Cape Town Pelagic

Thanks to the serendipitous meeting of John Kinghorn on the flight to Johannesburg and were able to arrange a pelagic off the Cape of Good Hope.  As it turned out it was a clear, nearly cloudless day, mild temperature and a rather calm ocean. In all we made it out 20 + miles from land and found several trawlers to check out.  According to Kim and the boat captain birds were not as abundant as other times but there were ample for us.  In all we had 4 albatross species, two shearwaters, one storm-petrel, and three petrels.  At one point there were literally dozens of shearwaters and albatross flying around the boat.  In addition, we had one gull and a couple of common terns.  It was an amazing day at sea and the birds were very cooperative for photographs some of which I posted last night on Facebook.  I will post more later.

Roiells Road, Porter Botanical Gardens & Colony

With our full contingent we headed out the Coastal Highway this morning.  It was lightly overcast but very cold with a stiff wind blowing.  First we searched for Cape Rockjumper and Verreaux’s Eagle we had seen in the area earlier but were unsuccessful.   Instead we were treated to a soaring Jackal Buzzard.   We did add a new species, Cape Grassbird as well as great looks at both the Orange-bellied and Southern Double-collard Sunbird.  While here we were treated to a large group of Chacma Baboons that trouped through our area.  Before leaving the area we also found a family of Cape Sugarbirds.  From there we headed to the other side of the mountain where we climbed through the cape fynbos in search of a very elusive bird—Victorin’s Warbler.  This small bird is a skulker that does not sing from atop the shrubbery, rather stays well down in the bush making it difficult to get a good look at.  However, our persistence paid off and we were able to track a couple down and actually get pictures of them.  After a treacherous climb back down the mountain I noted a Cape Bunting singing across the highway and was able to get a picture of it singing atop a large bush.  After another delightful lunch at Jack’s Café we headed to the Porter Botanical Gardens where we added new birds—Fiscal Flycatcher, Somber Greenbelt, and several Black Saw-wing (a swallow type bird).  Our time there was capped off by a great display in perfect light of a Orange-breasted Sunbird.  From here we headed to the Penguin Colony for those who had not been there on an earlier trip where I was able to spend some time taking some serious videos of these cute birds.  Our day was rounded out with a great look at more Klipspringers (the smallest of the antelopes) who like to stand on rocks in the late evening on the mountain side.  I had to put the pictures on my Facebook page for this post.

And the tour begins

East side False Bay

Klaas's Cuckoo

Spotted Thick-knee

Sacred Ibis

Fork-tailed Drongo

On Tuesday evening the final two members of our group arrived—Lon and Betty Baumgardt.  Then on Wednesday morning we headed out to Strandfontein once again.  Besides the usual waterfowl we were fortunate to find a beautiful Klaas’s Cuckoo, Spotted Thick-Knee, Common Ringed Plover, Forked-tail Drongo and Ruddy Turnstone add to our growing list which has now surpassed 140.  Then after lunch we headed out the Coastal Highway where we did find a few birds for those new to our group.  As usual, at Strandfontein, we were dazzled by the beauty of hundreds of Greater Flamingoes in flight and doing their chorus line feeding.  I took some videos and will post them when I have strong internet service.  Cindy Stone, who has been plagued by camera problems, lost her lens cover and we had to improvise.  At a local hardware she found a sewer fluid tight coupling that fit just exactly over her lens and is walking around with a very unusual lens hood.  I also had the occasion to take a very nice panorama of the Hottentot Mountains and the water of False Bay from the scenic overview.  That was about it for today.

And the tour begins

On Tuesday evening the final two members of our group arrived—Lon and Betty Baumgardt.  Then on Wednesday morning we headed out to Strandfontein once again.  Besides the usual waterfowl we were fortunate to find a beautiful Klaas’s Cuckoo, Spotted Thick-Knee, Common Ringed Plover, Forked-tail Drongo and Ruddy Turnstone add to our growing list which has now surpassed 140.  Then after lunch we headed out the Coastal Highway where we did find a few birds for those new to our group.  As usual, at Strandfontein, we were dazzled by the beauty of hundreds of Greater Flamingoes in flight and doing their chorus line feeding.  I took some videos and will post them when I have strong internet service.  Cindy Stone, who has been plagued by camera problems, lost her lens cover and we had to improvise.  At a local hardware she found a sewer fluid tight coupling that fit just exactly over her lens and is walking around with a very unusual lens hood.  I also had the occasion to take a very nice panorama of the Hottentot Mountains and the water of False Bay from the scenic overview.  That was about it for today.

