A snowy mountain landscape along the N2 highway in the Western Cape, South Africa.
This past winter was fairly cold here in South Africa. Somewhat unusually, many of the tops of the mountains in the Western Cape were periodically dusted with snow. There was even snow on Table Mountain in Cape Town.
During a recent backpacking trip along the Tsitsikamma Trail, my friends and I experienced some cold night-time temperatures although there was no snow in the Tsitsikamma region. However, when we were driving back to Cape Town after the hike, we noticed several snowy peaks in the distance. The picture above was taken a couple of hours outside of Cape Town along the N2 highway. I’ve seen snow before in the Western Cape, but this year’s snow was more impressive than what I saw previously.
The weather has been warmer recently, so hopefully that means that spring has finally arrived here in the Western Cape!
Today I’m continuing with my account of my recent backpacking trip along the Tsitsikamma Trail with my husband Jackie and five of our friends. Today, I’ll blog about Day #3 of the trip. I discussed Day #2 and Day #1 previously. On Day #3 we hiked 13.4 km from Blaauwkrans Hut to Keurbos Hut. Along the way, we passed through more beautiful fynbos and indigenous afromontane forest, and we made numerous river and stream crossings.
We started out the day by crossing the stunning, coca-cola colored double waterfall that we could see from Blaauwkrans Hut. Here’s a picture of that waterfall again:
This picture is worth putting in two blog posts!Crossing over the double waterfall below Blaauwkrans Hut.Jackie on the trail above the waterfall.
After we crossed over the double waterfall, we hiked up onto and across a fynbos-covered plateau and looked back on Blaauwkrans Hut from above:
The view back towards Blaauwkrans Hut. You can see the sea in the distance.Pretty pink fynbos flowers.
We soon came across some more animal tracks:
Small animal footprint.
After an hour or so of hiking, we entered the forest:
A magical forest path with tree roots for stairs.The forest path parting a sea of green.
While hiking through the forest, we saw many impressive trees. For instance, this tall Yellowwood:
A majestic yellowwood tree.Many of the trees had identification signs.The group on the trail.
After awhile, we emerged from the forest and walked through fynbos again. We had some beautiful views of the folded sandstone mountains as we walked through the fynbos:
Mountain views while walking through the fynbos.Another angle on the beautiful view that we had while walking through the fynbos.
Here are a few pretty fynbos plants:
White fynbos plant.Yellow fynbos plant.Pink fynbos plant.
After a little while, we headed down into a valley to cross the Bloukrantz (or Blaauwkrans) River:
The Bloukrantz River viewed from above.The forest near the Bloukrantz River.Crossing the Bloukrantz River.The coca-cola colored water of the Bloukrantz River.
After crossing the Bloukrantz River, we had a steep climb back up onto the plateau, where we again found ourselves in fynbos:
More stunning fynbos and a closer view of the sandstone mountains.Another view of the sandstone mountains.
We saw several lovely examples of king protea, which is South Africa’s national flower:
A stunning bright pink king protea.More king protea along the trail.Checking out a king protea.
We hiked along the fynbos plateau for a few hours and also stopped for a long lunch break. We were fairly hungry and tired!
In the mid-afternoon we arrived at another patch of forest. This particular patch of forest was my favorite of the trip as it felt particularly enchanting. There are several rusty red colored streams cascading through the thick green vegetation of this section of the forest. There are also many tall, wide green ferns. In this section of forest, I felt as if we would come across Tarzan or maybe a dinosaur!
Crossing one of the rusty red streams of the forest.Twin tall trees… with a vine!Another view of the forest.A lovely forest stream.A fern and its shadow.More ferns.
After we emerged from the forest, we found the jeep track leading to Keurbos Hut. At long last, we arrived at the hut itself:
Arriving at Keurbos Hut.
That’s all I have for Day #3 on the Tsitsikamma Trail. Stay tuned for Day #4!
Yours truly posing with some shell fossils near Kalander Hut.
Today, I’m continuing with my posts about my recent backpacking trip along the Tsitsikamma Trail in South Africa with my husband Jackie and five of our friends. Earlier today, I realized that blogging about my Tsitsikamma Trail trip this week is appropriate since this is Earth Science Week and The Geological Society is encouraging people to participate in what they are calling, “The Great Geology Walk”. This event is aimed at getting, “as many people as possible will take notice of the geology all around them during this year’s Earth Science Week.” The Geological Society is encouraging people to share pictures of the geology they observe around them and also encouraging people to participate in organized and self-guided geology walks. This week I’m pretty busy with my day job and also with paper revisions in the evenings, so I guess my geology walk will be virtual. I’ll relive (and share with my blog readers) my Tsitsikamma Trail hike. Perhaps on Friday afternoon or Saturday I can escape for a real-life geology walk as well!
