Rooted in the exciting diversity of our land, the Ghoya Africa Conservancy has many colourful stories to tell. Settlement of the land dates back to the Late Iron Age. Today the corbelled stone huts of the Nghoya people, an ethnic tribe from those times, are still to be found scattered across the hills of the conservancy. It is from this unique archaeological heritage that the Conservancy lends its name.
 

 Towards the middle of the 19th century when the first European “Voortrekkers” reached the area, nomadic Barelong and Matabele cattle farmers already populated the land.  Proving to be amongst the most fertile land in this part of the Free State, the nearby site of the battle of Vegkop is reminiscent of a time when the struggle for resources lead to one of the most well known battles of the early history of European settlement in inland South Africa.

     The richness of the area in natural abundance is well documented. In the memoirs of Paul Kruger, former president of the Zuid Afrikaansche Republiek, he describes his first lion hunt amongst the hills and koppies surrounding the Renoster River, which flows through the Conservancy.
     In 2001 Danie Hattingh of the farm Goedehoop, founded the Conservancy in collaboration with other local farmers and landowners with the aim to conserve this rich heritage of culture, nature and history. This signified the start of a new chapter from which many stories will surely be told.
     The renaissance of this part of the Riemland stems from a deep found and well apprehended love of the environment, its history and all that lives thereof. Well thought through programs to regenerate the natural beauty of the area and meticulous renovation have restored the gracious homestead and buildings on the Goedehoop farm to their former glory.
     Today the scenic surroundings set the stage for a celebration of the finer things in life.