Malgas Island - 15/01/2007
Door: Fleurifleur
Blijf op de hoogte en volg Fleur
31 Januari 2007 | Zuid-Afrika, Pretoria
Malgas Island, Saldanha Bay, South Africa
15/01/2007
So I just dared my first swim in the Benguela System,.. and survived! It was quite wonderful. I now remember why I love the sea so much. Yum, feels so invigorating. Shame that it’s always colder than 15 degrees, makes you get out every time you start losing feeling in your extremities.. but then you can jump in again of course..
But okay so me being back in Cape Town didn’t last very long.. we were there for about a day and a half before getting on the boat to Malgas, which is not a bad thing per se, but would have been nice to try and still get some stuff sorted out before heading back out again. But yeah, we are here to work and yeah haven’t really had much to do so far in that aspect so the hope of doing something here was nice.. But okay, that was a little short lived as well. But maybe as usual I should start from the beginning.
So we were on Ichaboe, we were there about 2,5 weeks and hoping to get off since there really wasn’t much to do and knowing there would be more to do in SA, why waste time being there,.. so then hoping for a boat.. The boat we came with, from the Fishery Research, well there were some problems (like usual) so we were hoping for a lift from the lobster boats. The season opened back up again on the 1st of January so they would be out, but yeah the 1st was bad weather but on the 2nd you saw plenty coming out. Then wait for a boat coming to gather their findings or one to return back to main land, Luderitz. But that was gonna take a while, but then lucky us a storm was coming.. so the boats all had to return back to shore. Now hoping one would wanna give us a lift..
Then there was a boat, one with a manual dinghy-boat and yeah, with the strength of the current I don’t wish that upon anyone, ha.. All the crates we have etc, but yeah so we are on a boat heading back to shore. And yes this time I took 2 anti-sea sick tablets.. and guess what?!.. Of course they didn’t work! Argh, I think I just need to grow some sea legs. Okay, the water was worse this time and your going into the stream instead of along with it, but okay, I didn’t really feel like I was gonna die so oh well and this boat was faster than a lot of the other small ones, but it was still a looong 3 hours. Ha, oh well. I guess that the captain when we were up in his quarters lighting up a joint didn’t help that much either ( it didn’t help Ralf that’s for sure.., think he felt a bit worse than I did this time).. But okay we got back to Luderitz all wet and pukey, so I was freezing, but okay. We contact Ralf’s girlfriend and lucky us the car needed repairs and thus.. yes, lucky us, we were stuck in Luderitz again and now without transportation which means it’s really damn boring. But okay, we survived, met some cool people and besides them stealing our food from the hostel it was alright. Had another reason to go out to dinner. So a few days later we are back in Cape Town after a 2 day road trip with Lorien’s dad along with us as well since he was visiting. But this time the road trip was in the sweltering heat, yes it is the desert and it is summer, but this time it was a damn lot worse, was nearly 45 degrees man,.. phoewieeee…
But okay, so I got to stay by Rene and his wife Annette again, this time it was a bit shorter as the next day I heard to be ready the next morning at 4.30 am. Yippie and I’m such a morning person. So did some quick errands and the next morning up bright and early, off to Langebaan, Saldanha Bay, where we were in a nice harbour where we got a lift with a NICE motor boat belonging to South African National Parks (SANPark). This time the boat trip was lovely (with the sun that had just risen and it only being about 20/30 minutes and practically flat water) and the road trip was just under 2 hours. So all was well. The boat had to go and pick up Martha, who was researching on the island. So now it’s really just the two of us, but a damnnnn lot more birds. It’s a totally different island. It is beautiful! It’s all boulders and it’s really more like an island and it actually has vegetation growing on it and some more interesting animals, like the Ibis and sparrows and sterns, pigeons as well and yeah more stuff and pelicans of course which are supposed to be a problem and also a part of Martha’s research cuz well somehow they’ve tended to evolve a new foraging specialty, small birds.. some have seen or heard stories of pelicans doing weird stuff like that, but here it’s normal as of the last few years. They have turned into one of the predators to watch out for here when having chicks. Very weird. But they are HUGE. I thought oh they aren’t so big when they were up in the air flying away till I saw them sitting next to the gannets. Holy crap. The gannets weigh bout 3 kilo’s and yeah the pelican’s about 10! Damn yo! What a sight, yes I have some pix. But okay, my welcome to the island was interesting as well since pelicans aren’t the only prob here, you also have the seagulls