Woman & Home South Africa

Life lessons from a KAROO COWGIRL

Eight years ago, Julie Hobson, 36, downscaled her finance-training business in Port Elizabeth to renovate and rebuild Elandskloof, her great-grandfather’s sheep farm, into an epic cattle ranch.

Today, she lives in a farmhouse high in the mountains near Graaff-Reinet with her husband Sean, 39, a bladesmith and farmer. She also has a fantastic team of farmhands who help run the ranch.

Apart from trading and selling cattle, Julie runs a guest house on the ranch, takes visitors on horseback outrides, and hosts a few cattle drives throughout the year. In recent years, her ranch has become a popular filming location, too. Independent film-makers and local TV channels like kykNET have shot footage on the property.

Here’s what Julie has learnt from her extraordinary life in the Karoo.

YOUR YESTERDAY SHAPES WHO YOU ARE TODAY

I grew up with a rooster’s call greeting the new day each morning. My parents were farmers, so

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