In spite of winter chills, Buffalo Thorn Lodge has been a hive of activity and feverish excitement! The activity was in response to an event that occurred earlier in the year. On 02 March 2024 there were reports of a 3.8 magnitude earthquake 35 KMS West of the lodge. It was felt by staff and guests alike and persisted for a few seconds short of a minute. Scary indeed, but fear is often a great motivator. We sustained a limited amount of damage to the lodge. More specifics about that in a moment. Our repair work began soon afterwards and then gained huge momentum. With the cold weather now dissipating, we are pushing even harder to finish off and to create a place and experience that make our guests feel not only cared for but spoilt at the same time. We will be completely done by 02 August 2024.
With the type of soil on Black Rhino, there is not much give or play in the movement of structures. As a consequence, a few cracks started forming as a result of the earthquake. Existing weaknesses in the original build were exploited by the vibrations. The lounge and pool deck area were particularly affected. We got engineers in and a report was compiled and finalized. We made a decision to close for the winter and to begin with our repairs and refurbishments in earnest. RT Projects was the Turn-key company selected. Christo the owner personally lead the project. He has totally has a ‘can-do’ approach! Christo has decades worth of experience and has a solid reputation in the building industry. His team shares his passion for execution diligence.
In the beginning it felt like a warzone with constant banging, crashing and drilling to boot i.e. a construction site on steroids. Normality started coming into focus only once we had removed several truck loads of rubble. We then realised our own iceberg scenario i.e. that the cracks visible on the surface were worse down below. We dug deeper into ourselves and into the earth resolving issues at ground zero.
Christo’s direct, unwavering and positive attitude was our saving grace on many occasions. A substantial amount of work was unquoted for and RT projects under Christo’s guidance simply took initiative and did what was necessary without further cost to ourselves. We also built a beautiful new composite deck which was erected in record time without compromising quality. The old composite planks from the original deck were then used to build covers for the outside geyser boxes.
A brand-new Jacuzzi was built into the new deck. Just like before, guests can still sit in the Jacuzzi and watch game coming to drink from the lodge waterholes. We are one of the few lodges on Black Rhino who still have a jacuzzi. The completed decking area, pool and jacuzzi looks amazing! More than just looking amazing, it will be a huge source of delight in the months and years to come.
We have also rebuilt all the patios outside each of the chalets. The patios all have new furniture while the view of all the waterholes remain unchallenged. A teak bench has been placed under one of the lookout decks i.e. Sundowners
Here some more improvements that we have done :
While the lodge was closed during the refurbishment period, we sent our game viewer to Halfway Toyota Honeydew to be totally revamped and upgraded. While the conversion was being done, time was also made to do a major service and roadworthy. Additional extras were added to enhance the guest experience e.g. cupholders and vanity lights for finding items during night drives. We are now able to drop the windscreen facilitating greater viewing from the cruiser. After all the work was done, the vehicle was delivered to the lodge by Kobus their service manager. Thank you very much to Honeydew Toyota for their fantastic service. They absolutely went the extra mile!
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To our entire lodge community, we want to welcome you to a brand-new Buffalo Thorn Lodge. We look forward to having you come and enjoy this beautifully crafted chunk of Africa in pristine NWP bushveld.
