Accommodation
There are two self-catering cottages on Rockhaven Farm that are available for guests. We also have a farm-house which can be hired for retreats or special functions. The two cottages have beautiful views across the lavendar fields and horse paddock to the mountains of the Cederberg and Skuweberge. The cottages are private and simply, but tastefully furnished.
LAVENDAR COTTAGE: Protea sleeps six people. There are three bedrooms: a larger bedroom with a queen-size bed, and two smaller rooms each with two lovely 3/4 beds with real mattresses. The cottage has two bathrooms (one en-suite with a shower) the other with a bath and shower, and there is also an outside shower. There is an inside fireplace and outside braai area (with a braai grid provided). The lounge, kitchen and dining area are open plan and the kitchen is fully equipped (including fridge and microwave). Linen and towels are included. You need to bring swimming towels. Wood can be bought on the farm (but not firelighters).
ERICA COTTAGE: Erica sleeps four people. There are two bedrooms, one with a queen-size bed and the other with two single beds, also with comfortable 3/4 mattresses. It has a shower (no bath) and an inside fireplace. The kitchen is fully equipped (including a microwave), but there is no oven. There is an outside braai area and a large covered stoep. Linen and towels are provided.
FARM HOUSE: This is a large home with 7 bedrooms, two bathrooms (showers and baths) and a third toilet en-suite. There is also a beautiful outdoor shower enclosure. It has a big open-plan living area and a very well appointed kitchen. There a long decks at the front and back of the house, with magnificent views. There is a spectacular rock pool at the back of the house, always fresh with a rock-fountain clear water stream. There is also a beautiful small dam in the front, at the end of a huge lawn. The views of the olive trees, lavender and mountains are very special indeed. There are two lovely braai areas. The farm house has queen beds in three bedrooms, a double bed in a fourth bedroom, and three bedrooms each with two single beds. There is also a workshop space next to the house with lovely light and views. The house sits in an oasis of mature trees, offering cool shade and expansive lawns. The farm house is suitable for adults in a retreat / workshop mode, or to families, but NO dogs are allowed in the farm house.
Where we are located
Rockhaven Farm is a 2 hour drive from Cape Town. The farm is situated in the Groot Winterhoek Mountains above the town of Porterville in the Western Cape of South Africa.
About 20 kilometers is on gravel, but the roads are regularly gradered and ordinary sedan vehicles cope happily. We do occasionally have flooding problems in winter, in which event the road may be closed – we will let you know beforehand if this happens. Rockhaven is in a remote area where access and communication is fairly limited.
Rockhaven Farm is 120 hectares in extent and is owned by Grant Sieff and Andrew Brown. The farm lies at approximately 700 m above sea level in a mountainous conservation area known as the Groot Winterhoek Conservancy : approximately 14 farms together with the Cape Nature Conservation Wilderness Area form this conservancy. The purpose of the conservancy is both to assist everyone living and working on the mountain (for example, by co-ordinating fire fighting and road maintenance), and also to ensure that the beauty and natural biodiversity that the mountain offers is maintained
Ratel Farming
Ratel Farming CC (named after the nearby river and the Afrikaans word for the honey badger which occurs in the area) is the farming operation conducted on ROCKHAVEN FARM.
Ratel Farming is a producer of ORGANIC ESSENTIAL OILS and OLIVE OIL. We also produce organic apricots and honey. We have a range of 12 essential oils, from unusual indigenous oils (such as Blue Mountain Sage and African Chamomile) to the more widely known oils (such as Lavender, Rosemary and Rose Geranium). The essential oils are all steam-stilled on site on the farm. The olives are milled off-site (at the moment in Riebeeck Kasteel) and the oil is then bottled on the farm. All our products are registered as organic with BCS-Oko Guarantie in Germany and are subject to strict controls.
Essential oils, olive oil, honey and apricot jam (in season) are sold to guests staying on the farm. Our essential oils are not generally available to the public, as we have contracts for the sale of all our oils for direct supply to Europe.