New Year Scottie Walk

Today was the first Scottie Walk of 2015 at Dolphin Beach, Milnerton.

It was the most beautiful morning.

Some of the Scotties were not so happy to see each other,

but mostly we were quite pleased to be together again and welcomed some of the new puppies like this youngster, Stoffel, who is only 3 months old.

Lad was having so much fun he sometimes didn't know which way to turn there was so much to do...

As usual, there were Scotties, and honorary Scotties like elegant Zahra with her mom Tania,

and even a little Westie called Fingal who had never been to the beach before as he came from Pretoria but he really enjoyed surfing in the cool waves.

Me putting my best foot forward.

Everyone had a spring in their step.

It was a perfect day - no wind and not too hot.

My friend Mila and her little brother MacGuyver.

Snoekie was worried that all the other Scotties wanted to steal her mom away so she had some defending to do.

This is my friend Fergus.

And one of my favourite humans Michele who always gives me a little treat or two.

Group photo.

Me showing Stoffel how to sneak in a bit of kelp before the humans notice.

Laddie made friends with these little boys - but then he made friends with everyone. Such a busy boy.

All in all it was a really lovely walk - thanks to Michele and Estea (walking together second from the left) who organise it all.

Soon it was time to go home. Here is Mac waiting for all the talking to finish. 

Sandwitches and firelilies

Today Thea arrived in a fabulously trendy beetle as she had lost her car somewhere in Pondoland when she got bitten by a spider. Well that's the part I heard.

We met Alice and Maddie and walked up towards Spitskop, stopping often to admire the view/check for lizards and baboons (depending on whether you were a human or a dog)

and photograph the flowers. These are Red Rock-heaths (Erica nevillei). According to the Red List of South African Plants the Red rock-heath is Rare as it is only found on rocky slopes on the Cape Peninsula and NOWHERE else in the whole wide world.

There had recently been a fire here (see below) and we were intrigued to see what was growing in the burned area.

This is Alice's photo of the Spitskop fire that happened in early January.

We saw one or two of these little Firelilies (Cyrtanthus ventricosus) coming out of the blackened earth, then, suddenly,

there were lots and lots, everywhere. Patches of bright pink in the black. Everyone was exclaiming and photographing.

Even Maddie was proud to find one.

Then we had tea and there was more exclaiming over the "sandwitches" - but I didn't see any witches, sand or otherwise. But we did have some delicious biscuits and a piece of dry sausage.

There was a good view over - and good smells (perhaps the elusive sandwitches?) wafting up from - the Cape Point Vineyards and beyond to the sea.

Spitskop tea shot - the Alph, me, Thea, Alice and Maddie. Laddie was hunting for sandwitches.

He thought he found one but it was a Mountain Pride butterfly come to pollinate the firelilies.

We then walked back and over the other side of Spitskop into Silvermine.  The Dwarf Agapanthus (Agapanthus Africana) that only grows quite high up in the winter rainfall Cape mountains was flowering, 

and we found a large spider standing on its head in some leucadendrons. But no sandwitches.

Lovely colours - Erica multumbellifera and Common Dandelions (Taraxacum officinale),  

and lots of orange Table Mountain Watsonias (Watsonia tabularis) and some pale yellow Tontelblaar (Hermas villosa) flowers.

It was quite cool all of a sudden as some mist crept in over the Constantiaberg mountain,

but I was still really really keen to get to the dam to cool my hot little black body off. Laddie is already there, and I am halfway there.

At the dog area of the dam Laddie tried to make friends with a large Lavatory Door with a fancy floating toy, but he just ignored poor little Lad.

But when we got home later, young Alonso Notten-Zipplies came to play which made Laddie very happy.

Harvey also came,

and the Lad was in Heaven. Needless to say, that night we were both very tired and we had lots of noisy dreams about sand- and water-witches and boisterous sausage dogs. 

Back on the beat

Well, here we are again, walking in the deliciously cool and misty Silvermine fynbos with our slightly jet-lagged humans, Harvey, Paul and Pauline AND John who is STILL waiting for his passport to come so that he can go home to Elke and Paula in Germany. But we were happy to see him!

Summer is in full swing, and the Red Crassulas (Crassula coccinea) are about to flower.

An Orange-breasted Sunbird was feeling a bit too chilly to fly away and let the FL and Paul get close enough for a quick snap.

The mist was quite thick, but the Food Lady could still see the flowers,

especially all the bright orange Table Mountain Watsonias (Watsonia tabularis).

We passed some young boys on the way back up to the Fat Lady Shelter, and Harvey decided that they were a far better bet for a good walk, and ran after them till the Alph called him back in a stern voice. You can see them standing on the rock on the left, shouting happily but rather alarmingly for us.

We found a place to stop for tea, just above the Fat Lady Shelter, and here is Harvey getting a pep talk from the Alph about running off with strangers. (Photo from John.)

We have now christened our new tea spot the Fat Scottie Tea Rock. (Thanks John for the photo!) Rock Scottie ...

Real Scottie.

Tea shot: John, me, Harvey, Laddie, the Alph, Pauline and Paul,

and one from John with the Food Lady and Lad and me sharing a joke.

A little ant ran off with some crumbs from John's delicious rusks.

The mist started to lift - and behind John you can just see Long Beach. If John's passport does arrive on Monday, we will miss him sadly. It has been so lovely having him join in the walks.

Us with our fancy folding water bowl. (Photo from John).

Coming down the other side - and the mist blowing away. Starting to get hot.

We got back just as it started to get too hot for Scots - and our bestie bostie.