Every Thursday morning I get up with the birds. I put my backpack on my back, lace my boots and make sure my camera battery is fully charged. Thursday is hiking day. It has been for the past year of my life and probably will be till the day that I have to accept that old age has caught up with me. I can't believe all the beauty that I've discovered in this past year has always been right here, under my nose. I'd like to share some of my experiences, as seen through my camera lens, with you. Who knows, you might be inspired to go out and buy yourself a pair of hiking boots as well...

January 2011 - Cape Town, South Africa







Friday, April 29, 2011

Porcupines, angels and castles...

Well, we went up Porcupine Ravine, climbed past a rock shaped like an angel and headed home via Kasteelspoort, so the heading for today's post is not that far fetched!

I'll remember this Thursday's climb as the first of our 'winter' climbs as the sun is definitely coming up later and at times I really was glad that I'd packed my fleece jacket! What a glorious day though. Not a climb for the fainthearted, the wet rocks certainly have to be negotiated with caution and we had to use a rope for support on at least one occasion.

I'm still trying to establish whether I prefer climbing up or down a mountain. Going up I feel pretty convinced that I prefer going down but based on how my knees were behaving on the climb down Kasteelspoort yesterday, I think it's fair to say that a level path is the only one I really love!

I'm happy to report that I survived last Saturday's Two Oceans Half Marathon, so perhaps it was to be expected that my knees would be a little sensitive on any hike I undertook this week. Nonetheless, I had a wonderful day - great company and wonderful scenery as usual, what more could one ask for?

Looking down at the suburbs below us I couldn't help but feel privileged beyond words. Breathing in the fresh mountain air, listening to the icy water running down the rockface and almost being able to touch the wisps of cloud rolling past us down below made me think that I couldn't possibly create a more perfect Thursday afternoon, even if I tried!





The famous little angel...




Our esteemed leader - Irene Vermeulen from 'Hiking is Fun'.






The rest of the 'team': Derrick, Reline, moi and Eddie.










                                            Photo: Irene Vermeulen

                                            Photo: Irene Vermeulen

3 comments:

  1. I wanna move to Cape Town and adopt the Mountain Goat mantle. :)
    Lotsaluv
    MAXMOM

    ReplyDelete
  2. This looks like a perfect spot to prepare yourself for the Spanish walk. Are the others going with you to Spain?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Margaret - A few of them are actually considering it at the moment! I really hope that happens!

    ReplyDelete

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