A Rainy Day

Overnight we had a hard rain and today it rained off and on most of the day.  We birded the Coastal Highway and Strandfontine again.  I believe we only added one new species—Common Waxwing—picture posted earlier.  That should bring our total to date to 139.  Most of our morning was spent trying to find the Nikon repair facility in Cape Town.  Directions were very difficult and one must admire Kim for his cool as he tried to find the place in rain and heavy traffic with both Mike and I talking to him.  Cindy’s camera has been inoperable the last few days and she had been using my spare camera and Kim’s new 100-400 lens until we could get some help with her camera.  Fortunately, they were able to make a simple repair and now she is back in action with her camera.   After that we headed back to Jack’s Café, a place we have come to like out near the Stoney Point Penguin preserve.  I had left my yeti there a couple of days ago and was happy to retrieve it.  We had a nice lunch with great internet service and then Kim took us back to where we are staying by mid-afternoon.  He went back to the airport to get our final rental van and pick up the last two members of our group arriving tonight.  So tomorrow the REAL tour begins, so I wanted to catch up tonight because we will be leaving early and arriving back tired.   

Over the Hottentot Mountains

Today the same group as yesterday with one addition, Paul Barding who joined us last night, took a drive northeast of Cape Town.  In good order we were blessed with a pair of Blue Cranes (see pictures posted earlier), the national bird of South Africa.  This was quickly followed by a Peragrine Falcon pair at a rest stop where they sat on the towering cliff above.  And we were privileged to have a Black Harrier ( a rather difficult bird to see usually) that we chased along the highway before finally have the opportunity to photography him less than 20 yards from our vehicle.  We then travelled a dirt road through the farm and ranch lands associated with this area.  In addition to seeing many new species we had occasion to observe a Yellow Mongoose pair.  You can see much of what we saw in my photo post entitled More South African Photos.  That is a much better way of telling you what we saw than mere words.  As you can see we had a very eventful day and the pictures don’t include all the species seen.  In total we have seen 138 species to date by my count.

West Coast National Park

On Sunday morning Cindy, Kim, Mike and I headed northwest of Cape Town toward the dryer coastal fynbos (small bushes characterize this habitat).  We stopped along a dirt road first where we found several birds such as Speckled Mousebird, Karoo Scrub Robin and Karoo Prinia (see pictures which I recently posted on Facebook).  The area is basically beach sand with interspersed scrub brush and dry.  We then proceeded to the National Park where we found Eland (largest of the antelope group) at tortoise and ostrich in addition to many interesting birds.  This is a very large park where we will return too when the final members of our tour get here next week.  As you can see from my picture post we added several new species to our list—Cape Weaver, White-browed Plover, Lesser Flamingo, and were treated to a beautiful spring floral display.  Yes, it is spring here.  We had a very nice lunch at what is now a restaurant, but was one of the original settled location by Europeans.  The building was built in 1744 as I remember.  The food was outstanding (see picture in earlier post).  Mike found a Southern Cape Penduline-Tit nest with nesting activity apparent with the two birds sitting beside the nest.  We also had a very aggressive Southern Double-Collared Sunbird that wanted to pose for pictures.  This particular male had very prominent yellow markings on his carpel wing area, a sign of breeding plumage.  The weather was beautiful in the mid too upper 70s, clear and no or little wind.  A very good day.

