It was difficult to differentiate between the
sound of a fly and a bee, ticks hung on grass ready to spring like locusts
onto bare legs and mosquitos flew around like blood-thirsty helicopters.
One’s body turned red and reading or sun-glasses
could not be looked through as steam misted them over. It was like botanising in a sauna. Rucksacks were levered off shoulders to let
hot air escape the sweltering backs and wet cotton shirts. One was tempted to take off ones shoes to
prevent feet from melting and just walk on dry earth to the sound of crunching leaves
and grass. Even the Berkeya’s huge
umbrella leaves turned up exposing their white under-bellies.
Faces turned red and water ran low and then
turned to empty, with the only top-up being a fantasising thought of an
icy-cold back home.
We never ended up getting to the end of the
Mziki trail. Too much to see, a slow
pace simply because of observations and keen interest and then it was the heat,
it no longer was fun. We turned back
feeling melted and sought refuge in the shade wishing for a breeze and
ice-cream.
Dorothy was incredible, it was an absolute
honor to walk with this remarkable woman who showed resilience and
stamina. Simon had from the previous
night the song by Chumbawabma called Tubthumping which reminded him of Dorothy and
our day began and ended with this song that stuck like Viscum, “I get knocked down, but I get up again, You
are never gonna keep me down”.
We
returned home to the setting sun and had already began planning our day for a
week’s time.
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Plectranthus oertendahlii (Rare)
|
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Salacia kraussii
|
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| Salacia kraussii |
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| Salacia kraussii |
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| Salacia kraussii |
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| A black praying mantis eating a black ant. |
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| Zebra's cautiously and keenly watching. |
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| Sieroxylon inerme - White Milkwood |
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| Sieroxylon inerme - White Milkwood |
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| Sieroxylon inerme - White Milkwood |
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| I spy with my little eye something beginning with "S"? |
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| There's no escaping. |
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| Bulbine latifolius |
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| Peperomia retusa var. bachmanii |
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A creeper married to an Ochna.
 |
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| Angraecum pusilum |
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| Another rare gem. Tracy tentatively balancing on a rock in the harsh melting sun. |
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| Hyperacanthus amoenus - Doringkatjiepiering |
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Hypercanthus amoenus - Doringkatjiepiering
|
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| Simon waiting patiently under the Syzygium cordatum. He's a tree man, not a flower man. |
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Indigofera williamsonii
|
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| Tephrosia bachmanii in seed. |
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Tephrosia bachmanii in flower
|
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Stink horn mushrooms.
 | Tracy
|
|
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| Hibiscus penduncularis |
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| Monsonia praemorsa |
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| Dalechampia capensis |
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| Sphedamnocarpus pruriens subsp. galphimiifolius |
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| Sphedamnocarpus pruriens subsp. galphimifolius |
|
Sphedamnocarpus pruriens subsp. galphimifolius
|
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| Bersama swinnyi |
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| Ochna arborea sp. |
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| Helichrysum herbaceum - Monkey-tail everlasting |
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| Protorhus longifolia |
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| Clutia sp. |
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| Cryptocarya wyliei - Red-haired Wild-quince |
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| Streptocarpus haygarthii |
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| Memecylon bachmanii - Pondo Rose-apple |
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| Memecylon bachmanii - Pondo Rose-apple |
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| Memecylon natalense - Small leaved Rose-apple |
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| Schizoglossum bidens |
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| Schizoglossum bidens |
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| Gail's flavoured iced water in her Stanley flask - Heteropyxis natalensis - Lavender tree |
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Heteropyxis natalensis - Lavender tree - going in to iced water. Delicious.
|
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| Maytenus abbottii |
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| Maytenus abbottii |
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| Maytenus abbottii |
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| Polygala macowaniana asking for some rain. |
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| Searsia chirindensis - Red currant |
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| Searsia lucida |
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| Searsia lucida |
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| Loxostylis alata - Tarwood |
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| Asclepias praemorsa |
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Asclepias praemorsa
|
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| Erythroxylon pictum flower |
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Erythroxylon pictum fruit and flower
 | Shadow vein on Erythroxylon pictum
|
|
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| Shadow vein on Erythroxylon pictum |
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| Robsonodendron eucleiforme |
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Robsonodendron euleiforme
|
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| Plectranthus ciliatus |
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| Combretum krausii seed pods |
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| Putterlickia retrospinosa dried seed capule |
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| Putterlickia retrospinosa seed capsules |
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| Viscum sp. |
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| Viscum sp. |
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| Linum thunbergii - Wild Flax |
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| Linum thunbergii - Wild Flax |
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| "Leafing" no page unturned. |
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| Putterlickia verrucosa (Gail thought it looked a lot like scale.) |
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| Putterlickia verrucosa |
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| Putterlickia verrucosa |
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| Polygala refracta |
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| Polygala refracta |
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| Dodder sp. |
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| Dodder sp. |
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| Maytenus cordata |
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| Maytenus cordata |
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| Canthium van wykii - Pondo Turkey-berry |
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Canthium van wykii - Pondo Turkey-berry
|
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Canthium van wykii - Pondo Turkey-berry
|
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| A Kite-spider |
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| Sphenostylis marginata leaves |
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| Sphenostylis marginata |
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| Lauridia tetragona - Climbing Saffron |
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| Lauridia tetragona |
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| Grewia pondoesnis |
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| Grewia pondoesnis's new flush of leaves |
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| Grewia pondoensis |
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| Secamone alpini - Bobbejaantou |
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| Secamone alpini with seed capsules |
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| Canthium spinosum - Coastal Turkey-berry |
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Canthium spinosum - Coastal Turkey-berry
|
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Canthium spinosum - Coastal Turkey-berry
|
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| Leaf litter. The only litter there should be. |
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| Leaf litter, delicate hues of gold. |
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| Behnia reticulata - Izaza |
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| Tricalysia capensis var. capensis - Forest Jackal-coffee |
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Tricalysia capenis var. capensis - Forest Jackal-coffee
|
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Tricalysia capenis var. capensis - Forest Jackal-coffee. Mirror-mirror on the tree...
|
-
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| Peddiea Afriana - Poison olive |
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| Peddiea Afriana - Poison olive |
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| Cyphostemma hypoleucum - Double-barrel Grape |
 |
Pondoland C.R.E.W.
Gail, Simon, Dorothy and Tracy
“Trees are poems that the earth writes upon the sky.” — Kahlil Gibran |
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