Take a Hike - Try a Trail at Tomjachu

Walk with a giraffe over grassy plains, with a bushbuck through the thickets, and with a klipspringer to the top of a rocky hill.

- Text and pictures by Mia Louw

Tomjachu Bush Retreat's 550 ha of 'grassland, bushveld, and mountains lures Lowvelders with its network of hikes. The name is a combo of the three Fillery brothers' names - Tom, Jack, and Hugo - whose grandparents, Gordon and Vikki, bought the property in 1985.

You might see giraffe, zebra, blesbok, blue wildebeest, kudu, warthog, impala, bushbuck, genet, black-backed jackal... says manager Jay-Dean Sloane as we kick off on our first hike. And we have 297 feathered friends on our bird list.

The North Plains and Big Fig Loop (blue route, 4,5 km) is an easy meander with lots of animals to look out for. The blue and red routes both start at the Homestead - a beautiful farmhouse that used to be Gordon and Vikki's home and now offers luxurious accommodation (see sidebar).

Heading south from the Homestead, the trail descends through grassland, past acacia trees, towards South Dam - the biggest waterhole on the property. It has a lapa, a braai spot, and a loo with a view.

Most of the grazing takes place on the plains opposite the dam, says Jay-Dean. She's spot-on: While we eat energy bars in the lapa, we see giraffe, kudu, wildebeest, and Maggie the ostrich.

From South Dam, the route moves over to а the animals' feasting grounds and traces the dam wall. A marshy stretch along a stream leads to Symphony Dam, where you can take a shortcut back to the Homestead through another wetland (not recommended during the rainy summers), or you can branch onto the Big Fig Loop. A picnic table awaits in the giant tree's shade, and the swing dangling from a branch begs you to stop and play for a while.