African Penguin Colony

Betty’s Bay

On Saturday night our group was joined by Mike Mandracchia.  On Saturday morning we headed out the Strand highway south east with our ultimate destination the African Penguin Colony.  Along the way we checked out Gordon’s Bay where we found our first African Black Oystercatcher.  I would be remiss if I did not note that Helmeted Guineafowl are everywhere.  Just before Betty’ Bay we hiked a short dirt road in a nice housing area.  The flowers here were beautiful and the waves crashing against the rock below were breathtaking.  This is in the same area where I took the coastal shot in my first blog so let your imagination take you there.  On a towing cliff a Verraux’s Eagles have made their nest and we stood by watching a pair of White-bellied Crows tried to drive the eagle from the area.  Surely they had a nest nearby.  The eagle just sat on the ground for a while ignoring their sweeps overhead and finally having enough took to flight and was further harassed by the crows.  This continued until the eagle soared high above.  While hiking in the area we were fortunate to find both Southern Double-collared and Orange-breasted Sunbirds.  These are beautiful birds that feed on nectar, much like the hummingbirds of the western hemisphere.  I have posted a picture of the double collared on Facebook earlier.  There were several other birds of interest along the way.  From here we went to the Penguin colony on Betty’s Bay.  There we were able to see many penguins both in the water and strolling on the land.  They are such interesting birds and of course very cute.  In addition, we were able to find 4 of the 5 species of cormorants in South Africa.  From there we went to have lunch at Jack’s café.  The meal was good.  I had a meat pie with chips.   It was big enough that I took half of it home only to have it fall on the floor when the box opened before I made it to the fridge.   Later we took a ride up the same road where we encountered a family of baboons which I have posted video of on the internet previously.  Finally, home to bed for another exciting day tomorrow.

Cape Town

Boulder’s Beach & Strandfontein

Later on Thursday evening Cindy Stone arrived.  Kim went to pick her up and I stayed at our residence working on the blog and some pictures.  First thing Friday morning we headed out birding, first driving along the coastal highway and visiting Boulder’s Beach.  We observed several species near the ocean—Rock Kestrel, Cape (Kelp) and Heartlaub’s Gulls, Karoo Prinia, Karoo Scrub Robin and both Yellow and Brimstone Canaries before we headed to Strandfontein.  Strandfontein is a combination of local park with picnic facilities and further down the road is a sewer treatment facility with many ponds.  And you know how birders love sewer treatment plants.  We ended up spending the remainder of our day there with a brief respite at KFC for a quick lunch.  The area was extremely prolific in bird species.  Waterfowl were everywhere—duck, our first Greater Flamingo --and there were so many of the beautiful, graceful bird that we actually tired of seeing them before the day was over.  Ducks included—Cape, Red-billed, Yellow-billed, Cape Shovelers, Southern Pochard, and grebes include Little Grebe (Dabchick) and Great Crested Grebe.  We also had Cape Francolin (spurfowl) a large chicken like bird, several species of cormorant, Little Egret, and Glossy Ibis and Blacksmith Plover –there name is derived from their call which sounds like striking an anvil) and a very pretty white and black bird-- Sacred Ibis.   I could go on boring some of you with the various species we encountered but I will not.  When I get some decent internet service I will post many pictures for you to enjoy.  All in all, we had a very successful day.

