
River Magic
I think everybody in the tourism industry , especially those of us catering to the international traveller , suffered from some degree of despair symptoms as the covid induced travel bans just carried on and on.
Although I am known to be an irritatingly positive soul , this also hit me in the last couple of months when week after week bookings were cancelled with no end in sight.
Relief came in an unexpected way : after my son’s departure to Pretoria to pick up his normal life , the task of switching on the powerful pump at the river became mine , meaning walking down from the top of the valley to the river (approx. 1 km ) twice a week.
At first it was a schlepp and then I started seeing things with new eyes :
- The difference between the forest at the top of the valley and the almost rain forest at the river’s edge.
- Numerous species of different multi coloured butterflies fluttering around.
Different types and shapes of mammal scat which I have now learned could be porcupine , otter , bushpig , genet , civet etc - Porcupine quills scattered along the trail.
- The odd shy red duiker looking at me warily and then scurrying away.
- A spider wasp pulling a spider out of his hole and injecting him with paralysing venom .
- Antlions luring unsuspecting prey into their cone shaped traps.
And the list goes on and on and on…..
I have discovered a magical wonderland and have voluntarily increased my pump duties to every second day as I simply can’t get enough of it.
