Meandering in the mountains

Yesterday was one of those last-blast hot days of late summer that make you look forward to autumn. Our hike took us up into the mountains at Silvermine, where we walked in the mist on Tuesday and got a whole new perspective on our surroundings. By chance I noticed a tiny Erica at the side of the trail and stopped to take a photo of its unusual colouring, a pale almost white green, and shape I haven't seen before. Unfortunately I only had my cellphone and the photo is less than perfect, but research showed that it is Erica urna-viridis, endemic to that specific area on the Steenberg Plateau towards the Kalk Bay mountains, and considered rare. What a privilege to have observed it.

But back to yesterday...

The lightest of breezes wafted by as our large group ambled along the jeep track and the mood was companionable as the width of the track enabled everyone to catch up with those who have been away on holidays or recovering from ill health. Sometimes our hikes do not allow for much conversation due to the terrain, and that is also not a bad thing, as one of the joys of hiking is the immense silence of the mountains. We were soon overtaken by a much faster group who were heading for higher places, but we continued on our meander round the contours with no particular destination in mind, except our halfway coffee and snack stop! 

The track eventually narrowed and conversation waned as we admired the views down the Silvermine valley towards Kommetjie and Long Beach in front and the tops of the Table Mountain chain to the north. On the other side of the valley, the hum of traffic on the always busy Ou Kaapse Weg was a distraction from the peace as we were downwind, and you have to travel very far to lose the trappings of civilisation entirely. Despite the good rain recently, all the streams were dry. We could see runnels where the water had flowed rapidly downhill, but it will take a lot more rain before the dry earth has soaked up its fill and allow the streams to run again.

As the sun rose higher, the small areas of shade that we eagerly sought were chased away, and it was a relief to turn back into a breeze as we retraced our steps to complete our almost 7km walk. Another lovely morning in nature!