Austin to Cape Town, South Africa

So my long awaited safari to South Africa has begun.  I departed Austin at noon on September 20 and headed for Dulles International where I would then transfer to South Africa Airlines for the second leg of my journey.  I made it to Dulles without incident and then walked over to where South Africa Airlines departed.  I made it there just in time and shortly after I checked in I boarded the airplane.  I had tried to make a seat change over the internet and then at the check in counter but there were no attractive alternatives.  As it turned out things were working for the best.  Sometimes God just has plans for us that we don’t understand.  As I was putting up my baggage in the overhead I noticed that my seat mate had thrown in a book on birding in his seat while he stowed his gear.  By this serendipitous coincidence he was a birding guide from South Africa returning from the Birding Expo that recently concluded in Columbus, Ohio.  His name is John Kinghorn and he works for a South African tour operator in Johannesburg. We immediately struck up a conversation and I learned a great deal about birds and birding in South Africa.  I mentioned that our group was trying to find a boat for a pelagic trip out of CapeTown and John offered to check into whether his company could arrange for one.  So you see sometimes it is best to just go with the flow.  I could not have asked for a better seat partner and we became good friends as we spent the next 17 hours together.  Yes 17 hours!  That’s how long the flight is from Dulles to Johannesburg and take my word for it, that is one hell of a long time to be in a seat on a plane.  Our flight was overnight and as the sun crept over the horizon we were just reaching the African continent.  Our flight was bound for Accra, Ghana where we would let passengers off and take more on but the primary purpose was to refuel the aircraft.  I must say the meals were reasonably good—supper consisted of beef curry, rice and mixed vegetables, a salad and piece of cake, and the service was very good.  However, it is very difficult for me to find a way to sleep on a plane but I did manage to get about four hours of sleep.  We landed in Accra at 8 in the morning (this is 5 hours ahead of Austin time) did the necessary refueling and cleaning of the inside of the aircraft and then departed on time for our 5 and one half hour flight to Johannesburg.  Shortly after departure they served us breakfast, yogurt, fruit, and blueberry pancakes which again was good.  John and I continued to talk and he would take breaks to read his book and I to work on studying the birds of South Africa.  Our flight was blessed with good weather.  In the course of our flight we crossed Nigeria, Liberia, Namibia and finally flew over Botswana where I was able to see the Kalahari Desert below.  Lunch was good as well with meatballs and rice, green beans, salad and apple crumble cake.  No complaints about food.  I was also able to sleep off and on after breakfast, taking short naps.   We arrived at Tambo International Airport in Johannesburg a little early.  After my trip through customs is when my otherwise uneventful day ended.   I picked up my bags and headed to the hotel where Kim and I were going to stay for the night.  Near the exit I asked a policeman for directions to the Protea Hotel and he directed me to the exit and over to a pickup location were all the hotels had shuttle service.  I got on the shuttle and reached the hotel.  When I tried to check in they could find no reservation in Kim’s name and after further studying the documents I provided I was informed that they hotel I was to stay in was back in the airport at their other hotel.  So they reloaded my bags and took me back to the airport.  When I went in I asked for directions to the hotel and was told to I would need to go back through security and I would need a boarding pass.  At the security gate they told me that my stub from my earlier boarding pass was not sufficient and I would need to go to the airline and get one.  I stopped at the information desk and I was informed that it would not be possible to get to the hotel without returning through security.  They called the hotel for me and asked if they could send a car to pick me up and take me there.  I was told that was not possible.  So I headed to South Africa Airlines for help.  After standing in line for 45 minutes and explaining the situation to them I was told there was no way they could give me a boarding pass or get me to the hotel and it was best just to find another hotel for the night.  By now it was after 8 in the evening and they directed me to a porter to help me find a hotel.  My porter suggested that I go to the Aspen because their rates were much lower and he found the right person who arranged for me to be picked up and I was swiftly headed to this place of lodging.  By now it is late, dark and I am heading in a car with a person I do not know and I began to think thoughts that I might have been set up.  After a 15-minute ride we arrived at a gated facility and I was quickly checked in this small 8 room motel for the night.  It was very inexpensive about $45 USD.  I was so tired that I went in, took a very nice hot shower and got ready for a good night’s sleep in a bed, something I had failed to appreciate before.  The place also had Wi-Fi and I was able to finally contact Kim, who likewise made the same mistake I had and was scrambling to get lodging for the night so I learned.  We arranged to meet at 8:30 the next morning at the Mango Airlines desk in the airport.  I assured Kim I was ok and not to worry.  I awoke and was pleasantly surprised when I heard birds outside my room.  After I dressed I went outside and I could see many birds moving about.  The courtyard of this small motel was well manicured, had two palapas and the trees were alive with birds.  I was able to identify a common swift, laughing dove and southern-banded weaver before I was shuttled to the airport and met Kim.  We secured our tickets, made it through security and to a coffee shop where I finally got my coffee and a roll.  Then on to our boarding gate and finally aboard our aircraft to Cape Town where I am currently writing this blog.  We arrive in Cape Town about 1 and Kim and I will pick up the vehicle and head to the house where we will spend the next 10 days and spend a relaxing afternoon doing some photography at the beach and going to the grocery store.  So I will end this post hear and we will pick up tomorrow.

