Looking for wild (and almost ferocious) animals near Chapmans Peak

While you read the following article why not listen to my e-baroque compositions – just click on the box below:

or if techno music is more your cup of tea here are my techno/ambient compositions:

I hope you find the information below interesting…please visit chrisduggleby.com again.

RISKKO's trek up Chapmans Peak looking for exotic wild flowers — RISKKO’s trek up Chapman’s Peak looking for exotic wild flowers

Apologies to regular readers for being a little late with the blog this week. Just before my last departure from the northern hemisphere I managed to pick up one of the more unpleasant bugs that was circulating so I had little choice but to spend the last couple of days in bed. My sympathy goes out to any readers who are suffering with these seasonal conditions and I hope you make a speedy and complete recovery.

Fortunately my faithful canine companion RISKKO was not under the weather and since we work as a team this week he offered to feature in the blog to give me a rest. So while I was feeling sorry for myself RISKKO took himself up one of our local mountains, Chapman’s Peak, in search of wild animals (and if you are looking for wild animals Africa is a good place to start).

View of Karbonkelberg Mountain at Hout Bay as seen from Chapmans Peak — View of Karbonkelberg Mountain at Hout Bay as seen from Chapman’s Peak

First of all let us set the scene. The pictures above and below show the amazing views that you can enjoy when you take the mountain path up Chapman’s Peak. I mentioned the Karbonkelberg mountain in my earlier blogs. I have a great view of this mountain from my balcony and it also serves as a picturesque back drop to Sandy Bay beach (the articles can be found here and here). Today I can share with you the view of the Karbunkelberg from the other side.

View of Little Lions Head Mountain as seen from Chapmans Peak with Hout Bay in the foreground — View of Little Lions Head Mountain as seen from Chapman’s Peak with Hout Bay in the foreground

Similarly the picture above is of the Little Lions Head Mountain from the opposite side. Chapman’s Peak features in the picture below and RISKKO’s adventure today takes him close to the top.

View of Chapmans Peak as seen from the mountain path leading to the top — View of Chapman’s Peak as seen from the mountain path leading to the top

One of the first things you notice as you climb the mountain path is the abundance of pretty butterflies like the one below.

Billy Butterfly who came to join RISKKO on his trek up Chapmans Peak (taken from the mountain path) — Billy Butterfly who came to join RISKKO on his trek up Chapman’s Peak (taken from the mountain path)

…..and of course this would not be Africa if we did not come across some trainee crocodiles and alligators…..

African Wild Animals - A trainee crocodile on the trek up Chapmans Peak — African Wild Animals – A trainee crocodile on the trek up Chapman’s Peak

An apprentice alligator from my series of 'almost ferocious African wild animals' from the Chapmans Peak path — An apprentice alligator from my series of ‘almost ferocious African wild animals’ from the Chapman’s Peak path

One of my (and RISKKO’s) favourite wild animals is the hairy caterpillar. Today we were not disappointed….

A vicious looking hairy caterpillar (another photo from my series of 'almost ferocious African wild animals') from the Chapmans Peak path — A vicious looking hairy caterpillar (another photo from my series of ‘almost ferocious African wild animals’) from the Chapman’s Peak path

RISKKO, with his very sensitive hearing, is of course able to communicate with the caterpillars and decided to make friends with one of them called Katy.

RISKKO invites hairy caterpillar Katy to be his friend

Caterpillars are normally very weary of little dogs because they know how much dogs like biting tails.

Hairy caterpillar Katy tells RISKKO she will only be his friend if he promises not to bite her tail

After a little hesitation the caterpillar agreed to become RISKKO’s friend and before long they were rubbing noses together.

RISKKO promises Katy to be gentle so they rub noses together to seal their friendship

The caterpillar quickly climbed onto RISKKO to join him on his expedition up the mountain.

Hairy caterpillar Katy climbs on board RISKKO to join him for the trek up Chapmans Peak — Hairy caterpillar Katy climbs on board RISKKO to join him for the trek up Chapman’s Peak

When you get towards the top of the mountain you can enjoy the distant views of the inland plains at the other side. This was a rather misty day but the views were still staggering. If you would like to see more detail simply click on any of my photographs to get a high definition version.

The view inland from Chapmans Peak, Cape Town, South Africa — The view inland from Chapman’s Peak, Cape Town, South Africa

Another of the features of this walk are the many and varied birds. Like the one below:

We spotted a pretty bird having a sing-song on the way down from Chapmans Peak — We spotted a pretty bird having a sing-song on the way down from Chapman’s Peak

Of course any walk in the South African countryside would not be complete without a reference to the fantastic vegetation.

The countryside around Chapmans Peak is an explosion of colourful vegetation — The countryside around Chapman’s Peak is an explosion of colourful vegetation

In my next blog I will focus on some of the exotic flowers that grow along this path. Regular readers may remember that some of my summer blogs focused on the flowers in the Bavarian mountains. So to wet your appetite and set a benchmark for next week’s African blog here are some of the pictures from Bavaria. If you would like to see more please use the links here, here and here.

Time now to go and snivel a bit more. I hope to see you next week (and of course I will bring some flowers),

Chris Duggleby