Brittania Bay to Cape St Martin

Date: 13 May 2012

Location: Brittania Bay, up the West Coast

Walkers: Dorothy, Claudia, Michele, Taryn & Helen

*** Route plotted here ***

Our second day at Brittania Bay started drizzly and misty and stayed that way all day. However by late afternoon it brightened just enough to encourage us to wrap up warmly and venture out. Again we walked out onto the beach, but this time we walked in a westerly direction.



Grey, grey sea.



As we reached the rocks there were several clumps of the Euphorbia known as Medusa's Head.



It's a wacky plant!



Other coastal plants spotted hereabouts:



There was a lot of seaweed around. Stinky stuff.



Looking behind us, back to Brittania Bay.



The mist rolled back in and it was seriously gloomy.



Cormorants and herons sat on the rocks.



And other sea birds. There... then gone.



After a while we came across a large ugly compound with high security. Found out later is a perlemoen (abalone) farm.



And a bit further on we came to the Cape St Martin lighthouse.



On the flat land around there... tiny yellow flowers and clumps of bright red.



Not sure what the yellow one is. Shy little flowers.



The red one is a lachenalia, possibly L. rubida.



I particularly like their spotted leaves.



We continued to wander down the coast.



Plenty more lachenalia here too - with a sea view!



Rocks in the far distance.



And rock pools nearby.




We also saw more than one remains of a seal.



And beautiful iridescent perlemoen shells everywhere.



After a while it was time to wander home again, to the heater and some tea.


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Brittania Bay

Date: 12 May 2012

Location: Brittania Bay, up the West Coast

Walkers: Dorothy, Claudia, Michele, Taryn & Helen

*** Route plotted here ***

A group of us went up the West Coast for a girls' weekend away. After a delicious lunch at Paternoster we travelled on to Brittania Bay, to our holiday house right on the dunes. It was late afternoon, but there was just enough time for a quick walk on the beach.



Lots of these houses are holiday homes, most of them empty in winter.



It's a pretty little bay, with a wide flat beach, strewn with kelp.



I went down to the water's edge to feel the ocean... brr!



We'd walked east, direction Shelley Point. We were heading for the rocky outcrop at the end of the sand.





Beach flora spotted on the way:




Round rocks catching the late afternoon rays.



We walked just far enough to see Shelley Point round the corner.



And then we turned back. Such a pretty bay!



And a spectacular orange sunset.



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Lagoon Beach

Date: 18 March 2012

Location: Milnerton

Walkers: Michele & Helen



I was at the Lagoon Beach Hotel for a conference and when we finished in the afternoon Michele joined me for a walk on the beach. Although I often walk at Woodbridge Island nearby this was actually my first walk on this stretch of sand. First we walked towards Cape Town.



A short jetty about halfway along extends out into the sea. This gives one the perfect spot to take perfect iconic Table Mountain views.



Looking in the other direction we could see the Lagoon Beach suburb, hotel in the distance.



It's a very pleasant beach for walking: wide and flat.



One can't walk terribly far though, as one quickly reaches these barriers. When we got here we turned around and walked back up the beach.



In front of the hotel is the lagoon. Very popular spot on a sunny Sunday.



Across the channel we could see Woodbridge Island, the lighthouse just visible a little way further up.



The water was clean and clear, and not as cold as I expected.



We walked out as far as we could onto the sand bar.


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