Cape Town—We arrived on time, picked up our rental vehicle and headed out to the Strand where we will be staying for the next 10 days.  After checking in with our host and moving our gear into our rooms we proceeded to do some biding.  Between the birds I saw at my hotel this morning, the ones we saw on our drive to the Strand and our excursion out around Gordon’s Bay I tallied a total of 24 new species.  Late in the afternoon we were able to photograph a few bird which I am attaching to this blog, Orange-breasted Sunbird, White-necked Crow, Cape Robin-Chat, as well as a beautiful scenic site along our drive along the ocean and the Hottentot-Holland Mountains and a picture of a Kilpspringer, a small antelope found here.  From there we headed to the grocery store and then back to our house where we are staying.  

Gordon Bay & Hottentot-Holland Mtns,

Kilpspringer

Orange-breasted Sunbird (female)

Orange-breasted Sunbird (male)

White-necked Raven

Cape Robin-Chat

Final Alaska Post

So I’m back at home for a short time after spending the summer exploring the wilds of Alaska and Canada.  My last blog post was from Anchorage around the 18^th of July so I will complete this journal with this final post regarding what transpired following the last blog.  My daughter and her family decided to spend their last morning in Alaska by having breakfast, then going to Best Buy and finally to spend time in downtown Anchorage before returning to the hotel to pack and get ready to depart on the 19^th.  So, after dropping them downtown, I headed back to Eagle River where I had left my trailer at Fred Meyers.  Upon arrival I went to the store to get items for my departure, filled up with gas and propane, then went to get water and make a sanitary dump.  It was now just mid-afternoon so I decided to go ahead and start the trip back rather than waiting until morning to depart.  Not far out of Eagle River there was some major construction which tied me up for a period of time but once I cleared that I made good time heading south.  I thought it would be nice if I could make it to Glenallen by night but surprised myself by making it past there and within 30 miles of Tok before I pulled into a roadside rest and spent the night.  I had forgotten how beautiful the drive along the Tok Cutoff was from my earlier experience driving it.  Up early the next morning I continued my journey not exactly clear where I would end my day.  After fueling up in Tok, I headed for Canada which I reached before noon.  I actually made it all the way to Whitehorse before calling it a day and pulling into the Walmart lot for the night. 

The next morning it was raining and I added a few groceries and moved on with a plan to reach Boya Lake Provincial Park, a park I fell in love with in 1998.  It rained off and on most of the way making for not so pleasant a drive but reached my destination by early afternoon.  I did have a nice surprise near the beginning of the Cassiar Highway when I spotted a group of Northern Flickers and 3 young in a tree beside the road.  After pulling over I noticed a group of birds in the roadway ahead and these turned out to be White-winged Crossbills.  I was able to get a couple of good photos of the crossbills.  I had actually reached Boya two days ahead of my schedule but was happy to be there and found a beautiful campsite that backed up to the lake and provided me with a great opportunity to try out my newly purchased Advanced Elements Inflatable Kayak.  I spent 3 nights at Boya.   Boya Lake is beautiful, the water color ranges from nearly white along the shore thru at least 4 shade of aqua to deep blue in the middle.  And at one end there is a massive beaver dam.  I enjoyed my time kayaking in these peaceful, beautiful waters.  The first evening a family from Alberta camped adjacent to my site and we visited.  He was involved in the oilfield in Alberta and we shared this in common.  On the second day I lost one of my hearing aids while walking around the camping area.  My search was assisted by about 10 volunteers, including the Alberta family, but we came up empty.  While there I had make friends with the camp host and she vowed to continue looking for it after I departed, so I gave her my contact information.  She knew I was heading to Meziadin Provincial Park and the day after I got there she notified me that she had found my hearing aid and would send it to Meziadin with the next people headed that way.  She did and I was very grateful.

