Up Trappies

Here are Sue and the Alpha Male - and us two Scots - and the Food Lady hiding behind the camera - waiting to meet Thea and, we thought, her entire extended family at Clovelly, but it turned out to be just Katrin ... and BORIS! What a welcome he gave me - I thought he was going to swallow me whole it was such a bouncy, vociferous hello. But it was just a Boris hello. He and Dougal ignored each other the whole way up and down which is amazing for Dougal - he must have been terrified that Boris would try such a demonstrative hello on him too. Dougal isn't into demonstrations of affection! Paul and Pauline were there too but Alice wasn't feeling well so she stayed behind. Here is Pauline with Boris,
and Paul and the Alpha Male with me on his heels, setting off up the hill with Clovelly in the background. Stopping for a drink of water in this cave. Dougal keeping a leery eye out for Boris! Signs of spring with the Painted Lady (Gladiolus debilis). Manic Dougal, and no prize for guessing whose shoes those are!
We looked for Alice's new house in Fishhoek, far below - marked with an arrow.

Waiting for stragglers with my Alpha Male.
Our tea spot on top - rusks and lots of other delicious things. Boris got a bit cross with me at tea for trying to schmooze some food out of his humans and soon told me where to go in very plain language. (But I don't think he was really cross because I think he quite likes me in his Boris way.) Boris with his humans, Katrin and Thea. (I am not sure if the Food Lady has the spelling correct, and spelling is certainly not my strong point. In fact, I don't know what my strong point is. Maybe my nose.)

Some fynbos ants were also having tea - there were lots of them scurrying around, all carrying little seeds to bury for a rainy day. They were as manic as Dougal hunting rodents. Sue, with the Hottentots Hollands looking all misty and Hoerikwaggo-ish in the distance. After tea we explored the rocks and caves a bit, and there was some ooh and aahing over this rare, endemic aloe, the Peninsula Rambling Aloe (Aloe commixta). The Alpha Male had his camera too and snapped the Food Lady, very artistically, through this cave. Boris forgave me for invading his space, but Dougal and I kept a respectful distance. Here he is guarding Katrin and making sure she doesn't tumble down into Kalk Bay below.Then we turned round and set off back down Trappieslop, past a few of these smelly Green Satyr Orchids (also known as Soet trewwas) Satyrium odorum. The two spurs on the flowers look like the horns of a satyr, a half man-half goat creature that thankfully, we have never come across on our walkies. We also saw lots of these False Slugwort (Dischisma ciliatum) flowers - a rather ugly name for a pretty snapdragon flower. We have never seen any snapdragons either. But Boris snapping at me at tea was pretty exciting! I don't think I would like a snapdragon but a snapBoris was ok. I hope he comes again soon.

The Route.