• The Amathole Mountain Range, in the heart of the Eastern Cape 

    Slider 1

     

  • The Kologha Forest, second largest indigenous forest in South Africa

    Slider 1

  • Home to the critically endangered Cape Parrot

    Slider 1
  • Rolling hills and open grasslands

  • Gubu Dam and Wriggleswade Dam

  • sitting-area yellowwood creek escape route stutterheimYellowwood Creek


    The gardens and sweeping lawns slope down to the Cumakala River and dense Yellowwood forest.

    The forest and surrounding area are inhabited by no less than one hundred and thirty-eight species of bird including Knysna louries and the rare Cape parrot, many of which are common seasonal visitors to the garden. 

    Click here to read more.

  • shire-eco-lodge-bush-shower-veiwThe Shire Eco Lodge


    'Reclining in a bubble of wood, the tranquility and otherworldliness of the space will soothe, inspire and rejuvenate.' 

    Sitting right on the edge of the indigenous Khologha Forest in the Amathole Mountains, just a stream’s hop from the enchanted home of many rare species of plants, butterflies and birds, including the rare Cape Parrot. 

12 Amazing Facts about Amahlathi

1) The indigenous forest at Stutterheim is the second largest expanse of natural forest in South Africa.

2) Amahlathi is the only place in the world where 3 species of cycads grow in vast colonies, in close proximity to each other in the wild. They are Encephalartos friederici-guilielmi, princeps and caffra.

3) The diversity of environment in the Amahlathi region provides shelter for several endangered or rare species; the Cape Parrot, Samango Monkey, Hogsback Frog, Amatola Toad, Kubusie Damsel, Keilandia (scorpion), Golden Mole, and Penningtons Opal Butterfly.

4) A new plant, part of the Fire Lily or Cyranthus family has been discovered in the Quanti area. It has been named Cyranthus macmasteri after Cameron Mc Master who found it.

5) Lions were still seen roaming near the Windvogelberg in Cathcart in 1862.

6) Elephant tusks and molars, found in the Khologha and Pirie Forests, are on display in the Amathole Museum in King Williams Town.

5) The oldest San painting to have been discovered in this area is estimated to be 3000 old.

6) The great Xhosa chief Sandile who fought in the Frontier Wars was killed during the ninth war and lies buried at the foot of Mount Kemp.

7) Reverend Döhne, the pastor of Bethel Mission was also a great linguist. He translated the New Testament into Xhosa in 1865.

8) Dr. Basil Dormer was schooled in Cathcart before studying medicine. A brilliant doctor, he became world renown for his knowledge on the prevention and cure of Tuberculosis.

9) The Cullinan Diamond was named after Thomas Cullinan who had worked with his father building the railway from East London to Queenstown. After the death of both parents, he left Cathcart to seek his fortune on the reef. Through hard work, he became a well known business man and industrialist in the then Transvaal. He received a knighthood in 1910.

10) The Stutterheim Engine Museum has the largest collection of stationery engines in working order in the Southern Hemisphere.

11) Cata Community Museum is the only museum in South Africa which tells the story of the apartheid era and of land dispossession. The land has since been redistributed to the original families and a thriving community now exists.

12) The Schoenstatt Shrine in Cathcart was the first of its kind to be built on African soil. It is the exact replica of the Vallendar Shrine near Koblenz on the Rhine which dates back to the 1100s. To this day there are only nine of their kind in South Africa.

Local businesses

Colletts-vector-artwork- escape route stutterheim BOSE TYRES LICENCE DISK escape route stutterheim hazeldean computers stutterheim escape route  
pick n pay stutterheim escape route spar amatola stutterheim escape route