Cambedoo lodge & game reserve, South Africa

With a vision to rehabilitate the once lost magnificence of the Eastern Cape’s Great Karoo, our dream is now a lifelong commitment. Our campaign of rejuvenation seeks to rediscover the haunting beauty of this incredible landscape that generations of agricultural exploitation threatened to mask forever. Since 1997 our main objective has been to realise the lands potential both as an area of outstanding natural diversity and as a home to reintroduced species. 

There are only 34 global biodiversity hotspots recognised by Conservation International, supporting the majority of the world’s biodiversity in less than 5% of the world's surface area. We are privileged to be at the junction of two of these, the Succulent Karoo Hotspot, and the Maputoland-Pondoland-Albany Thicket Hotspot. This places us at the forefront of global conservation responsibility. In order to realise this responsibility we have worked closely with a number of wildlife and conservation organisations, including De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust and the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, in Port Elizabeth.

Privileged to be home to the highly endangered Cheetah, we also host a remarkable individual. Born a wild cheetah, Sibella’s life nearly ended at the hands of hunters. After being savagely treated in captivity, she was fortunate enough to be rescued and underwent life-saving surgery and rehabilitation at the De Wildt Cheetah and Wildlife Trust. In December 2003, Sibella started a new chapter in her life when she, along with two males, was released into our game reserve.

Despite suffering the occasional twinge from her previous injuries, Sibella has proved herself to be a capable hunter and has successfully reared 11 cubs in the three years she has been here. As such, she epitomizes the spirit of the reserve as she plays a vital role in the rejuvenation of a once endangered existence. Part of our cheetah conservation success is the fact that our reserve is free of the predator competition found in Big 5 reserves. Without the pressure of natural predators such as lion and spotted hyena, our cheetah populations have been able to thrive. Guests are given the opportunity to track cheetah, together with their ranger.

Made up of 11 farms, the reserve forms an essential part of the area’s heritage and, as such, plays an important role within the local community. Not only is 90% of our staff from Graaff-Reinet and its surrounds, but we also invite children from previously disadvantaged backgrounds to explore on a regular basis. In association with the mayor of Graaff-Reinet, Daantjies Jafta, we organize educational visits for local schools, during which the children get to experience the magic of the wilderness and learn about the country’s growing eco-tourism industry.

It is part of Samara’s policy to share our conservation vision with guests. Wherever possible guests are educated and given the opportunity to participate. Guests are taken on informative walks, game drives etc, and are encouraged to include visits to the surrounds in their itineraries. Conservation information is also put in guest rooms.

Samara is in the process of establishing the Karoo kitchen gardens. The aim is to grow as much of our fresh produce as possible, making the reserve as self sustainable as possible. All of our game meats etc are also taken from the reserve. We currently use solar power for our reserve fences and certain bore holes. We also have solar powered submersive pumps. We have certain energy efficient appliances installed in the kitchen. Eg : electric hobbs, and use candles and lanterns to light parts of the lodge at night. We burn only non-indigenous trees for fire wood and currently collect in 5 butts- 2500 l tanks of rain water for use in the garden.

All cleaning products are eco friendly. We separate all the glass and tin from the paper, which we keep separate dedicated containers. Most our staff work on site and therefore do not travel by vehicle to work. A large percentage of our supplies are bought from the local area, including fresh produce and arts and crafts sold in the curio shop.