Wednesday 29 June 2011

24 hour bivvy challenge

The rules are simple, perhaps more of a guideline for this challenge. They are as follows:
- you start and finish where you live.
- It has to be a circular route.
- The distance should be 40km -50km or a distance that is beyond your comfort zone.
- A swim/dip/ shower is mandatory.
- You should sleep outdoors, under the stars

 I included in my version, a good bottle of red to ensure the beast of burden works extra hard. The nagging thought that the only difference between homo erectus and homo sapiens being our ability to produce a decent bottle of wine, ensuring that my excursion into the wild stays relatively civil.

My challenge was fraught with dangers, dodging Cape Town/Mowbray/Wynberg mini taxi's and artery clogging KFC'S. My walk started in Green Point, proceeding via Main Road to Constantia Neck. From there I made my way following various plantation roads to where they joined up with the contour path, high above Kirstenbosch.

At this point I should perhaps add that because of my ever present mantra...  " how hard can it be..." it became apparent early on that my initial plan to walk most of the total distance on the first day was not such a good idea. I blame my mother.With that off my chest, I can share that after a few blisters, seriously stuffed legs and no sense of humour I chose Newlands Forest to be the place where I lay my head. Wine would never taste that good ever again!

The rock I chose for a bed ended up being hard. No surprises there. No human could sleep for more than a few hours without losing complete feeling in their arms/legs/organs. Needless to say I did not sleep in late, ensuring I was well on my way by sunrise.
With only a few hours of walking on day two laying ahead, it was hard not to smile as every turn of the path blessed me with the beauty of Cape Town.

 My challenge ended up being a mixed bag of emotions. I am very happy to share that the walk was world class in its beauty but rather taxing on the legs...Pack your bags, head out, dont plan too much...you' ll have a great time! Trust me.



Harbour Tower



Bo Kaap Mosque






Fan Walk



Fan Walk




Long Street




Grand Parade




East/West/North
 





Woodstock Side Street




Dog to go



Woodstock Main Road




Woodstock Main Road


Saturday morning trim





Kirstenbosch










 


Contour Path




Highlight of the day





Supper Time




Bed for the eve






Above Rhodes Memorial






Reward





Cape Town Harbour






Walmer Estate





Tuesday 14 June 2011

Long Street 365.25 June2011


Long Street in Cape Town city centre is one of the city's most popular destination areas. It has a great mix of shops in addition to bookshops, restaurants, bars and lots more. The various businesses operate from early mornings till very late affording the street a great vibe and mix of people.
By posting a picture daily I am hoping to capture the feel of Long Street throughout the year as seasons/moods/people change. The pictures are taken by people working in Long Street and not professional photographers, hoping to capture and to share what makes us love our street. 
             
    


30 June: Long live lamp posts 
for they bring strong messages such as these to all

                 29 June: Long St,one-way traffic

                        28 June: Lunch time

27 June: Soccer World Cup Fever...one year later

26 June: Going green

 25 June: Peekaboo

24 June: Many stories to be told

23 June: Serious theatre vs theatre sports?

22 June: Stars in the sky


21 June: Dignity bites the dust when hunger settles in.
20 June: Off to work


19 June: A place where new lovers meet . . .


18 June: Silent seductress

17 June: Cold and wet

 16 June: Night spot at dusk
2010: Street children wearing Hessian bags























                   9 July:click your heels