June hikes to Slangkop, Cape Point and Myburghskloof

  

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

 in Cape Town, South Africa

 

Hiking among wildflowers

in the mountains

around Cape Town

 

Back to June. Start at Slangkop above Kommetjie. A grey day with shafts of sunlight.

 

Looking from Slangkop to Chapman's Peak 

Searsia glauca covered in soft yellow flowers (trifoliate leaves are a Searsia clue). Bulbine praemorsa with fluffy anthers and chunky succulent leaves. Creamy spike of Wurmbea hiemalis outlined in burgundy. Ornithoglossum viride camouflaged against the sand (said new G - is that all? Is that it!) Muraltia spinosa, up close it is Polygalaceae, with a spike defending the flowers.

 

Slangkop flowers in June

At Cape Point we first tracked down Hessea cinnamomea - again that touch of pink disappears against wet sand. The quiet day was lit by Gladiolus merianellus ranging from vivid scarlet down to a rich golden yellow, with a burbling stream crossing the Red Track.

 

Hessea and Gladiolus at Cape Point in June

Next to the wetland with protea family Mimetes hirtus above the road and swamp daisy Osmitopsis asteriscoides below the road.

 

Mimetes and Osmitopsis at Cape Point in June

Since the weather was unfriendly we explored the newly opened exhibition. Homo sapiens emerged in Africa. In the picture are 'the world's oldest containers, oldest paint compound and oldest evidence for chemistry'.

News clip

Iziko museums walk thru

Or my preference read about it

 

Homo sapiens emerged in Africa
Exhibition at Cape Point

Not ready to go home, we looped off to the lime kiln, dating back to about 1890. For some 'lime' flowers.

 

Lime kiln about 1890

In a pocket in the limestone, I found first an undescribed Crassula (still in press, NOT discovered by me). Then a Cape caraway Chamarea gracillima. Pink pea Indigofera brachystachya. White Chaenostoma hispidum.

 

Cape Point June flowers on lime

Jurg's hikers went down to the bottom of the waterfall (where we two returned for my July birthday - a little too far and steep for my Fynbos Ramblers - I didn't realise there was a serious waterfall tucked down out of sight)

 

Jurg at the bottom of Silvermine waterfall

Contour path to Myburgh's Kloof above Hout Bay. Lip fern with rolled back leaf margin Cheilanthes hastata. Black mound termites use white sand and produce their own black cement. Hypodontium moss. Sporangia on another moss.

 

Fern and moss at Myburghskloof

Russula mushrooms under the pines. Knowltonia capensis happy in shade. Velvety pink Erica hirtiflora bedraggled in the rain.

 

Myburghskloof mushrooms and flowers in June

Leaving you with the wide view down that shaded valley to the Hottentots Holland Mountains in the sun. Deepest darkest mid-winter and our flowers were hibernating.

 

Sweeping off to the Hottentots Holland Mountains

My hikes are listed on my page.

 

As I write it is snowing on our Cape mountains. 12C on our patio, where I am NOT!

 

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