…..SoSuterBill…..

BILLY SUTER has just returned from a wonderful, relaxing weekend at Montusi Mountain Lodge near Bergville in the Northern Berg, a four-hour drive from Durban. For a chance to win a two-day break for two people at this paradise – breakfast and dinner included – see the end of this review.

NOTHING can beat an escape to the mountains – especially after a long and worrying ordeal in which one’s partner braved seven weeks of harsh chemo-radiation for cancer, followed by six weeks of tough post-treatment recovery. 

Having such a getaway treat arise in the very week my partner got a thumbs-up to say the awful disease had been beaten, made heading for the hills even more special!

It was with this wonderful news still ringing in our ears that Gordon and I, along with his sister, Karen – a rock to both of us throughout the cancer ordeal – drove to the Northern Drakensberg last Friday for a review weekend at the Montusi Mountain Lodge, whose slogan is “space, comfort and peace”. And, boy, does it deliver on that!

The invitation was from one of the lodge’s owners, Lindsay du Plessis, who is also responsible for the getaway’s marketing and sales. She has always been connected with the Berg, her family having been involved with creating the popular The Cavern, some 10km away from Montusi Mountain Lodge, which Lindsay’s cousins and extended family still run.

The idea of Montusi, which is cradled in a 1000-hectare conservation estate, was born in 1994. That was when the property was bought at auction by Lindsay’s parents, Anthony and Jean. 

Over the next six years, the wattle infestation was cleared, lawns landscaped, roads and bridges introduced, the dam and water systems created, and the lodge built.  The changes saw indigenous forests and birdlife flourishing, and also marked the return of mountain reedbuck, Vaal rhebuck, bushbuck and the elusive eland to an area once inhabited by the Bushmen.

“We celebrated the New Year of 2000 in the half-completed shell of the main building and enjoyed our first dinner in the diningroom on June 23, 2000,” Lindsay recalls, pointing out that Montusi got its name from the flat-topped mountain, Montusi Peak, which stands as a sentinel over a dam and the lodge.

Montusi Mountain Lodge stands a little back from the mountains, on grassy plains of the Drakensberg. The 16, four-star-graded Montusi Garden Suites – all modern, comfy, private and with immaculate gardens and lawns – dot the landscape. Each offers expansive, panoramic views of both the Little Berg range and the majestic High Berg.

The most striking feature is the Amphitheatre itself – and at first glance of that panoramic view one takes in a deep breath and almost instantly feels worry and woes lifting. So good for the soul.

The Garden Suites at Montusi are excellent, offering TV, free wi-fi, powerful ceiling fans, big beds with crisp linen, modern en-suite bathrooms, and a lounge with a TV, a gas-operated fireplace and a private patio. Gowns are supplied as well as tea, coffee and a jar of biscuits, and the welcome note for the three of us, accompanied by nougat bars, was a nice touch.

Montusi Mountain Lodge’s most recent two units, designed as executive-level accommodation, were built in 2014 and are now known as Mountain Suites: “It’s a little misleading, because the Garden Suites (the original units) have as good a mountain view as the Mountain Suites. But hindsight is 20/20.”

One’s stay at this paradise getaway includes a sumptuous hot-and-cold breakfast and a four-course dinner which, the two nights we were there, were served on the fairylight-strewn verandah area. Coffee, tea and some sweet treats are served in the lodge lounge at 4pm daily.

Menu choices for us included grilled kudu loin, chicken korma curry, grilled lamb chops and bacon-wrapped pork fillet. Sweet treats included chocolate tart with coffee custard, berry pavlova and a truly yummy Turkish delight ice-cream. My only small complaint is that on both nights the dishes could have been served a little warmer.

There are many activities on offer at Montusi, but there is no pressure to do anything. Besides the welcoming pool, the lodge offers tennis courts, a day spa and a games room, and the pub overlooking a large, mountain-facing verandah is ideal for sundowners.

There are daily guided walks and hikes, or one could go fishing, but my favourite things to do the whole weekend were to lounge at the rock-flecked pool (where one can order cocktails via Whatsapp) and simply sit back and savour the mountains and the spectacle of the vast, twinkling night sky.

We also took the easy, 20-minute-or-so walk past the lodge stables to the river and lovely Waterfall Cave, and I’m told that also worthwhile is a walk to the Bushman Cave to see bushman paintings.

The lodge’s horses offer an easier way of getting up the mountains and are suitable for all levels of rider. A popular experience is the Sunset Horse Ride where guests enjoy a ride up to Montusi Ridge and embrace the views of the valley and mountains just before sunset. They then come across a table set with a beautiful gourmet picnic and drinks at the side of the dam, says Lindsay.

She also points out that the stables’ dam offers the perfect reflection of the Amphitheatre and is always free from wind, making it a secret haven within the haven.

For less adventurous guests, there is also a sunset picnic experience where one can take a short stroll across to the dam to enjoy snacks and drinks as the sun sinks. Perhaps a little row around the dam in the blue row-boat too?

