Four Fit Ladies

Last, LAST Sunday saw four fit ladies - Sue, Thea, Pauline and the Foodlady - and us two scotties toiling up Steenberg Peak in the heat. An enormous Baboon Spider, Harpactira baviana, was lying in wait on the path, but we didn't notice it luckily or Dougal might have tried to catch it because it was hairy like a rat. There were lots of flowers despite the heat for the Foodlady - including this lovely Golden Orchid, Disa cornuta that Sue spotted. Three fit ladies in the Garden of Eden. There were also lots of Watsonia borbonica, and this pretty pink parasitic plant called Harveya purpurea, the Yellow-throated Inkflower.

While we were having tea and crunchies in the Fit Lady shleter, we were joined by two strange humans with a huge mattress on their back who tried to climb upside down on the roof of the Fit Lady Shelter, then moved on saying that they would return once they had warmed up. We didn't wait for them, and walked on because we were well warmed up ......and even though the Foodlady told us there was Cape Snow all around, it sure wasn't cold snow like what you would find in Scotland! Here is Dougal in the Cape Snow Syncarpha vestita. You can just see Pauline in the background.

Luckily there were a few caves and cracks where we found some shade to cool down in. Here is Thea coming through a shady crack in the rocks. When we were almost home, we met another Scottie who could speak German, called Max, who joined us for a dip in the stream. Tails up!