Wednesday 27 January 2016

A welcome cold front in summer

A surprise swept overhead today in the form of an unexpected cold front, bringing welcome rain to dampen the scorched and bare mountains without saturating and causing further damage through mudslides as has happened in the past. It's been just perfect.
A big swell is expected to reach the Cape by tomorrow, making Dungeons the place to be if you are an intrepid big wave surfer. For us lesser mortals, we'll just enjoy the coverage on the tv if there is any action, and admire the pounding surf off the rocks at Kommetjie. As I write, the thunderous roar from the Kom is more wintry than midsummer, a reminder of the fickleness of our weather, which can cover all four seasons in a day, and the temperatures have plummeted by about 10 degrees Celsius.
I don't know if the leeward side of the Peninsula saw rain today. Driving from the Constantia valley, which was bathed in sunshine, over Ou Kaapse Weg after a jaunt to the Waterfront (more sunshine), it was apparent that the windward side was completely under dark clouds and moderate rain, a total contrast split by the mountain peaks. The views as always were spectacular, with light and shadow dappling the landscape and even the roads seeming clean and fresh after a good wash down.
Within days we will see the difference in our gardens as the grass and shrubs revive - somehow the rain gives much better results than municipal water from the tap - nature knows best!

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