Facing another hot and humid day we decided to wak down from the office to the Bulolo River where we hoped to find a picnic spot Tony and Maggie used to frequent when family visited. The
Watsonia densiflora were at their abundant best close to the office with several swathes of thousands of blooms towering above the grassland. Wht a pity so few people are aware of this reserve and its floral splendor..
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| Fields of Watsonia densiflora |
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| Watsonia densiflora |
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| And yet more Watsonia densiflora |
Along the path towards the gorge we came across a few
Exochaenium grande and
Asclepias praemorsa. We then started dropping down the steep grassy slope on the zig-zag path into the gorge, skirting a stream at the one end of a zig. Here we saw - to our surprise -
Syzygium pondoense in fruit, standing next to a flowering
Rhynchocalyx lawsonoides.
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| Exochaenium grande |
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| Asclepias praemorsa |
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| Syzygium pondoense |
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| Rhynchocalyx lawsonoides |
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| The descent into the Bulolo River gorge |
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| Heading down (Photo: Gail B-W) |
On the way down in a slightly damp area we found a small
Erica cubica flowering on a vertical rock face. Before long we entered the coolness of the forest and on another damp rock face found
Streptocarpus porphyrostachya. Once we reached to bottom of the gorge, we had a bit of a battle to find our way upstream to reach the river but what a pleasant sight when we emerged on the river bank to see the clear, tranquil water in front of us.
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| Erica cubica |
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| Streptocarpus porphyrostachys |
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| The clear water of the Bulolo river |
Scrambling over the rocks higher up the river, we found a small cluster of
Crocosmia aurea, and as we entered a forested section, there were numerous spikes of
Plectranthus hilliardiae displaying their long-tubed inflorescences in the deep shade. We then reached a place where a large tree had fallen over the river blocking the route further upstream so we retraced our steps to the last large pool we had encountered.
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| Crocosmia aurea |
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| Plectranthus hilliardiae |
It did not take us long to jump into the river to cool down. Along the side of the pool we found
Ludwigia octovalvis, Utricularia prehensilis and
Utricularia sandersonii enjoying the wet conditions. In a stream-side cleft we found an attractive new fern frond.
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| Ludwigia octovalvis |
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| A new fern frond unfolding |
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| Cooling off in the Bulolo (photo: Gail B-W) |
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| Air drying while enjoying lunch |
Once we had cooled down sufficiently we took advantage of the beautiful spot to have our lunch and drip-dry at the same time. Looking around us we noticed several of the Rare Crassula streyii flowering on the nearby cliff faces. There was a Hibiscus peduncularis bud on the point of opening.
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| Crassula streyi |
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| Hibiscus peduncularis |
Gathering our things we set off again on the arduous climb out of the gorge. On the way we found
Pseudoscolopia polyantha in flower, also bearing some fruits. Once back on the flatter grasslands at the top of the gorge we could enjoy the cooling breeze. Along the path we saw other flowers we missed on the way down like the single
Kniphofia parviflora hanging over the path.
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| Pseudoscolopia polyantha |
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| Kniphofia parviflora |
Almost back at the offices we found a Monsonia praemorsa, a Crotalaria lanceolata and a cluster of Sphenostylis marginata. A hot, but very satisfying jaunt into the gorge
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| Monsonia praemorsa |
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| Crotalaria lanceolata |
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| Sphenostylis marginata |
Participants: Anne S, Gail B-W, Graham G, Kate G, Maggie A, Mark G, Tracy T.
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