
Pumula Game Farm is a fourstar Tourism Council-graded venue and is located between the towns of Bela-Bela and Modimolle in Limpopo, only 140km from Pretoria and 190km from Johannesburg.
Bart and Marcelle Ridder purchased the property in December 2023 while the latter was visiting South Africa. She moved to the farm in March 2024 once registration was done and spent one week with the previous owners for a complete handover and a busy Easter weekend shortly thereafter.
At that time, Bart was still working in Uganda and only saw the farm when he arrived in South Africa three weeks later. He spent another six months finishing his contract in Uganda.
The family spent over 16 years outside South Africa with stays in Kenya, Ethiopia and Uganda, where Bart worked as an agriculturist. He still consults for Royal Van Zanten after he left as managing director for the company and frequently visits the farms in Uganda. Marcelle grew up in Johannesburg and has been in graphic and website design for over 20 years.
The game farm’s closest town is Modimolle, only 15 minutes away. At Pumula, guests can also purchase basic items like ice, firewood, firelighters and charcoal, as well as gifts or souvenirs.
SELF-CATERING AND MORE
All units are fully self-catering. Guests will find all the utensils, cookware and crockery needed to prepare scrumptious meals in the units, as well as linen and bath towels. Guests need to bring swimming towels, sunscreen, mosquito repellent, food and drinks with them.
All units have braai facilities and TVs with select DStv channels. Housekeeping staff clean the outside areas daily and this includes the braai areas and pools. The Ridders take recycling seriously on the farm, and they request guests to do the same. Visitors will find bins for biodegradables, used for compost, in the kitchens.
This story is from the February 21, 2025 edition of Farmer's Weekly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the February 21, 2025 edition of Farmer's Weekly.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In

The bond between Boer and Zulu
The friendship forged between Louis Botha and Dinuzulu as boys in rural Natal later led to co-operation and land donated to the Boers to establish a new republic around present-day Vryheid, writes Graham Jooste.

Pet-friendly farm stay
Guest-farm owners and animal lovers Annatjie and Chris Geldenhuys treat pets as family, welcoming dogs of all shapes and sizes. They even roll out the welcome mat for cats and birds, writes Linda Piegl.

How the Bonsmara changed the trajectory of beef cattle breeding in SA and beyond
The Bonsmara is a South African breed that was bred to thrive under African conditions, says Louis Steyl, CEO of the breeders' society Bonsmara SA. He spoke to Annelie Coleman about the origins of the breed and the value it has added to sustainable and profitable beef production on a global level.

Students chosen for global poultry programme
Lihle Sindaku, a master's student at North-West University (NWU), has been selected to participate in an international poultry programme aimed at bridging academic study and industry insights.

Harnessing renewable energy: sustainable solutions for SA farmers
Sustainable energy options like solar, wind, biogas, and others enable farmers to reduce their reliance on the national power grid and insulate their farms from electricity price hikes, writes Cobus du Plessis.

Advancing the use of integrated pest management in crop production
Experts in integrated pest management are gaining importance as fruit-importing countries tighten their phytosanitary regulations. Nadine Botha, technical and commercial manager at Insectec, spoke to Magda du Toit about her journey from growing up in a small mining town to taking on a leading role in the field.

Challenges to overcome when direct seeding onions.
Achieving the planned onion population and bulb quality requires precise seeding, especially in summer rainfall areas, writes Bill Kerr.

BMW covers all the bases with all-new X3
In January, BMW rolled out the all-new Rosslyn-built X3. The Citizen's Mark Jones sampled the latest generation of the popular SUV to discover why the three-model line-up caters for everyone.

Global and domestic outlook for canola
Canola is an important global crop, and while South Africa is not a significant player in the industry, production and trade abroad have a significant impact on local production and prices.

A cottage for people sharing the facilities
Dear Jonno, We write to you for some ideas for a cottage that can be built and rented out to people working in our vicinity.