For families, there is more of a hands-on parenting set-up at Montusi: guests generally dine with their children and do activities with them, rather than having them join in on supervised kids’ activities.

“Our maximum number of guests is 40. The lower capacity means we are able to provide a more personalised experience,” says Lindsay, who takes pride in accommodating guests’ individual requirements, such as personalised menus for those with dietary restrictions, or unique arrangements for folk with special celebrations.

Lindsay and her two older sisters have now taken over ownership from their parents. Catherine, her middle sister, takes care of finances, HR and behind-scenes stuff, while Loretta, the oldest of the three, is responsible “for keeping all the cogs turning”. 

“Since we also work with two of our three husbands, Loretta helps to keep communications and responsibilities clear. While the husbands (Mic and Andrew) aren’t on the paperwork, they too are in positions of ownership when it comes to actual responsibility of running this operation.”

Lindsay says there was never an expectation that they had to take over the lodge from their parents, but fate intervened and forced the hand-over to be immediate and earlier than expected: in 2016 Ant had a life-changing mountain bike accident that has left him disabled. 

“And so our transition from ‘kids running the folks’ lodge’ to lodge owners was very quick. All three of us sisters love living at Montusi. It is an all-encompassing lifestyle which offers us the most incredible quality of life, while still requiring a lot of responsibility. 

“We want our children to have the choice of living here and thriving here, so we are committed to keeping this space amazing.”

Lindsay, her sisters and their cousins at The Cavern are still close.

“As our families have grown to include husbands and children, we seem to gather more often for meals and tea-parties. Most weekends, there will be a tea-party at one of the family homes on the two properties. Since there are 11 ‘Cavernites’ and 14 Montusi family, there’s always a birthday to celebrate too, so we have to have even more tea-parties!”

The year ahead will see the Montusi team finalising the formation of Northern Drakensberg Nature Reserve. As founder members, they are very excited that the valley will forever be protected by its new status, and they can slowly introduce some plains game to the area. It is already home to assorted buck, eland, zebra, aardvark, porcupine, serval, genet and other creatures.

“We have always been committed to sustainability, but the next while will be spent cementing this commitment. We have recently established a lovely vegetable garden and a big flock of hens for free-range eggs. Eventually we would like to have a farm-to-fork set-up for the lodge.

“We hope this year will see us finally out of the Covid financial hole and we can get back to investing even more into the upgrades of the lodge.”

Montusi attracts many foreigners as well as locals. Most recently it hosted the king of the Zulu nation, Mesizulu Zulu, for his planning session before the inauguration of local chief, Inkosi Njabulo Miya. 

“King Mesizulu came to Montusi on the recommendation of his father, King Goodwill Zwelethini, who stayed with us for a week in 2019,” says Lindsay, who adds that last year Tom Cruise, while filming in South Africa, landed his chopper for a refuel at the lodge.

Montusi enjoys giving back to the community. The lodge supports the Royal Drakensberg Education Trust, a project spearheaded by The Cavern, which works to improve education in the local area. 

“It has a multi-pronged approach to improving education – from when our little ones are babies with Baby Boost, into their pre-school years with the Khanyisela, and generally with our Royal Drakensberg School”. More about it here: https://www.royal-drakensberg.org.za/

If you are keen to visit the lodge take note that if you stay in May, June or September the cost is a special R4 700 per night. This includes two people on a dinner, bed and breakfast basis, with a complimentary sunset picnic.

The lodge website is at www.montusi.co.za and the email address is info@montusi.co.za. The phone number is +27 (0)36 438 6243 or +27 (0)72 591 1210.

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WIN A TWO-DAY MONTUSI MOUNTAIN LODGE STAY FOR TWO!

Care to put yourself in line to win a great prize – a two-day stay for two people in a Garden Suite at Montusi Mountain Lodge, inclusive of bed, breakfast and dinner (transport costs to and from venue not included)?

The prize is valid until May 1, 2025 and can be taken up any time, subject to availability, except over long weekends, public holidays or the festive season.

To be in line for this prize, you simply have to be a follower of the SoSuterBill site to win.  At no cost.

If you are not already a follower, simply leave your email address in the space provided towards the end of the cover page of this site, sosuterbill.com (access the cover page by clicking ‘Latest Posts’ on the menu bar).

You will then be a follower, and receive email notification whenever I file a new story.

Once you have subscribed (there is no cost), send your NAME and PHONE NUMBER via email (NOT THIS SITE’S CONTACT FORM) to sosuterbill@gmail.com and place the words ‘MONTUSI MOUNTAIN LODGE GIVEAWAY’ in the subject field. 

Note that the competition closes at 6pm on Friday, April 19, and the winner will be contacted soon after. His/her name will be posted in this spot thereafter. (The lucky winner, among hundreds of entries, is Mariana Gabryk. Well done!)

NOTE: PLEASE READ ENTRY DETAILS CAREFULLY AS SOME PEOPLE ARE ENTERING COMPETITIONS INCORRECTLY.

ALSO NOTE THAT ONLY ONE ENTRY PER SUBSCRIBER WILL BE CONSIDERED.

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