It seems to be a recurring theme here - there's so much more action than just the surf.
A few weeks ago I waxed on/waxed off about surfing under the rainbow with the dolphins. I'm sure there was a centaur in there somewhere as well, but maybe that happened later in the evening.
Well, this weekend had it's own treats in store for us. I began saturday with a little beach clean, which turned out to be a big one. Greg, of Blouberg Beach Clean, really did well to spread the word and drew a good crowd to the Seli on Saturday. I was a bit late, so I asked what area I could take on. He said the immediate area was pretty well covered, but if I wanted to, I could drive out a bit further. I had a place in mind.
So I enlisted Anna and Jacques (just met them) and we cruised on up to a spot just before melkbos where the wind seems to bring it all in. You could fill a bag from each scalloping on the beach. It took five of us (joined by another couple) about 45mins to fill the back of my bakkie. Sies. But it just goes to show. We didn't even really scratch the surface. There's also a corner up here where the rocks just collect it and you could probably wade through waist deep plastic if you were that way inclined.
We headed back to base and saw that the one ton goal was easily met and then surpassed somewhat. My bakkie was re-enlisted to help remove some of it for sorting and weighing and that what we couldn't fit in was unfortunately left for the council to take away and dump. After washing some reeking ammoniac siffness of my bakkie, it was time for some me-time.
I picked up James and we hitched up the jet ski. I figured I'd earned it and could blow off a little karma. The aim is to develop the tow-surf basics. Which are challenging. Get going on the board is hard work without straps. Towing properly is even harder.
But the other aspect to it is the amount of coast and ocean you get to see with it. We opted to launch at public slipway a bit out of town and went round the point to a bit-out-of-way beach. Just going round the point you get to see so many sea birds doing their thing. Gannets, penguins, comorants, gulls, terns... you actually need a checklist.
The real highlight was when we came back. James was holding the ski and I was fetching the trailer. In the back ground I spotted something swimming low in the water. I figured out pretty quickly what it was: a shy friend of our - the Cape Clawless Otter, Aonyx capensis for the geeks. Shy, mostly nocturnal and elusive, they're often there, but seldom seen. (Not to be confused with the Grot Otter, an altogether different nocturnal creature, that may seem friendly on the night, but the charm wears off around dawn.) I'll often see otter tracks around, but can only recall a handful of occasions when I've met them. If you're doing the dawnie around Kommetjie, you may meet an elderly couple, the Otter Spotters who are out everyday at dawn looking for the low-slung water dogs. They only get a sighting every so not-so-often.
I managed to get a video on the GoPro. We'll see how badly that came out, so stay tuned for an update.
The moral: Even in today's noisey, hydrocarbon fuelled society, nature is still happening all around us. And, if you pay attention, it will reward you more than you know it.
Thanks Kirsten Frost for what must have been a very satisfying picture to take
A few weeks ago I waxed on/waxed off about surfing under the rainbow with the dolphins. I'm sure there was a centaur in there somewhere as well, but maybe that happened later in the evening.
Well, this weekend had it's own treats in store for us. I began saturday with a little beach clean, which turned out to be a big one. Greg, of Blouberg Beach Clean, really did well to spread the word and drew a good crowd to the Seli on Saturday. I was a bit late, so I asked what area I could take on. He said the immediate area was pretty well covered, but if I wanted to, I could drive out a bit further. I had a place in mind.
So I enlisted Anna and Jacques (just met them) and we cruised on up to a spot just before melkbos where the wind seems to bring it all in. You could fill a bag from each scalloping on the beach. It took five of us (joined by another couple) about 45mins to fill the back of my bakkie. Sies. But it just goes to show. We didn't even really scratch the surface. There's also a corner up here where the rocks just collect it and you could probably wade through waist deep plastic if you were that way inclined.
We headed back to base and saw that the one ton goal was easily met and then surpassed somewhat. My bakkie was re-enlisted to help remove some of it for sorting and weighing and that what we couldn't fit in was unfortunately left for the council to take away and dump. After washing some reeking ammoniac siffness of my bakkie, it was time for some me-time.
I picked up James and we hitched up the jet ski. I figured I'd earned it and could blow off a little karma. The aim is to develop the tow-surf basics. Which are challenging. Get going on the board is hard work without straps. Towing properly is even harder.
But the other aspect to it is the amount of coast and ocean you get to see with it. We opted to launch at public slipway a bit out of town and went round the point to a bit-out-of-way beach. Just going round the point you get to see so many sea birds doing their thing. Gannets, penguins, comorants, gulls, terns... you actually need a checklist.
The real highlight was when we came back. James was holding the ski and I was fetching the trailer. In the back ground I spotted something swimming low in the water. I figured out pretty quickly what it was: a shy friend of our - the Cape Clawless Otter, Aonyx capensis for the geeks. Shy, mostly nocturnal and elusive, they're often there, but seldom seen. (Not to be confused with the Grot Otter, an altogether different nocturnal creature, that may seem friendly on the night, but the charm wears off around dawn.) I'll often see otter tracks around, but can only recall a handful of occasions when I've met them. If you're doing the dawnie around Kommetjie, you may meet an elderly couple, the Otter Spotters who are out everyday at dawn looking for the low-slung water dogs. They only get a sighting every so not-so-often.
 | |
| Just never as perfectly frammed or in focus. |
The moral: Even in today's noisey, hydrocarbon fuelled society, nature is still happening all around us. And, if you pay attention, it will reward you more than you know it.
Thanks Kirsten Frost for what must have been a very satisfying picture to take
No comments:
Post a Comment