South Africa in 2 weeks, week1 part 3

The last day of that first week we did an Eco-tour with our guide Rudy. We drove up the mountain traversing the Swartberg pass at 5194 plus feet or 1583 meter and walked at the mountain conservation headquarters grounds learning about plants, herbs and flowers.

(Built by 250 prisoners in about 7 years between 1881 and 1888)

(Swartberg mountain reserve foundation headquarters and below the examples of local flora found along our walking trail - the tree stump shows that non indigenous plants and trees had been removed in order to restore the original ecological environment)

The area now a Unesco heritage site seems to be the home of species not often found elsewhere. We visited also an olive oil farm, had lunch at a winery and ended the day with a visit to an Ostrich farm, where we stood on eggs to test the strength of the shell, the ladies were pictured sitting on an Ostrich, but declined to ride them. We watched the males courting the ladies and having occasionally a successful romantic and very noisy encounter.

(Wine tasting lesson, and I am sorry to have to admit that I already nibbled the food before taking a picture)

(Smack besides the winery, a dutch reformed church with the planted jacarandas beautifying the picturesque scene)

 

(I believe this is the most "Sandee" pictures ever posted in these blogs, showing off ostrich features, babies, egg strength - by the way each ostrich egg is the eqiuvalent of 24 chicken eggs - and lastly climbing onto, however not riding a full grown ostrich)

The ostrich race shown by professionals)

(A noisy wing flapping love encounter underway, while she is sitting on her eggs - so uncouth)

All in all we had a busy, fully scheduled week, with nice housing, good food and happy banter.

(Mosselbaai from which the boys went shark diving)

The next day at the start of the second week, we stopped in Mosselbaai, because Herman and Gary desired to do a shark diving tour. The boat operator scours for sharks and the guests don themselves in their latex diving suits, step in a cage and go overboard, then watch the shark come close by because the operator lures them with smelly fish heads and other chummy like pieces. They returned, all limbs in tact, with a video and tales about the one lonely shark (a "junior" great white) that paid them a visit.

(In the meantime the rest of us visit a shell museum, saw our first Dassie - a very frequent sight around rocks and bushes we later realized)

(Visited a local cave and stared at the Atlantic Ocean as well as up to a lighthouse alerting ships to stay away from the rocks)

At the end of this blog I return to the about 10 miles of walking we did with Gerhard, who showed us birds and local flora, explained footprints and how many hours ago what animal had passed here, the housing of small animals and or snakes, very old rock art of prehistoric man, plants that provide water for man as well as animal, how certain trees communicate downwind that they need to prepare themselves for giraffes or elephants ready to raid their leaves. Some trees then start emitting scents that make them unattractive.

(Cactoid like plants storing the liquid to survive months of draught)

(Baby Bottom plants containing drinkable liquid)

(Cave with ancient fading rock art)

(River bed so bone dry - one can picture a dead body on top of it)

(Gerhard was very excited to find a complete Rhino toenail for their reservation museum)

(One of many forms of Lichen we saw - if you don't know the word, look it up)

(A specific spider creates this trap while he is hidden under the surface)

(Aborted home, we were told now often occupied by snakes)

(Plants that change color during the year to blend in with their environment)

(Marjo who does paint a lot, was excited when Gerhard and Nico brought her to a hill where they found rocks that provided the colors used by prehistoric man to create their rock art as well as to body paint themselves)

I must stop now this blog becomes too wieldy.

Up to week 2

 

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