From Sweden to the giraffes of the Kudu’s Valley
Giraffes may be world's tallest mammals, but at this guesthouse they are just as welcome as the guests.
The birth of a baby giraffe in the Kudu’s Valley was enough reason to celebrate life, even in lockdown.
The giraffes of Graceland Eco Retreat, perched on a the edge of Magoebaskloof near Houtbosdorp and overlooking the Kudu’s Valley, have become much loved as they wander among the beautiful buildings and surroundings of the lodge.
Owners Douglas Walker and Anders Ragnarsson say they have seven giraffes on the farm of which four are babies. “The last one was born two weeks ago on the morning of 13 May, just around the corner from the Giraffe house and Pause restaurant,” says Anders.
“This little one was very small and we think it was prematurely born. The family was very protective and formed a wall around the baby when he started to stand up on his shaky legs. The mother later that day took the baby deeper into the bush and is now staying by herself. This normally happens and the baby will be reintroduced in a week or so to the rest of the tower.”
Anders was born and raised in Sweden and is a medical anthropologist and a doctor in medical science. “I came to South Africa 20 years ago. I did research in South Africa and eastern Africa from the later part of the 90s. My speciality was communicable diseases and infections and structural interventions design in public health with a focus on HIV and masculinities.”
He says he was living in Dar es Salaam in Tanzania when he was asked to do a study in Limpopo. “I booked into the African Roots guesthouse in Polokwane and met Douglas, the owner.” Douglas and Anders fell in love and were married in Sweden in 2005.
READ MORE: GIRAFFES ADDED TO AFRICA’S RED LIST OF ENDANGERED SPECIES
Douglas was a subject advisor for fine arts for the province and has a passion for local rural artists. “He has and spent a lot of time in Giyani area supporting them. Many of them are now famous sculptors,” says Anders.
When Anders decided to semi-retire 2014, the couple travelled to places like Mauritius, Reunion and the Cape to find something they both would like.
“Douglas always loved the bushveld and giraffes and I said I needed to see the horizon when I wake up in the morning to be able to breathe. We found the Kudu’s River Valley overlooking Mooketsi,” says Anders. They bought the land and moved to the farm. “It has been five years and the couple has slowly been developing the farm into a little lodge catering for small numbers of people.
The giraffes are a highlight to guests, but Anders warns that they are wild animals. “Visitors think that the giraffes are tame like those at Giraffe Manor in Kenya, but they are not. We do however get very close encounters with the giraffes as they often hang out around the house, in the garden and are very used to humans. There are times when we don’t see them for days and have to drive around to look for them.”
