Flowers, flowers and......

Next stop was the Nieuwoudtville Flower Reserve just outside the town on the Calvinia road where carpets of colour were the order of the day.

With so much to look at one tend to miss hidden gems such as these Moraea ciliata, another member of the iris family.

 

It's very easy to become blase until you notice other people wandering around open mouthed with wonder.

Also obvious is the difference between the pristine reserve and the neighbouring farm where the variety beyond the fence is reduced to a single species of senecio 

Was delighted to be serenaded by this large-billed lark who also appeared appreciative of the colourful surrounds.

In one corner of the reserve is a rocky hillock and on the way to the summit, I happened upon this magical mystery bloom which remains stubbornly unidentified.

The view from the top was slightly disappointing as the colours were not as readily apparent as when you are closer to them........

.....like this..........

............................or this.

The Hantam Botannical Garden beckoned where unless you were aware of them you might overlook things like the Blue Pride of Nieuwoudtville (hows this?) Geissorhiza splendidens, splendid indeed and limited to a tiny area around the village.

Or the Harlequin flower Sparaxis elegans, very elegant.......

.....................just look at the marvelous detail in the center.

There was an enormous area smothered salmon coloured Moraea miniata......

......another member of the iris family with tiny flowers.

Finally it was back to the B&B in Vanrhynsdorp which is close to this mighty buttress and an afternoon drive in the area..........................

.........................produced a whole array of different species.

A small group of Sparaxis bulbifera, so different from the Harlequin flower that it's hard to understand how they are related............................

................and clumps of lampranthus interspersed with daisies.

Next morning was a bit chilly and the Koue Bokkeveld was living up to it's name with the escarpment draped in cloud.

Decided to see what was along the road to Calvinia but as it's mostly farmland there wasn't much apart from this bi-coloured field.

Returning to the Nieuwoudtville environs led me to another species of babiana which has also resisted all attempts of identification ...................

.................................and a little patch of Cape Town blues.

Upon learning that the Beast would not be ready for another week, I had to scramble to find accommodation and ended up in Citrusdal for a few nights.

Here the flowers were mainly confined to fallow fields and were mostly...................

..................of the Ursinia family that is generally referred to as Namaqua daisies.

Due to an acute attack of "oldtimers" disease I ended up going all the way to Kamieskroon for a weekend where I planned to unload the bike and do the whole of the Namaqualand Reserve.  Sadly there was not not a single member of the human race anywhere near Arkoep, the farmhouse that I was staying in. So the bike remained on the bakkie and as all the roads were atrocious I ended up having a relaxing time op die plaas.

This is kokerboom or quiver tree country and I managed to find a large specimen fairly close by.  The hollowed out branches of Aloe dicotoma were used by the San to carry their deadly little arrows in days gone by, hence the common name.

There were flowers but again mostly confined to fields.

Near the house was this little wreath of vygies or carpobrotus if you prefer.

Did an Atlas card for the area around the house and ended up with a grand total of 14 species for the weekend, of which the most exciting was this larklike bunting!

The N7 skirts the little village of Kamieskroon, which in common with most other karoo dorps, features a massive church and very little else.

Not sure who Kamie was but the Kroon or crown part is after this koppie behind the village.

A vivid splash of pink beside the road brought me to a halt and it turned out to be a pelargonium of some sort but it's one more that will remain a mystery.

Here's another example of massive stupidity and disastrous money wastage, a resort that was built to provide the locals with employment but has apparently stood empty since completion. The government provides the money but not the skills required to run the place, so it very quickly comes to a standstill.  Sad.

On arrival back in the Mother City I realised that I'd left my toolbox 550 km back at Arkoep, the joys of getting old.  There was a happy ending though, the lady who looks after the place found someone who brought it to Cape Town, which saved me a trip.