On these cool and frosty days nothing beats a good vigorous hike through the hills and valleys of the Midlands. The snakes are hibernating (hopefully), and although many of the grasslands have been burned (under control - as a fire prevention measure) many others still offer pleasant and scenic rambles such as this area of the impressive Umgeni Valley. The hills are typical Midlands savannah, populated with a variety of acacias and the fascinating candelabra like Mountain Cabbage trees, whilst closer to the waterways you'll find riverine forests similar to those seen on the gorge walk below the Howick Falls. Game is plentiful (buck, zebra and giraffe along with many smaller animals) and there is still an abundance of colourful flowering flora if you keep your eyes open for them (and of course plentiful blackjacks). The grasslands first thing in the morning, before the frosts which settle overnight have melted, are something magic to see; just be sure to wear warm socks and good waterproof hiking boots!!! As you'll notice from a closer look at this image (click to enlarge) the Umgeni Valley is a feast for waterfall lovers, some more of which I will feature in later postings.
Back to the old framing technique for this image, and the low hanging meandering branches of acacias with the long foreground grasses serve this purpose well.
No comments:
Post a Comment