Knysna, Storms River
What if I told you to jump off a bridge? Would you do it? What if you had to pay money to do it? That is even more insane - right? Would you do it? That is exactly what 23 of our students did our first day on the trip to Cape Town near Storms River. They even claimed to have enjoyed it! Adrenalin rushes come at a high price at about R550 or just under a hundred dollars not counting the cost of the DVD of your final moments before, during and after the fall. It recorded that fateful moment just before you leap into space or were you pushed… I am certain the devil him/herself didn’t get that many opportunities to consider her/his descent as a fallen angel. It is the highest (216 m or approximately 642 feet) bungee jump in the world at the Bloukrans River Bridge which is just west of Storms River. I guess that means that you have more time to think about the course of your life so far as you fall into the canyon below. Now I know that the thick rubber band seems relatively safe or at least any fatalities seem to be unreported but I fail to see the fun. NO I am not getting old! It is just that over the course of a couple of years, so to speak, I have learned that falling usually has unpleasant consequences and is therefore to be avoided. [I am featuring no pictures of this event. It is too gruesome! (I am sure that there are some pictures on the student blogs if you can stand.)
This is how Norma, three students and I avoided the fall by getting dropped off at the Tree Canopy slide, really zip lines between platforms on trees while the rest of the group went on their merry way to jump. If you have never done a zip line before, it can be scary but at least you are not free falling and you have time to examine some great trees that grow along the coast near Knysna such as yellowwood, stink wood and others. We saw a Knysna Lourie (I have found some differences in how to spell Lorie) which is quite colorful especially when it flies. Here is a link to a site to give you a better view. [http://alexanderbeutel.tripod.com/world_of_birds/index.album/knysna-lorie?i=3] We have found some variability with how well it displays on systems. I hope it shows well on your system.
This is how Norma, three students and I avoided the fall by getting dropped off at the Tree Canopy slide, really zip lines between platforms on trees while the rest of the group went on their merry way to jump. If you have never done a zip line before, it can be scary but at least you are not free falling and you have time to examine some great trees that grow along the coast near Knysna such as yellowwood, stink wood and others. We saw a Knysna Lourie (I have found some differences in how to spell Lorie) which is quite colorful especially when it flies. Here is a link to a site to give you a better view. [http://alexanderbeutel.tripod.com/world_of_birds/index.album/knysna-lorie?i=3] We have found some variability with how well it displays on systems. I hope it shows well on your system.
The last picture of the three is the intrepid five some who went on the canopy tour.. It was very interesting and lasted longer than the bungee jump.
Jessica and Todd stopped at Storms River and talked about how pretty the area was so we were pleased when Alan Sparg, our tour director, put it on the schedule as a stop.
This is a picture of the Storms River Canyon. The walls are nearly vertical with some vegetation on them but bare in others. There was a cave in at one point but I do not have a great picture of it so it will not be included at this time. There are a number of areas where the rivers have cut very narrow canyons into the rocks. It is a beautiful area. The rocks on the coast are really great.
This view is across the Knysna bay toward the heads or cliffs that guard the entrance to the bay. We took an evening cruise out on the bay but could not go into the gap because the tide was running out and every so often you would see a large swell rise up and break in that area. It is very dangerous. Fisherman loose their lives every so often because they need to go out to work and don't make it back. It is such a pretty area that is rapidly growing so consequently one that is under a lot of pressure to development. Their problem of destroying the area that people want to live in looks like what we do back in the U.S.The downtown harbor is lovely but developed. Just by chance they were having the national water polo contest, for the more mature fellas, in the harbor while we were there. There are a lot of different contest that demand athletics skills and endurance in S.A. While we are gone the S.A. Ironman contest was going on at Hobie beach practically in front of us. There are a lot of people staying very fit.
We stayed at a caravan park in Knysna, which had cabins such as the one on the right but others were in small trailers that had a room permanently built on to them - unusual. At least at this point it seems unusual. We had a view of the bay from the front of this cabin, from which I took the picture of the Knysna Heads. I now will show the next picture because in a way it epitomizes the contrast in S.A. The fence topped with the barbed wire. I will take time in another blog to talk about this as a feature of S.A. but also in many third world countries.
We will complete the rest of the trip to Cape Town in the next blog but Post 8b. Until then we hope you are all well.
B & N