Today I’ll be blogging about Day #2 of the Tsitsikamma Trail hike. On Day #2 we hiked approximately 17 km from Kalander Hut to Blaauwkrans Hut. The trail website says that the hike is 13.5 km, but the trail website is out-of-date. The day’s hike has been re-routed and lengthened to about 17 km, making the hike long and challenging. We didn’t realize that the trail had been re-routed until after we were more than halfway done with the hike. I think that was actually a good thing! Once we were more than halfway done, we decided that we may as well carry on to the next hut!
In any case, although we were exhausted, very hungry, and quite sore when we finally arrived at Blaauwkrans Hut in the late afternoon, the hike was well worth the effort and the little aches and pains. The trail wound its way from the beach, up a steep escarpment, across mountain fynbos, and through indigenous afromontane forest. Along the way, we saw fossils; tilted Table Mountain sandstones; rusty red, coca-cola colored streams and waterfalls; giant protea flowers and tall, tall yellowwood trees; various animal footprints; a large land snail; and many other wonderful sights. At the end of the 17 km hike, we arrived at the hut, which is in a truly breathtakingly beautiful location. The hut is perched on the edge of a deep ravine and overlooks a double waterfall.
The hike started out by passing an outcrop with fossils, which made me quite happy:
Shell fossils exposed in outcrop near Kalander Hut.Another view of the shell fossil outcrop, with finger for scale.
The fossil outcrop is located just a few minutes’ walk from the Kalander Hut. I wasn’t able to find (in a quick Google search, at least) any information about the fossils, but they look like fairly young shell fossils in loosely-consolidated sediments of a vegetation-covered beach dune. If anyone knows any more about the fossils near Kalander Hut, please let me know. I’d love to learn more about them.
After the group dragged me away from the fossil outcrop, we started the steep hike up the escarpment and into the Tsitsikamma Mountains. After we finished huffing and puffing our way up onto the escarpment, we were rewarded with a beautiful view of the Nature’s Valley beach below:
The beach at Nature’s Valley, viewed from above.Another view of the Nature’s Valley beach.Yet another view of the Nature’s Valley beach. That’s mountain fynbos in the foreground.Jackie and I posing with the beach in the background.
After we recovered from the steep start to the hike, we continued along the trail, which cut through rich mountain fynbos vegetation:
The trail leading through the fynbos.
Here’s a pretty protea plant we saw:
A lovely red protea.
Here’s the group on the trail:
Hanging out amongst the fynbos. We don’t look too tired yet.
We didn’t encounter many animals along the trail, but we did observe many animal tracks. Here are a couple of the tracks we saw:
Animal tracks #1.Animal tracks #2.
After awhile, we made our way into the indigenous afromontane forest. The forest felt very old and magical and was full of tall trees (such as yellowwood trees), bright red and orange mushrooms, and thick green vegetation. I felt almost as if I had stepped into a fairytale world. I half expected to encounter hobbits, elves, or fairies along the path.
The path through the forest.An interesting, fuzzy plant. Anyone know what it’s called?Another view of the fuzzy plant.Mushrooms on a log.Jackie posing next to a tall tree.Jackie and I making our way along a wider part of the trail.A snail on the path.
We stopped for lunch by a coca-cola colored waterfall cascading over some Table Mountain sandstone rocks:
A coca-cola colored waterfall and pool.
We didn’t stop for lunch for too long because it started to rain:
A coca-cola colored waterfall and pool.
Fortunately, we (well, at least two of us!) were well-prepared for the rain:
Protected by large rain ponchos.
After a couple more hours of hiking through the forest, we arrived at the jeep track leading to the Blaauwkrans Hut:
Hiking along the jeep track.
We followed the jeep track for a few kilometers. As we continued, we could see the Bloukrans Bridge in the distance:
Bloukrans (or Blauuwkrans or Bloukrantz… there are several spellings!) Bridge.
Here are some more views of the hut and its associated facilities:
The sleeping hut.Lapa / cooking area.The view from the lapa area, taken on the morning of Day #3, when the sun was out again.The hot water shower. You heat water in a kettle and put it in the big black bucket. After diluting the boiling water with some cool water, you can take a wonderfully refreshing hot shower that lasts a few minutes.
