Our group made our way to the bird hide nestled between the reeds where we stared quietly at flamingos, pelicans, and many ducks gliding gently along the calm waters of Rocherpan.

The bird hide is just one of the new additions that welcome visitors to the Rocherpan Nature Reserve situated near Velddrif, a small fishing village on the West Coast.

A little way off from the first bird hide is another hide and not far from this, an untouched beach, where the sand squeaks under your feet along a coast that seems to stretch forever.

The main reason for my visit was to see the much anticipated eco-cabins that the reserve opened on 2 August 2012. The cabins are situated overlooking the pan and give you splendid views of the goings-on – cormorants fanning their feathers, flamingos eating, ducks splashing and seagulls huddled together on the small sand islands. Having attended the launch of Kogelberg Nature Reserve’s accommodation I was familiar with the concept of eco-cabins and having seen how beautifully the cabins at Kogelberg were constructed, the new cabins came as no surprise.

Completed by the same architect, Justin Cooke of Architecture Co-Op, the four cabins can accommodate up to four people (two adults and two children). They are also friendly on the eye and blend in well with the surroundings. I stayed the night in Oystercatcher and from the outside deck I watched a fiery sunset, while the reserve hummed with the sounds of birdlife and insects. Inside each cabin is a fireplace, double bed and sleeper couch.

The kitchen is fully equipped and the bathroom has a hot water shower supplied by solar geysers. There’s also a fancy composting toliet that saves a great amount of water compared to normal flush loos. The grey water from the cabins is soaked away into dry areas to ensure that the reserve’s very saline water table is not contaminated. Wilfred Williams, project co-ordinator of CapeNature, was pleased to announce that these developments are setting the trend in water conservation, something that is hoped more people will take up at home.

The cabins have sliding glass doors and many smaller windows that give you the feeling of being outside. Each cabin has wooden floors in the bedroom and beautiful tiling in the kitchen and bathroom.

The new cabins are just the start of many more exciting projects at Rocherpan. The second phase of development includes additional visitor accommodation and visitors can soon look forward to the opening of a new hiking trail that will make the reserve much easier to explore. Whatever your interests, Rocherpan has lots to keep you enthralled. I can’t wait to see more!

The new cabins are called:

• Oystercatcher
• Kingfisher
• Sandpiper
• Flamingo

Visit http://www.capenature.co.za/ for more information or to make a booking.

Rates

R490 per night (1-2 persons), children (under 12) are R80 extra each. Two adults and two children can take one cabin, but four adults would have to take two cabins. If you don’t have a valid Wild Card you will also add the conservation fee of R30 per adult and R15 per child.

* PLEASE NOTE: Rates per cabin may have increased since this article was first pubished.