A stroll in the sea air
As summer refuses to yield completely to autumn, the perfect place to enjoy these milder days is on the trails that criss-cross the plateau at Cape Point Nature Reserve. Just such a day was Tuesday, and our little hiking group set off from Gifkommetjie on a split decision – a few of us who couldn’t contemplate the very steep descent and later ascent on the Hoek-van-Bobbejaan trail and so chose the ridge trail, and the rest who were more robust and took the strenuous route. It was without any sense of remorse that we watched them toiling down to the milkwood forest on the winding path, and were glad of the breeze that tempered the warmth of the sun on the top of the cliffs. With expansive views across the Peninsula peaks with Table Mountain in the hazy distance, there was no shortage of nature’s bounty as we stopped frequently to take it all in.
Tiny lachenalias – leaves barely 1cm across and bravely displaying a single tube rather than the usual spike – were scattered liberally across the landscape. The only other splash of red was the lovely erica mammosa, as this time of year is the least showy season for the fynbos. Serruria villosa is abundant, but its subdued dusky yellow blooms simply provide patches of lighter vegetation among the greys and greens – a closer look reveals the intricate beauty of this species. There is much to see if one bends down for closer examination of the fynbos, so called because of its minute size.
The only wildlife in evidence was the Cape Girdled Lizard, that abundant spiny black lizard that lounges on top of every boulder you see. We shared their enthusiasm for such a pastime and lounged for a while on some conveniently sculpted rock formations to enjoy the sunshine and a biscuit or two with our coffee. From time to time we peered over the edge of the ridge to locate our more energetic companions, and at long last we saw a line of figures snaking across the lower reaches, looking for all intents and purposes as though they had missed the trail. Indeed, that was the case and we reached the cars quite some time ahead of them. They were a little battered from a forced bundu-bash (hiking term for ‘lost’) but in high spirits after a marvellous morning in nature.
This brings up the need to mention that little or no maintenance takes place in our beloved national parks, and the trails are either poorly marked or not at all (sometimes as a result of wildfires where signage has burned) and nowhere is this more evident on the plateau at Cape Point, where even a simple hike to Sirkelsvlei can result in several circles of our own as we endeavour to locate any kind of trail. Something will have to be done to restore these wild places to their former accessible glory. Let us hope we can find those willing to undertake it.