The drive to Meziadin was made more difficult by the constant rain I experienced until about 25 miles from the final destination.  However, along the way I did encounter a black bear.  I spent the next 11 days at Meziadin Provincial Park.  Arriving on a Saturday the place was very crowded and I lucked into an open spot near the lake shore.  Meziadin is a massive lake, the second largest in British Columbia, and a very popular fishing site for salmon.  I camped at this first spot until Monday when I decided to move up on the hill overlooking the lake for a more permanent campsite.  Those near the lake are reservable and the upcoming weekend was a BC holiday weekend when they would all be taken.  The site I picked required backing up a steep incline and I was assisted in my endeavor by a camp host, Charlie, who helped me get situated in my new campsite.  This campground is located 36 miles from Hyder, Alaska where I intended to visit the viewing stand along Fish Creek were many bears come to feed on the spawning salmon.  I had made plans before leaving Texas for a friend to join me at Meziadin for the purpose of viewing bears.  She was to fly into Smithers, BC and I would pick her up there on Saturday.  I spent the week traveling back and forth to various location nearby doing some birding and bear watching while awaiting her arrival. 

So on Saturday morning I left early and headed to Smithers about 150 miles away.  The plane was on time and I picked her up at 9:30. While there we visited the campsite I had reserved for the end of the week to check it out, then visited the local farmers market where we purchased some vegetables, and made a final stop at the grocery store to pick up some food for our stay at Meziadin.  The plan was to drive up to the town of Kipsiok to see the totem poles there, the continue up this road to check on a cabin that her brother has along the Mittin Road, a back way to get to Highway 37 back to Meziadin.  This turned out to be a beautiful drive through the BC backcountry.  We checked on the cabin and then headed up Mitten Road, a sometimes rough, but beautiful drive.  Along the way we did some birding encountering a Spruce Grouse and several other species.  We were also had the good fortune to observe a black mama bear and two cubs crossing in front of us, an exciting event for my companion.  Besides the wildlife we encountered, there were several spectacular vistas where we stopped to take pictures and soak in the amazing beauty that is British Columbia.  We reached camp around 6 and settled in for our trip to see bears in Hyder on the following day.

On Sunday we did some birding nearby, then drove the road up to Salmon Glacier. This is a drive that takes about 2 hours round trip from Hyder and provides one with a magnificent view of a massive glacier at very close range.  Along the way we spotted a black bear, the only one we would see this day.  On our return we visited the Fish Creek viewing stand, remaining there until 9:30 but the bears were a no show.  Somewhat disappointed we headed back to camp and were determined to return the following day.  On Monday we were rewarded with two grizzly bears at the stand, both very close and gave me the opportunity to get great photo shots and videos of them.  Then on the way back to camp we had two more young black bears and a mother grizzly with two cubs just outside the car window on the highway adding to our total of 11 so far.  By the time our trip was over we had a total of 21 bears of which 6 were cubs and the opportunity to see one young cub scurry up and down a tree as we sat watching from the car.  During the nine days she was there we were able to add 35 life birds to her list as well as the 21 bears.  She left on Sunday the 8^th from Smithers.

I had made plans to get on the road after dropping her off at the airport around 3 PM and I headed toward Jasper, AB.  I made it to within 80 miles of there before spending the night with a number of truckers at a roadside rest.  Then I continued the following morning through Jasper National Park where I saw the largest black bear I have ever seen alongside the road and a nice Dall Sheep ram.  I had also forgotten how beautiful the Canadian Rockies were.  The drive from Jasper to Baniff is spectacularly beautiful.  I crossed back into the US by 5 and spent the night at Walmart in Great Falls, MT.  The following day I reached Wheatland, WY for the night before heading on to Amarillo the next day and finally home on the 12^th.  I was gone just short of 3 months, having left Georgetown on May 16.  The trip was amazing.  I drove 14,207 miles’ total.   I saw Dall Sheep, Mountain Goats, Arctic Squirrel, Sea Otter, Buffalo, 40 + Bear, Lynx, Steller Sea Lion, porcupine, Harbor Seal, antelope, and I’m sure more.  As for birds the list would be too long to list.  I also met some very great new friends along the way and got to spend time with my family in Anchorage and visit my grandchildren on Kodiak Island.  It was a wonderful summer and I would do it again.  Now it’s on to South Africa for 5 weeks in September