Snake

It’s snake season, and we’ve seen a few down in Agulhas in the last couple of weeks. The one I saw this weekend was only a baby though, and with fishing net in hand (we were off to the beach), I did a quick catch and release.
Here’s the catch (as it were):

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…which shows the colour and beautiful patterning along this little Puff Adder’s back.

And here’s the release bit.

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I’d love to have got some proper close up shots, but even though this little guy was only ±30cm long, he could still pack a punch. Sometimes, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

Especially when you are 50km from the nearest hospital.

More weekend photos (from camera and phone) here.

An astonishing sunset

Down in Cape Agulhas for the long weekend, myself and one other would-be ‘togger legged it down to the beachfront as the most incredible sunset began to develop. Despite living the majority of my life in the UK, I have seen quite a few sunsets before, but I can’t recall one that topped this:

Bigger on black here.

No enhancement required – it was breathtaking.

Also good today: Brandfontein beach. Far from the madding crowd – far, actually, from everywhere – an amazing walk along the beach with the kids.We had the place to ourselves, which made it even more special.
Much fun, many photos. All popped into the now bulging June Things Flickr album/set. Go and see.

Abandon Trip

It’s not gone well.
We were forced to abandon our weekend away half way through by a combination of horrible weather and no electricity.
Either one of these would be bearable on its own, but together, and with the option of Cape Town not too far away, it was sadly a no-brainer.

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Games by firelight

We were all kept awake by the beagle who was (understandably, to be fair) kept awake by the storm which lashed Agulhas overnight. Luckily, the journey back to the Mother City was easy and traffic-free – tempers may have become frayed otherwise. We’re all knackered.

The electricity supply had still not been restored when we left, meaning 24 hours without power (and counting). All the stuff in the freezer was ruined and had to be thrown out.
But these things happen and – as I’ve said before – it’s the way you react to them that makes the difference. That explains why I’m not hugely impressed with the Cape Agulhas Municipality who also kept us in the dark (haha) over their efforts to sort things out.

Panoramae

We’re chilling out by the coast and there are important things to do like walking on the beach and cooking meat on the braai so blogging is always going to take a bit of a back seat.

Still, you need your fix and so here is not one, but two quota panoramae! [cue gasps of astonishment from the expectant crowd]

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The first one is from our journey down here last night. Some nameless dirt road just north of Napier where stopped to give Colin a comfort break and to take photos of the sun setting over the Southern Cape farmland.

The second is from the beach near Suiderstrand, this time walking Colin until it broke and needed to be carried home.

I suppose that if there is one thing to be said for having a dog, it’s that you get the opportunity to take photos like these, when otherwise, you’d probably be in a pub somewhere, enjoying a nice drink and some good laughs.

Hmm.