sammandjock: from the white sand dunes of De Hoop to southern right whales with their babies to the sculptural agricultural fields of the Overberg

so many beautiful, pastoral scenes in the Overberg

blue cranes in the farmland of the Overberg - they, at least, have benefitted from the pervasive agriculture there

proteas in the fynbos

Upon entering our thatched cottage at De Hoop, we were somewhat speechless. Here's why:

We saw lots of scenes like this with mother and calf, nursing, but these tantalizing glimpses were really just a tease. Now and then, one would breach, farther out, and there'd be a tremendous splash - I took so many photos, too late. Oh for a longer lens............in a small camera!

Jock watching whales

A pristine white dune at the start of the day

proteas in bloom - just a few of so many beautiful and fascinating fybos flowers

the astoundingly beautiful bay where the whales come to mate and have their babies, at De Hoop

our thatched cottage

The farmlands of the Overberg in southern South Africa, lands that our wildflower book calls "The Killing Fields", so named for the lack of native plants in this region - agriculture has expropriated almost all of the land here. Such a pity that a better balance couldn't be struck between farming and preservation of the unique South African indigenous flora and fauna.

The sacred ibis watched the tortoises, the one behind (male, we presume) repeatedly bumping into the one ahead (female, we presume). After awhile, he seemed to give up trying to figure out what they were up to and went on eating his lunch (we presume).