Last but not least, here is the view from the front porch of the sleeping hut:
The view of the waterfalls from Blaauwkrans Hut. I think this view makes the 17 km hike worthwhile!
Isn’t that double waterfall stunning? Here’s a closer view:
A coca-cola colored double waterfall. You can swim in those pools!
Here’s a picture of Jackie and me on the front porch of the hut:
Tired but happy hikers.
We saw some animals during our stay at Blaauwkrans Hut. We saw a troop of baboons hanging out above the waterfall:
Baboons.
We also saw a genet, but it moved too quickly for us to take a picture.
Well, that’s it for Day #2 of the Tsitsikamma Trail. Stay tuned for Day #3!
When looking at rocks here in South Africa, geologists (and other outdoor adventurers) often encounter animals that live amongst the rocks. One of the most common animals which they encounter is the dassie or rock hyrax, an adorable creature that lives in groups in rock crevices. I’ve featured dassies before here and here on my “Monday Geology Picture” posts. This week, I wanted to share a picture of a dassie that my husband Jackie recently saw amongst some rocks in Hermanus. He was down in Hermanus a couple of weeks ago to go whale watching and attend a flower show with his mother. While walking around the town, Jackie and my mother-in-law spotted some dassies scurrying amongst the rocks. Jackie took the above picture of one dassie that wandered fairly close. It’s a cute little dassie, isn’t it?
What sorts of critters do you encounter amongst the rocks?
A couple of weeks ago, I went on a backpacking trip with my husband Jackie and five of our friends. We drove from our home in Cape Town, South Africa about seven hours down the coast to the Garden Route National Park. We went to hike the Tsitsikamma Trail, a 6 day, 60 km long trail that winds its way through the beautiful Tsitsikamma Mountains, which contain areas of indigenous afromontane forest and mountain fynbos. Fynbos is a type (a floral kingdom, in fact!) of shrubland or heathland vegetation that is found only in the southwestern part of South Africa. Fynbos is known for its high biodiversity and for its large numbers of endemic plants– that is, plants that are found nowhere else in the world. The Tsitsikamma Trail also meanders past a beautiful beach on the Indian Ocean, amongst impressive exposures of Table Mountain sandstones, and across many beautiful rivers and streams, which are either clear or a rusty red color. The word Tsitsikamma comes from the Khoekhoe language and means “clear water” or, possibly, “place of much water” or “waters begin”.
Jackie, our friends, and I started hiking the Tsitsikamma Trail on Thursday, September 19th and completed the first four days of the hike, finishing on Sunday, September 22nd. We didn’t fail to complete the entire hike– we actually planned to do just four days of the hike. We decided to do just four days primarily because our vacation time was limited. I guess we were also a little worried about our fitness level! The hike was physically challenging, but all seven of us managed to keep up a fairly good pace, even while carrying heavy backpacks! After the hike, I was quite sore for a couple of days. However, the soreness was well worth it. The Tsitsikamma Mountains are full of magical places, and it was wonderful to spend four days re-connecting with the natural world, my smartphone turned off and my emails ignored.
The trail is very well maintained and organized. Along the trail, there are five huts where hikers can stay overnight. The huts are very nice with a sleeping area, a lapa (a covered cooking / fireplace area), flush toilets, running water, and showers. There is no electricity, but kettles can be used to heat water for hot showers. The huts (with the exception of Kalander Hut, which has limited service because the road to the hut recently washed away) are stocked with firewood and other supplies. The cost for using the huts is R70 (a little less than US $10) per person per night. The huts are regularly checked on and maintained by forest rangers, who also keep an eye on all the hiking groups. Many hikers carry their own gear (food, extra clothes, water, sleeping bags, etc.) in large backpacks. That’s the option that our group chose. However, hikers who want a more leisurely hiking experience can pay to have their gear portaged between huts and can just hike with day packs. Hikers don’t have to pack in too much (heavy!) water since there is plenty of fresh water along the trail. The huts all have running water, and there are many streams along the trail. It is safe to drink the water at most huts and from most streams. As a precaution, I did treat my water with sterilization tablets. However, many of my South African friends drank the water directly and suffered no ill effects. In any case, you only need to carry enough water for a day or part of a day.
Over four posts, I would like to share some pictures and information from our Tsitsikamma Trail hike. I will devote one post to every day of the hike.
