SUMMERHILL STUD - Changing of the Seasons

                                                                             (Photo by Cheryl Goss)

Have you ever been to Summerhill in autumn? For that matter, have you ever been to Summerhill? If you haven’t, remember what the famous writer, adventurer and raconteur, Sir Clement Freud once said of the property which encompasses Hartford House, now one of the nation’s top boutique hotels. He said that if you owned a broodmare and didn’t house her at Summerhill, it would be “downright sinful”. As for Hartford House, Sir Clement described it as undoubtedly “one of South Africa’s most gracious homes”.

We’re entering one of the loveliest phases of the year now, the trees are beginning to turn, the golds and burgundies grow by the day, while the emerald hue of newly cultivated pastures is patchworked wherever there is good ground for horses. The sight of the sun’s rays glinting through the spray of the irrigators in the late afternoons is something to behold, while the clarity of the early mornings comes hand in hand with the crispness that heralds the autumn.

The marvels of these times sparks the enthusiasm of anyone with a camera on the farm, and these images exemplify why Gary Player described it as “Africa’s most beautiful stud farm”. They’re not the only ones who think so though, as Hartford House is always busy April and May, with visitors who love to be surprised. 

Click here to view more photos of the changing season in our Photo Gallery