Category: cape agulhas

For the birds

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One camera, one tripod, one bird table. And a remotely controlled shutter.

Here’s Mrs Cape Weaver laying into her husband, givin’ ‘im what for innit, after he came back late again from the ‘Bird in the Bush’ pub down the road.

It’s not good enuff, Barry! You’re neva ‘ome! Messin’ abart wiv all those chicks darn the pub! Some of them are ‘ardly out of the egg! Wot abart your family, Barry? Wot abart our children avian offspring? And where on erf did I get this terrible cockney accent from when I’m a weaver bird from Sarf Africa?

Note the world-weary expression of the male Cape Sparrow on the left. He’s seen it all before from his missus. But that was back in the bad old days when he too had an alcohol addiction problem. Thanks to an online (the line in question being the telephone wire to the house next door) support group, he’s been clean for over a year now, follows a healthy, seed-based diet (plenty of omega-3’s, proteins, fibre) and only drinks water. Sadly, it was all too late for his marriage, and Mrs Cape Sparrow moved in with a Speckled Mousebird [I have no idea how this would actually work] despite his (now fulfilled) promises to change.

Such is (bird) life in the Limestone Fynbos of Cape Agulhas.
Like a giant bush-based soap opera.

More bird-table antics and pics of the recent solar eclipse here.

Beer

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What’s your favourite beer? I did a post about the plethora of local microbreweries that have sprung up recently and the damage that their desire for individuality and uniqueness is doing to the taste of their product. I are not a fan of that beer.

But now there are two different, new beer products on the market.
Beer products that I had never heard of before:

I had to do some rudimentary research, and it seems that Graft Beer falls into three distinct types:

a) Beer which has taken an awful lot of hard work to create.
b) Corrupt beer corrupt practices used to secure illicit advantages or gains in politics or business, or
c) Beer which is applied to the skin after a burn injury to replace damage flesh and stimulate regrowth.

Daught Beer (also pronounced with a sharp, Yorkshire ‘a’) is foolish, ridiculous beer.
If you drink enough Daught Beer, you will also become foolish and ridiculous. In that way, Daught Beer is very much like every other sort of beer.

Both Graft Beer and Daught Beer are available from 11:00 til late at the Twisted Fork in L’Agulhas.

Droning on…

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Saturday was rather windy, but Sunday dawned so calm that the only limiting factor was battery life. I soon got a rotation system going: one in use, one cooling, one charging and I flew for literally hours.

There are lots of photos – and even a few videos – but they need some editing (flying coming along nicely, camerawork not so much just yet) and I’m not in an edity mood this evening. Anyway, this was chiefly about continuing up the steep learning curve and having a bit of fun in the wide open spaces.

Actually, I was going to try some serious cinematography, but I thought I’d give Sport Mode a go first. 72kph and 5000 metres later, the whole shooting videos thing seemed a better thing to do another day, because there was some serious laws of physics and engineering which needed testing.

Thresholds and limits pushed, I eventually, reluctantly, parked up for the day. But every bit of promise was realised – this is what I got it for – and I can’t wait to play some more.

Mavic to Agulhas

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It’s the weekend you’ve I’ve all been waiting for!

This weekend, I get to take the Mavic down to Cape Agulhas and fly around open fynbos, open beaches and other… open stuff.

When I first thought about buying a drone (I know, I know), it was with this in mind. Flying around urban Cape Town is fun, but I’m hoping that there will be nothing like the fresh air and the big skies of the Southernmost Tip of Africa.*

And my 3D printing contact has even come through with some superb battery covers and joystick supports. It’s all coming together so nicely.I are rather excited.
Photos and maybe even some video to follow.

Have a special weekend.

 

* note that you are not actually allowed to fly at the Southernmost Tip of Africa.