Here is the hiking schedule we followed:
Day #1: Leave Cape Town early and drive 7 hours to the start of the hike in Nature’s Valley. Shuttle one car to the Lottering Plantation. Hike 3.6 km from Nature’s Valley to Kalander Hut.
Day #2: Hike approximately 17 km (note that the map below is outdated and that the trail has been re-routed and is now significantly longer) from Kalander Hut to Blaauwkrans (or Bloukrantz) Hut.
Day #3: Hike 13.4 km from Blauuwkrans Hut to Keurbos Hut.
Day #4: Hike 11.5 km along the “escape route” from Keurbos Hut to Lottering Plantation. Drive 7 hours back to Cape Town.
After four days of hiking and driving, we were fairly exhausted for work on Monday morning. Fortunately, the Tuesday was a public holiday (Heritage Day) in South Africa, so we only had to work one day before we had a day to rest.
Here are some maps showing the location of the Tsitsikamma Trail:
Google map showing the approximate location of the Garden Route National Park (B) relative to Cape Town (A). Click to enlarge.A map of the Tsitsikamma Trail.Click to enlarge.
Today, I’ll be sharing some pictures from the first day of our hike. The first day was a short hike to the Kalander Hut, which is located close to the beach. When we arrived at the hut, it was nearly dark. So, we visited the beach very quickly then prepared dinner. We visited the beach again early the next morning before we started on our long hike to Blaauwkrans Hut.
Jackie and I at the start of the hike. Jackie carried in firewood and beer for the first night. Fortunately, we only had to hike 3.6 km the first day!There is a jeep track leading to Kalander Hut, but it has collapsed / washed out at this river. However, hikers can still make it through to the hut! We took off our shoes and waded through the water, which was nearly to my knees at its deepest.Jackie in front of Kalander Hut.The beach near the Kalander Hut. The trench was dug (by park rangers with a backhoe) the night before to alleviate inland flooding. By morning, there was a swift river running through the trench!Swiftly flowing waters in the trench.Cliff near the beach.Informational signs on the beach, perched far above high tide and rouge waves.A close-up of some beach rocks.Beach flowers.The hiking group on the beach, wearing various shades of rain gear.
A lovely view on a lovely wine farm on a lovely day.
Yesterday my husband and I joined our good friends Patrick and Nia for lunch at the renowned Terroir Restaurant located on the Kleine Zalze wine farm in beautiful Stellenbosch, South Africa. The food was delicious, and we also enjoyed stunning views of the Cape Fold Belt, such as the view in this week’s “Monday Geology Picture.”
Speaking of Patrick and Nia, they’ve kindly sent through some pictures from their recent vacation in Greece. I’m looking forward to sharing some of those pictures with you here as part of future “Monday Geology Picture” posts. You may remember that last year I shared some geological pictures from Patrick and Nia’s 2012 vacation to the Seychelles, where one can see, among other things, Gondwana granites.
Continuing with my recent South Africa theme for the “Monday Geology Picture” posts, here are a few views from the Cape Fold Belt. These pictures were all taken in late June 2013. Enjoy!
Approaching the Cape Fold Belt from the Cape Town side. The mountains are pink the late afternoon light.Another view of the Cape Fold Belt.Beautiful sandstone mountains.The toll booth for the tunnel that goes through the mountains. There are also two beautiful passes over the mountains, but the tunnel is quicker and easier– and less stressful for those scared of heights!Entering the tunnel.Sunset, looking back towards Cape Town.
Snow way on the top of mountains in South Africa’s Cape Fold Belt, June 2013. Click to enlarge the picture for a better view of the snow.
Here’s something you don’t see every day: snow in South Africa! In late June my husband and I drove from Cape Town to Robertson, South Africa to visit my husband’s grandmother. It had been fairly cold and rainy in Cape Town for much of June. As we were driving through the mountains of the Cape Fold Belt, we noticed that there was snow on the tops of some of the mountains. We snapped a couple of pictures, including the one above, as we drove past the snow-capped South African peaks.
Back in early April I traveled from my home in Cape Town, South Africa to the Eastern Cape, South Africa. I went for a long weekend to visit my husband in Grahamstown. My husband periodically spends several weeks in Grahamstown as he is working (part-time) on his masters degree in Exploration Geology at Rhodes University. I also visited the Eastern Cape back in December. I’m really enjoying exploring the Eastern Cape. I look forward to more visits there in the future and also to sharing some tidbits about my Eastern Cape travels with you here on Georneys. I’ll start by telling you about the giant pineapple. Yes, the giant pineapple.
