Alphen and Diep River Trails in the shade

Yesterday we walked the Alphen and Diep River Trails, taking advantage of the leafy shade of the forest to lessen the heat of high summer. There was a large turnout as people returned from holidays, Summer School and possibly because it didn't involve a steep mountain climb. These trails are very popular as they are dog friendly, generally safe, horses can be ridden there, the forest is just lovely and streams run through them. Paths criss-cross the streams and the sunny patches are few, so I could discard my hat most of the time and enjoy the gentle breeze.
The Alphen Trail winds gradually up from Constantia Main Road to Rhodes Drive and Cecilia Forest, where we followed the mountain bike track through an avenue of cork trees, their bark fascinatingly convoluted and very photogenic. A short stroll up into the forest took us to a pine clearing with a soft bed of pine needles. I took advantage of the cushioning to lie on my back and watch the birds in the branches above me and enjoy the play of sunlight on the branches high above. I tried to take photos of the birds but they were too fast and I would only have got their legs and bellies anyway.
We walked on as far as Southern Cross Drive and then cut across into the downhill Diep River Trail. The stream was flowing quite strongly and the dogs had a wonderful time running up and down in it, then climbing up the muddy banks to shake off on our legs! Not many birds or flowers were seen, but we were walking steadily so perhaps didn't stop to look often enough. The circular route is just over 9km and took around 3.5 hours, but there were no strenuous bits and it was really enjoyable. The nice thing was that you could leave the normal single file format of a hike and walk in groups, having a bit of a chat at times, which adds an extra dimension to hiking.
When I got back to the car, I found that I didn't have my glasses - I can see well enough without them to not really notice when I'm not wearing them - and of course I had left them under the pine trees in Cecilia Forest! I was really annoyed with myself, as I had to go back to fetch them. Fortunately, my fitbit recorded the entire hike and I was able to pinpoint the exact place where we had tea. Even better, I was able to drive up there and park only 50 metres away. I ran up through the forest, aware of being alone and of the absolute silence around me. It took a while to find them, but there they lay, in a patch of sunlight on a bed of pine needles. It occurred to me afterwards that it could very well have been the cause of a fire if the lenses had concentrated the sunlight too precisely. Imagine that!

Not a corpse. Enjoying the birds and sunlight in the branches.