For those who enjoy a greener, more countrified lifestyle, the Upper Highway has a range of accommodation to suit every age, stage and pocket.
Compared to property prices on the north coast, the Upper Highway is visibly the best value for money. From way back, Kloof was always the oldest, most established, richly treed residential suburb at the crest of Fields Hill, so more freestanding homes and fewer estates. But, as with all areas, subdivisions and rezonings have allowed a number of smaller, select estates, like those in the Everton conservancy area.
Hillcrest being further west and further out, has had far more room for development in the past decade or so. The number of estates, little and large, has mushroomed and continues to do so. From little secure townhouse complexes to the far larger gated or golfing estates, affordability within a 10km2 range is on a sliding scale from entry-level to the top of the range.
When Hillcrest began to spread, effectively filling in the spaces and closing the gaps between Bothas Hill and the newer suburbs like Waterfall and Forest Hills, Inanda Road, in particular, became a series of gated estates. Previously horse country, now it’s golf, equestrian, even wildlife, with other more compact estates as the glue between. Luxurious estate living at Kirtlington Equestrian Estate, or Langford Country Estate with its views across to Camp Orchard, or Cotswold Downs, where golfing, bird-watching, hiking and a clubhouse is all part of this level of country estate living. And, as with all estates, security is paramount and makes a great drawcard together with the range of superior government and private schools dotted throughout the Upper Highway.
Although the substantial commercial/retail growth along belts of the Upper Highway has meant many residents now work locally, suburbs such as Assagay and Hillcrest have very easy access to either the M13 to Durban, or the N3’s speedy access to Durban or Pietermaritzburg – you can live in the Upper Highway, and work in Umhlanga or Pietermaritzburg.
And the brakes haven’t been put on the development of estates, particularly first-time homeowner and retirement, the two sectors most in need and most in demand. In Assagay, the new Polo Pony retirement development has gone to market, and in Hillcrest, the upmarket golfing estate of Cotswold Downs has added a retirement component, and the Over 50s Le Domaine recently announced its final phase. The retirement complex of Rob Roy has done likewise. First-time homeownership developments are selling off-plan, like Morningside and Augusta Ridge in Hillcrest.
Each estate in the Upper Highway offers something different, some containing a stepped range of accommodation that encourages residents to up-or downscale within the same estate. Well-known estates like Plantations in Hillcrest, offer everything from entry-level through to palatial freestanding homes, while Augusta Country Estate – with its superb golf course and access to the M13 – has compact accommodation suitable for retirees, duplexes and simplexes, right up to freestanding homes. All have superior in-house security systems. A few estates in the upper reaches of Bothas Hill focus on wildlife and expansive country living, while others are small, compact and lock-up-and-go for retirees at Hillcrest Retirement Estate and Waterfall Retirement Estate.
As much as the Upper Highway has reinvented itself into a more urban environment, it’s still chosen by homeowners because of the outdoor lifestyle option and reputation for one of the healthiest climates in the country. This, the so-called mist-belt, offers more space, conservancies, smallholdings, horse riding, and generally, that country lifestyle which South Africa does so well.
We love a country-type life, but there’s no point in that unless you can leave your doors and windows open. This estate is exactly the retirement life we dreamed of – privacy, boardwalks, birding…and the grandchildren in the same estate.
-Clare Reynolds, resident.
Schools in the Upper Highway area in Durban:
- Kearsney College
- St Mary’s Diocesan School for Girls
- Thomas More College
- Highbury Preparatory School
- Hillcrest Primary School
- Hillcrest High School
- Kloof Junior Primary School
- Kloof High School
- Curro Hillcrest
- Winston Park Primary School
Nature in Upper Highway:
- Krantzkloof Nature Reserve: birding, hiking, guided walks twice a month by the honorary officers, as well as two picnic sites
- Kloof and Everton conservancies
- Giba Gorge Nature Reserve
Things to do in Upper Highway:
Kloof Conservancy Three Falls Trail Run (and Fun Walk) run by Kloof Conservancy: magnificent views of the Krantzkloof Nature Reserve, its fauna and flora, and the Kloof Falls, Uve Falls, and mPhiti Falls.
Mountain biking: Giba Gorge Mountain Bike and Adventure Park for children and adults.
Umgeni Steam Railway: departs and returns to/from Stokers Arms in Kloof, last Sunday of each month; the Inchanga Conservancy run the Craft Market at Inchanga Railway Station.
Giba Gorge Horse Trails (near Marianhill Toll Plaza): horse riding and trail centre in the Giba Gorge Valley.
Shongweni Farmer’s and Craft Market: open every Saturday from 6.30am to 11.30am.
Kloof Conservancy’s Indigenous Open Gardens Show: next show taking place June 2018.
This article originally appeared in Neighbourhood,Sunday Times.
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