Unfortunately, it poured down rain all weekend during my April visit to the Eastern Cape. However, my husband and I didn’t let the rain stop us from doing some sightseeing. On Saturday we drove from Grahamstown down to Port Alfred, and we stopped in the little agricultural town of Bathurst along the way.
Map showing the drive from Grahamstown to Port Alfred via Bathurst.
As we were driving along through Bathurst, I was quite surprised to hear my husband say, “Oh, look. There’s the giant pineapple.”
I said, “The what?” and then nearly drove off the road (not really, but my attention was diverted for a moment) when this giant pineapple came into view:
The Big Pineapple in Bathurst. Viewed from the road.
Of course, we had to stop and take a look at what is known as “The Big Pineapple”. Located on a pineapple farm and experimental station, The Big Pineapple is a 16.7 m tall pineapple-shaped building that has three floors. The first floor is a gift shop where you can buy pineapples, various pineapple food items (dried pineapples, jellies, chutneys, etc.), and all sorts of pineapple-themed souvenirs (t-shirts, bags, tea towels, figurines, etc.– we bought a pineapple-decorated sugar bowl). The second floor is a museum with some general information about pineapples and the history of pineapple farming in South Africa. The third floor has a TV showing a movie about pineapples and an observation deck, where you can enjoy the view, which includes fields of growing pineapples. On clear days, you can apparently see the Indian Ocean in the distance. On the cloudy day we visited, however, we couldn’t see beyond the closest fields.
The Bathurst pineapple building is actually a copy of the original “Big Pineapple” in Queensland, Australia. The Queensland pineapple building stands only 16 m tall– the Bathurst pineapple building is a slightly enlarged replica of the Queensland pineapple building. The Bathurst pineapple building was made larger so that Bathurst could claim that they have “the world’s biggest pineapple”.
Here are some more pictures of The Big Pineapple in Bathurst:
A closer view of The Big Pineapple in Bathurst.The Big Pineapple in Bathurst with a car for scale.The Big Pineapple in Bathurst with yours truly and an umbrella for scale.Bathurst hosted The International Pineapple Symposium back in 2005.Experimental pineapple growing is carried out in Bathurst.Informational sign on the second floor of The Big Pineapple in Bathurst.A sign about the building of The Big Pineapple in Bathurst.An old article about the history of pineapple growing in South Africa.A map showing the main areas where pineapples are grown.The view from the top of The Big Pineapple in Bathurst.Another view from the top of The Big Pineapple in Bathurst.
During my visit to The Big Pineapple in Bathurst, I learned two things. First, I learned that pineapples don’t grow in trees. I guess I never really thought about it too much, but I always assumed that pineapples grew in big trees, similar to the way coconuts grow in palm trees. Nope. Pineapples grow on the ground like this:
Pineapples growing on the ground in Bathurst.Another view of pineapples growing on the ground in Bathurst.
The second thing I learned as a result of my visit to The Big Pineapple in Bathurst is that pictures of a giant pineapple building really confuse Facebook’s facial recognition software:
Facebook thinks that every single hexagon on the The Big Pineapple is someone's face. Facebook wanted me to tag dozens of pineapple face friends!
My husband and I enjoyed our visit to the strange and wonderful Big Pineapple in Bathurst. We hope to visit again another time– hopefully on a day when it’s not pouring down rain. Next time we visit, I plan to bring a SpongeBob doll. Or perhaps a SpongeBob costume, if I can find one.
One of the impressive open pits at Mogolokwena Platinum Mine. Picture taken by Jackie Gauntlett.
Today’s Monday Geology Picture and description are courtesy of my husband Jackie Gauntlett, who is sharing another picture from his recent field trip as part of his masters degree in Exploration Geology at Rhodes University.
From Jackie:
Mogolokwena Platinum Mine is the largest platinum mine in the world and is situated on the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Complex in South Africa. This image shows one of four open pits currently being mined by Anglo Platinum on this mine. South Africa holds around 90% of the world’s platinum reserves, and it is envisioned that the Mogolokwena pits could one day extend almost 100 km in uninterrupted length. At the moment, Mogolokwena Mine has a life of mine of 130 years, a number that climbs by decades after every drilling program. At this rate the exploration team had better stop working so quickly as they’re likely to drill themselves out of a job! This mine truly represents a world class platinum deposit.
Georneys 