invasive plants.

- Marian Van Wyk

When George and Claire Kockott were searching for their dream home in 2003, they stumbled upon a former holiday resort next to a nature reserve – a piece of overgrown land about 3 000m² in size which included two run-down ablution blocks. This was the start of their mission to live as close to Mother Nature as possible.

They immediately set about converting the tiny stone ablution block into their first home, a rustic “tree house”. Only later, when their family started to grow and they needed more living space, did they decide to build a bigger home on the same site, a stone’s throw from the existing house.

It’s been 13 years since they swapped the tree house for their current home. Since then, the tree house has been converted into self-catering accommodation, the vegetable garden has flourished and the chickens have space to scratch around in.

Their own handiwork

The transformation of the ablution block into a liveable home was for the most part done by George and Claire. The couple rented a cottage on a nearby farm while they tackled the project.

The original bathroom downstairs became the Kockotts’ kitchen and they added a bedroom and bathroom on top. A deck was then built around an existing Cape ash tree with spectacular views of the dune forest that forms part of the Indian Ocean coastal biome.