Peter & Karen Pecksen

Tourist Day

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peterpecksen
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We decided to put on our tourist shoes and sign up for a tour this week. Generally we tend to stick around the neighbourhoods we are living in, but once in a while we branch out. We signed on with City Sightseeing (same people who do Hop on Hop off) for a day trip to Cape Point.

The tour took us into Table Mountain National Park at the southern most tip of Cape Point.
With two cruise ships in Cape Town and the regular flow of visitors it was fairly busy at the sights. But if you waited long enough you could get the obligatory sign photos. Listening to the crowds was interesting, as English was definitely the minority language.
From the top of Cape Point the next stop behind us is Antartica.
We did a beautiful walk from Cape Point to Cape of Good Hope. Along the way we were tempted to check out the water at Dias Beach but there is the disadvantage of tours. That disappointment was more than made up for by the excellent information provided by Paul, our guide.
We climbed to the top of the Cape of Good Hope which is the most South Eastern point of the African continent.
As we were leaving Table Mountain National Park we were treated to an unexpected sight. Four eland were hanging out near the roadway. The eland is the largest antelope in the world.
Most people on the bus were most excited for our last stop, which was the Boulder Beach Penguin Colony in Simon Town.
You quickly see why it is called the Boulder Beach Penguin Colony. The granite boulders make for a unique setting for the penguins. We also heard the reason these birds are also called Jack Ass Penguins. As we arrived we could hear this loud braying coming from the bushes. Apparently they make that sound when they are excited.
Apparently there are between 800 – 1000 African penguins here. Sadly, they are endangered and estimates are the wild ones will be gone in the next 10 – 12 years.
It was neat to be there while the penguins were sitting on their eggs. You can just see two under this one.
We had the opportunity to see the brutality of nature when this gull walked into the colony and calmly plucked an egg out of a nest that had just been vacated by a parent penguin. Watching the gull work on breaking into the egg was impressive if not heart breaking. It also helped to explain one of the reasons these penguins are endangered. They have no defense against gulls or other predators.
Another reason they are endangered is due to the increase in Fur Seals in the area. Seals are the primary predator of penguins here. The seal increase is due to the Great White Sharks leaving the area because Orcas have moved in and scared away the Great Whites. Nature is truly amazing how it is so intertwined.
All in all it was a fantastic day, made all the better by seeing these cute creatures.

Comments

One response to “Tourist Day”

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    Anonymous

    Looking good you 2! Love reading your ventures to one day I’ll try the same. Thanks for sharing. 😎

    Reply

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