Blue cranes in the Overberg

Road trip stories.  I have many. Why?  Because it's a lot more exciting than just flying to your domestic destination.  So except for speed, what is the most exciting thing that could happen on an average flight? Chicken or Beef?

Road tripping to Cape Town with Shefetswe and Erenei, we were driving somewhere between Caledon and Bot River in the Overberg when my eye caught something in a field next to the road.  As I spotted it Shefetswe remarked, "Wow! Check the Blue Cranes." Well, I don't know which came first but I slammed on the brakes and shouted hold on... or shouted hold on and slammed on the breaks.  Shefetswe did remark afterwards that he just saw the gravel next to the road approach quickly.  I don't know what he was on about.  There was no skidding wheels and I had everything under control.   

The slight whiplash was well worth the sighting though.  About 100 Blue Cranes together in the field. Not something you get to see every day from where we come from.   

 

Why was this sighting to special for us?  The Blue Crane is South Africa's National Bird and is a threatened specie that is classified as Vulnerable.  This took place in September which is normally a time when flocks have broken up and breeding pairs dominate the choice areas.  This means that in Spring and Summer you normally see pairs or pairs with youngsters in open fields.  The flocks that remain together move to the fringes of the breeding areas and it must have been a flock like that which we saw..

A thousand years in the making -The Tsitsikamma Big Tree

One of the best know attractions in the Tsitsikamma is The Big Tree, one of the giants of the forest and thought to be up to 1000 years old.  The Garden Route from the Tsitsikamma through Knysna to Wilderness is famous for its indigenous forests and precious trees, amongst them the Yellowwood.  The Outeniqua Yellowwood tree is also South Africa's national tree which makes this particular Outeniqua Yellowwood even more special.

 

Getting to the Big Tree is very easy.  First of all there is a big parking area right next to the N2 highway where you can leave your car.  From here its an easy 10 minute walk into the forest on a boardwalk.  In total the walk is about 500 meters each way and a great way to get away from the rush of the main road and get closer to nature.  Walking along you get to see what the forest looks like inside and plaques name some of the trees you pass along the way.  Suddenly the queen of the forest looms up in front of and over you.  A magnificent tree that was spared the woodcutters' axes during the late 19th and early 20th century.

This tree stands 36,6 m tall and has a trunk circumference of 9m.  An information board next to the tree gives all the relevant stats.  The Big Tree may not be as tall as American Redwood trees or as wide as a Baobab, but she is magestic.  I really enjoy seeing people crawl around on the path to find the best angle to try and show her size.  I kinda had to do that to take this picture above.  From the tree there are two additional trails covering 2,6 km and 4,2 km for those who would like to get in touch with the forest a little bit more.  So next time you fly along the N2 through the Tsitsikamma, why not pull over and go and pay homage?

Outeniqua Yellowwood Tree at Natures Valley

I used to travel down the Garden Route quite often while I was still tour guiding but these days don't often get a chance to go further than the Tsitsikamma.  Driving down to Natures Valley on our recent Easter weekend Sho't Left in the area I had to stop at one of the view points on the way down on the Grootrivier Pass.  Its not a view point as much as it's a tree point.  The view is of a little valley next to the pass with a massive Outeniqua Yellowwood standing out above the rest of the forest.

 

The Outeniqua Yellowwood (Afrocarpus falcatus) is South Africa's national tree.  It is an evergreen conifer that often grows up to about 45 meters tall with some known to reach 60 meters.  Some of the largest individuals occur in the Knysna, Tsitsikamma and Amatole montane forests, where some specimens are over 1000 years old.  Outeniqua Yellowwoods are protected by law and can only be cut down with a special permit.

 

Just a couple of other facts courtesy of Wikipedia - The trunk can be 2 to 3 meters wide with a gray-brown to reddish and smooth but flaky bark.  The leaves are arranged in spirals on the branches.  They are small and narrow, up to 4.5 centimeters long by about 6 millimeters wide.  The yellowwood is a dioecious species, with male and female structures on separate plants. The male cone is brown with spiralling scales while the female cone has one scale bearing one seed between one and two centimeters long.

South Africa's National Anthem - Nkosi Sikelele' iAfrika

South Africa's National Anthem is a combination of Nkosi Sikelel' iAfrika ("Lord Bless Africa" in Xhosa) and the previous national anthem, Die Stem van Suid-Afrika ("The Call of South Africa" in Afrikaans).   The anthem as we sing it today has been in use since 1996 when it was released as the new national anthem of South Africa under the new constitution.  The anthem uses several of the official languages of South Africa.  The first two lines of the first stanza are sung in Xhosa and the last two in Zulu. The second stanza is sung in Sesotho with the third stanza consisting of a section of the original South African national anthem sung in Afrikaans. The fourth and final stanza is in English and is also based on Die Stem van Suid-Afrika.

Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika
Maluphakanyisw' uphondo lwayo,

Yizwa imithandazo yethu,

Nkosi sikelela, thina lusapho lwayo.

 

 Morena boloka setjhaba sa heso,
O fedise dintwa le matshwenyeho,
O se boloke, O se boloke setjhaba sa heso,
Setjhaba sa, South Afrika — South Afrika.

 

Uit die blou van onse hemel,

Uit die diepte van ons see,
Oor ons ewige gebergtes,
Waar die kranse antwoord gee,

 

Sounds the call to come together,

And united we shall stand,
Let us live and strive for freedom

In South Africa our land.

I am an African and proud of it

I am an African and I am proud to call myself an African.  Yes, my forefathers came from Europe a couple of hundred years ago, but my father, grand father, great grand father and before him was born in Africa.  As was I.  Does it mean that the fact that I am white means I'm not an African?  I beg to differ from anybody who would so say so.  I am a white African.  A proud African.  One with a passion for Africa and particularly South Africa.  On 8 May 1996, Thabo Mbeki, who was the then vice president of South Africa under the presidency of Nelson Mandela, did a speech called I am an African on the occasion of the passing of the new Constitution of South Africa.  Its a speech that talks to me and my being.  South Africa Tourism did a promotional video for the country a little while back and used the speech as base for it.  Now it speaks to me even more.    

King Protea - South Africa's National Flower

South Africa's national flower is the King Protea.  The King Protea (Protea cynaroides) is the biggest flowering protea specie and forms part of the Cape Floral Kingdom (Fynbos). Protea cynaroides is a species of protea in the huge family Proteaceae which comprises about 80 genera with about 1600 species.  The name of the plant family Proteaceae as well as the genus Protea, both to which Protea cynaroides belongs to, derive from the name of the Greek god Proteus, a deity that was able to change between many forms. This is an appropriate image, seeing as both the family and the genus are known for their astonishing variety and diversity of flowers and leaves. The King Protea grows in a harsh environment with dry, hot summers and wet, cold winters.  Several adaptions include tough, leathery leaves, which helps to prevent excessive loss of moisture, and a large taproot which penetrates deep into the soil to reach underground moisture.  Like many other proteas the King Protea is adapted to an environment in which bushfires are essential for reproduction and regeneration.  The King Protea is also the symbol of South Africa's national cricket team.  

Kings Protea in Van Stadens Wildflower Reserve

The Van Stadens Wildflower Reserve west of Port Elizabeth is one of the best and easiest accessible areas around to see proteas and other species in the Cape Floral Kingdom.  Flowers like the King Protea, South Africa's national flower, and the Pin Cushion Protea is found in abundance and when in flower is a real treat to see along one of the reserve's two trails.  I try to visit the reserve at least once or twice a year, even if its just for a quick stop while driving past on the N2, and there is always something to be seen and photographed.  Even better when I found this King Protea in such a position that I could show the Van Stadens Bridge in the background. 

King Protea

The King Protea (Protea cynaroides) probably the best know protea of all the different species and its very hard to not to see why.  The King Protea is also South Africa's National Flower and has pride of place on the chest of all sportsmen (and women) who represent the country.

The King Protea is one of the widest distributed of the Protea species and occur all the way from the Cederberg into the Eastern Cape east of Port Elizabeth.  The flowers grow on a woody shrub that normally grows about one meters high, but this can vary depending in the environment it grows in.

The King Protea is beautiful right from the time its a flower bud through to when it dries up.  The flower bud of the King Protea looks very similar to the globe artichoke vegetable.  The Latin name of the artichoke is Cynara scolymus and this lead to the botanist Linnaeus to give the species the name Protea cynaroides.

For more information on the King Protea or any other South African flowers, I find the PlantZAfrica website very useful.

King Protea

A post or two ago I posted a pic of a King Protea bud and a couple of people asked me what it will look like when in full bloom. This past Sunday we spent most of the day in Settlers Park (of which I will still post more pics) and I found a King Protea in full bloom. The King Protea is South Africa's national flower and is part of the Cape Floral Kingdom (Fynbos biome) which is a UNESCO World Heritage Natural Site. A nice big King Protea can be about the length of a standard ruler (30 centimetres) from side to side.

King Protea

Sticking to the Protea theme of yesterday, I decided post a pic of South Africa's national flower. This the the King Protea and is one of the most awesome flowers you'll ever see. This one I also photographed in the Van Stadens Wildflower Reserve west of Port Elizabeth