Rivendell House is situated about 19 km north of Howick where all the major shops and banks are situated.
In the other direction, to the west is Nottingham Road, also about 19 km away, where there is a supermarket and one or two other shops that you might find handy, plus a restaurant or two.
We are in the heart of the KZN Midland Meander, so all you need is a Midlands Meander magazine (which you will find conveniently placed on the lounge table), and your day can be planned out to your heart’s desire.
The Midlands Meander is a treasure trove of arts, craft, shops, restaurants and accommodation – a collection of weavers, potters, woodcrafters, leather workers, artists, metalworkers, herb growers, cheese makers and beer brewers – well over 100 stops on four routes that extend over a distance of 80 kilometres between Pietermaritzburg and Mooi River.
The Midlands Meander is a wonderfully relaxing and enjoyable way to spend a couple of days, and Curry’s Post is ideally placed to accommodate visits to the first, largest and arguably the most popular art and crafts route in the country.
There is no shortage of activities, eating venues, coffee establishments, entertainment, amusement, etc, bring your mountain bikes, your running shoes, your eating pants, or just chill out.
Click here to plan your outings or find out what is available.
Curry’s Post is a beautifully scenic area in the heart of the Midlands Meander that lies between Mooi River and Howick. It has a quaint history that involves the Curry Family, after whom Curry’s Post is named, who settled and established an overnight wagon and cart stop becoming a staging post.
The Coach House, still in existence today, is where George Curry and his rather large extended family lived – he went on to have as many as 20 grandchildren. Curry’s Post was to play a significant role as a ‘watering hole’ during the gold and diamond rushes as the hustle of traffic – in the form of wagons, carts and weary travellers – made this their stop en-route to the old ‘Transvaal’ reef.
Blowing Down An Old Country Road
This article as appeared in the April copy of British Airways Magazine, photography and print by Narina Exelby
All roads lead to Curry’s Post. It’s a simple fact that can be corroborated by almost anyone who has driven the back roads of KwaZulu-Natal’s enchanting Midlands. In the farming district of Karkloof, alongside the edge of verdant pastures, the signs show: Curry’s Post, this way. Curry’s Post, over there, point the signs near the old station in Lidgetton. Around Nottingham Road, Balgowan, Lions River and Howick, almost every T-junction in the Midlands, it seems, the signs show: Curry’s Post, that way.
So where exactly – and more specifically, what is Curry’s Post? Because if one follows the signs, one will stumble across… well, nothing in particular. Once the wagon trail along the only route connecting Durban with Johannesburg, the Curry’s Post Road is now a collage of patched and faded bitumen that is often dimpled with potholes. After 19km, without ever passing through a significant ‘centre’, the tar ends and Curry’s Post which you would have passed without noticing – becomes lost in a trail of dust.
But look a little deeper, because therein lies the area’s charm…
WHY ‘CURRY’S POST’?
On a map you’ll see that the Curry’s Post Road begins at a fairly uninteresting T-junction in Howick – but memories of the beginning of ‘Curry’s Post’ lie one kilometre away, where this story begins over a cup of tea and a collection of family photographs.
‘For military services rendered, the Brits granted my great-great grandfather, Sergeant Major George Curry, a piece of land called Houtboschrand in what was the Boer’s short-lived Natalia Republic,’ John Curry begins as he settles into his armchair. Ceylon tea steams between us. ‘Great-Great Grandpa Curry’s house was built by the Boers in the 1830s and that,’ Mr Curry pauses for emphasis, ‘that house is Curry’s Post.’
The octogenarian shuffles through photos and pauses at one of a white house with a grey tin roof. ‘This is where Great-Great Grandpa Curry lived – and, incidentally, so did I. George ran a lot of horses – about 300 of them – because back then the postal service was run from the stagecoaches, with fresh steeds at intervals of every 12 miles.’
How’s the tea – any more? John’s wife Carmeline pops her head into the lounge. ‘Be careful my dear, he’ll talk to you for hours about Curry’s Post,’ she teases.
Mrs Curry has lived most of her life in the area that carries her married name. Her own role is stamped in its history: ‘Carmeline was the last post mistress of Curry’s Post,’ Mr Curry states with pride. ‘She earned a marvellous sum of…’ he chuckles, recalling, ‘something like £3 a month.’
Before I leave he gives me the directions to George Curry’s house. ‘You can’t miss it,’ he says. ‘All roads lead to Curry’s Post.’
HOME OF HUMMING ALPACAS
The tar’s just ended and, through a veil of dust, I see a row of pouting lips and pert ears lined along a fence. What are these inquisitive creatures with curiously long necks? Moments later there is a sign: ‘Alpaca manure for sale’. A visit is inevitable.
The owner of Endeavour Alpacas, Terrence Watkins, and Wendy Channing are raking up manure when I arrive. They have a herd of alpacas grazing in different fields: females and cria (baby alpacas) in one, males in another.
‘Alpacas are soulful animals; they kind of… connect with you,’ says Wendy, who spins their fleece and outsources the knitting of hats, gloves and scarves to pensioners in Howick. ‘If you’re around an alpaca long enough you can feel a mood change, an attitude change. When they’re not feeling well, you can feel that they’re not feeling well. And when a female gives birth the alpacas gather around and hum – did you know, alpacas hum when they’re happy?’
About 6,000 years ago these relatives of camels were bred by the Incan civilization for their fleece which was used to create garments for royalty, Terrence explains, adding that he’s had a lifelong fascination with those cultures. He also has a penchant for rescuing animals and so 15 years ago, when he saw an ad for a pair of alpacas that desperately needed a home, he responded immediately. ‘I always tell people – I didn’t find the alpacas, they found me.’
All roads, it seems, really do lead to Curry’s Post. And a bit further is Endeavour Alpacas.
