Laaiplek, Western Cape – A West Coast gem

Laaiplek fishing village Continue reading →

SA Navy salutes Day of Reconciliation

What a day of awesomeness, Firstly to have my grandson and his parents with us to view the Cannon firing and then to have a lunch at the beach with them… that was the first win! The Second was the Cannon – this 9″ RML cannon never fails to impress.

It was a windy day in Cape Town and on the hill in Simon’s Town where the Middle North Battery sits it was really pumping. The sea was churned up and the waves hitting the beach were very busy to say the least. There was a good crowd though and although I was positioned with my back to the wind to minimize the microphone noise I was able to hear the countdown and get the footage.

There was one big disappointment for us though, and this was before we arrived at the site of the Cannon. On the way to Simon’s Town we took a detour to Kommetjie. We were hoping to get some Samosas at a shop we quite often visit for just that purpose. Arriving there, I noticed that the parking was all taped off. To our utter dismay we found that the shop, in fact the larger portion of the entire building including what looked like a residence had burnt down recently. So that put paid to our plans for Samosa snacks. What a pity. Those Samosas were quite easily the best we have ever eaten. If anyone knows of these Samosas and who the supplier is I would be grateful…

Anyway back to our main adventure… despite the wind the reaction of the crowd was the same as it always is, complete exhilaration. The anticipation and build-up while the history of the gun is read, the moments of countdown before ignition, and the big bang with the marvelous plume of gunsmoke with the accompanying smell of cordite. You have to be there to experience it all. Words fail me…

Lots of thanks to SA Navy Museum and the Cannon Association of South Africa (CAOSA). Keep up the good work folks!

If you wish to find out more, the following links will take you to the appropriate Web Sites

SA Navy Museum: https://sanavymuseum.co.za/ or https://www.facebook.com/groups/279078652191754

CAOSA: https://caosa.org.za/ or https://www.facebook.com/groups/166064970145821

Here is the link to my video of the firing… https://youtu.be/6y85RQK28iQ

Enjoy the video… and thanks for watching.

Camping at Onrus

I don’t know how the seaside town of Onrus got it’s name… Onrus is an afrikaans word meaning “Unrest”. So far my searches on google haven’t resulted in an answer. I will research it though and will revisit this blog … Continue reading →

Don’t worry, be happy!

Soooo, lockdown level 1 is history and level III (adjusted) is back. But don’t worry, although lockdown is still with us, so is Hout Bay! YESSSS! You can go have fish & chips at Fish on the Rocks! We were … Continue reading →

Cape Town: drought is over…? YES

Yes INDEED! On September 6th I wrote about how the rainy season was being good to Cape Town and the Western Cape. At the time, the dams were reported as being at 86% capacity. Well today I am glad to report that we have reached 100% across all dams in the greater Cape Town area.

I decided to pack the wife, grandson and the old camera into the (also old) Toyota Condor to go and evaluate the situation 1st hand.

On the way there I pointed out to my wife, while secretly hoping I was wrong, that the dam would probably not be overflowing as this had been reported in the news last week already.

Imagine turning the corner and seeing… well I will let the photos & videos explain it better…

ENJOY!

Drought in Cape Town is over…?

The year 2018 was the peak of the drought we experienced. Capetonians were looking at the dam levels with much misgiving, We faced “Day Zero” – the day the City calculated we would officially be without water. The City of Cape Town drove us to the edge with Water Restrictions, higher pricing in usage bands and lots of media coverage but to good purpose because we avoided the dreaded “Day Zero” People drilled for ground water and installed rain water harvesting systems. It was near panic…

Now in 2020, nipping at the heels of Corona Virus, came our Cape Winter… It seemed like it was the coldest winter; the rain & snow seemed like it would never stop. I remarked to my wife that nature was making up for the harsh drought of the last few years.

Last week the City announced that the dams supplying the Western Cape were at 90% capacity, with the Clanwilliam dam overflowing with sluice gates wide open. The Theewaterskloof dam was at 86% and the rain had not yet stopped and snow was still falling on the mountains. Even our Table Mountain just last week had a snowfall which is very rare.

The following clip shows photographs taken in 2018 to show the Theewaterskloof dam at the peak of the drought, and what it looks like now in 2020.

The banner picture to this article is of Theewaterskloof dam taken in 2012.

Theewaterskloof Dam

My Garden, Lockdown and Cabin fever…

If only I was in a real cabin – in the wild outdoors… but noooo… I have the luxury of my home in a time of lockdown due to the pandemic. And the cabin fever has set in good and proper… Cabin fever definition is – extreme irritability and restlessness from living in isolation or a confined indoor area for a prolonged time. Ok I should not complain, other people have it much worse… I can at least move about in my garden, play with the dogs & do the normal everyday stuff like poop patrol…(we have 3 doggies so ample chance to do that). Anyway, I ventured out last night with my camera and armed only with the on board flash and macro lens I set myself a task to capture some images WITHOUT the use of an additional light to help focus and WITHOUT the added stability of a tripod and cable release.

The task I set myself, I soon found, was not easy. To obtain a fine focus sufficient for the macro lens was difficult. But I practiced with getting the breathing right – just like with a rifle. The result was some incredibly random images…. but I leave you to decide… enjoy the pics!

My Garden, Lockdown- and Macro- mania

Day 15 of Lockdown and 3 weeks longer to go… well I am running out of things to photograph. Fortunately my garden never disappoints. I took out my Macro lens last night and photographed my friend Harriett. She is a lovely lady that keeps all the nasties away. She lives on my property and she is welcome. She is a Hairy Field Spider, hence the name Harriett.

This afternoon, after becoming bored with sitting at the computer and really doing nothing at all, I picked up my camera with the macro lens still mounted and ventured out into my small acre. (The word “acre” being used with some poetic license – but I did say “small”.)

Anyway I discovered some joys of the garden I want to share with you a bit closer so to speak… from a spider to some immature veggies and a water drop in a succulent.

Enjoy the photos…

Corona Moon

Some images of our beautiful moon… I quite humbly submit to any accusations that I am moonstruck. Indeed who can resist such an awesome sight on a clear evening? Some low atmospheric mist in the distance caused a nice rainbow effect, which I call Corona Moon, on the light reflecting from my favourite orb. One of the moon shots was while it was still behind a tree next door to my property. I also made a very short time-lapse video of the moon moving across the sky. I hope you enjoy the pics.

COVID-19 and day 6 of lockdown

It is almost post-apocalyptic, the silence. No noise from aircraft, apart from an occasional EMS or military Helicopter, no trains, no buses, no cars. Nobody in the streets that the dogs can bark at. It is downright depressing… or rather it would be if our sense of humour had left us. Fortunately, though there are tons of memes, amusing video clips and comical stories flying around the internet to keep us sane. I don’t know if the video clip I am about to publish qualifies me as sane, but I will let you be the judge…

All I hope for is to put at least a smile on someone’s face. Perhaps a chuckle or two which will make me even happier! Here goes…

https://www.flickr.com/photos/66954226@N02/49723393811/in/dateposted-public/