and of course the seals. Seemingly there was a seal that was predating a lot of chicks and causing havoc in the colony so the people from Sanparks came along with a gun to shoot him off. And yes got welcomed here right away with seal culling. Supposedly after missing a few shots they shot 2 who seemingly were hanging around the island for a while. Now,..peace and quiet. Except for the pigeon breeding in my window and the pigeon chicks by the kitchen who are most probably abandoned now since we keep disturbing them by walking past them. And of course I can hear all the birds from my room which I can get used to, but I have a new problem.. BEDBUGS!!! Eeuwie.. hhaa. But yes, they aren’t very pleasant and I’ve sprayed my mattress enough times, but okay, after a few bites a hope they will leave me alone. Hanging out my sleeping stuff doesn’t seem to help either. But okay, so I might get some war wounds this trip now anyway just from them chewing on me..since the amount of contact with the birds is also quite minimal. The prob on Ichaboe that there were no chicks and the ones there were just too young to really do anything with, well here it’s different, very different! All the chicks are old! Ha, yeah here most are about the fledgling age and thus yeah, hmm.. what do I do. Well I’m still gonna try and do the whole begging behaviour thing, we found an area with some younger chicks, except with the chicks being mostly older they are mobile as well so I can’t look at the effect the breeding site has on their hormonal state which is kinda sucky, but yeah, what can you do, it’s nature, you have no control over it.. There are still the odd birds out that still has an egg as well but still (not that I can do much with that anyway).. So it’s worth a shot.
I have seen some predations again though from seagulls and thus some of the young chicks that have just hatched have disappeared again, but not from where I’m observing at least. But yeah, after measuring adults today, one flew away and we had to chick-sit again for a bit as one of the gulls started nibbling on it already. Poor thing!
So the plan is to be here for about 3 weeks and yeah you don’t feel so secluded here even though you might just be even more secluded cuz now it’s just the 2 of us. But yeah you can see the lights from the harbour and the coastal houses and there is a military/army (?) practice area here so you hear planes and all and see some boats sailing by etc. So it is a bit diff and of course I also have mobile contact here. That changes everything. Sitting in the field using the stopwatch on my phone and getting a text message is kinda weird, haha.. a bit different. But I do feel at home here and the sunsets are gorgeous so it’s all good. Man, this pc is gonna be so overloaded with my pix. It does suck that my lens kinda got damaged and now I guess has a dent or so in it (maybe desert sand to blame?) and so my pictures have a purplish spot on most of them since it happened. So you’ll have to excuse me for that one. Now I just have to see if I will get to use the damn centrifuge I brought all the way down here and has been travelling from continent to island to.. yeah, you get the picture, but we shall see. Until then, my tan is getting damn good. Too bad it’s actually only my legs and arms, maybe bikini observing time then?!.. Nah,.. Never mind, but okay I see I’m on page 3 already, time to sign off again then, till the next time I have lotsa stories to tell.
And oh yeah, the house here is really nice, didn’t have to clean it, yahoooo. It belongs to the Marine Coastal Management people (MCM) and they come by every so often, so we might have visitors then as well. They are quite strict as wel so it’s nice and tidy, ‘cept there is no electricity, but there is a solar for our pc work and yeah gas for the stove and fridge and no running water which is strange to see in the respect of tubs, basins etc but with no faucets, haha.. but lots and lots of buckets haha, we have a cistern with rainwater which will last way long so that’s all good. I’m used to this as a post-hurricane state. Ha, memooorieeeesss… And yeah the toilet, hmm.. poop in a bucket, haha.. tis a bit more like a potty than on Ichaboe, but more like a port-a-potty. Hmm.. think I like pooping in water more than in a bucket, no cleaning!..But yet again, I shall survive! Haha..All the lovely experiences a person can build up huh?!.. ;-)
Hope all is well and what we’ll be up to will follow as I don’t if I’m going back to Namibia and if so I might have to postpone my ticket, but okay.. that’s to follow, otherwise just work on my report in CT for a bit and then vacationnnn!!!..
Lotsa luuuv!!!..
African tanned Flower
15/01/2007
So I just dared my first swim in the Benguela System,.. and survived! It was quite wonderful. I now remember why I love the sea so much. Yum, feels so invigorating. Shame that it’s always colder than 15 degrees, makes you get out every time you start losing feeling in your extremities.. but then you can jump in again of course..
But okay so me being back in Cape Town didn’t last very long.. we were there for about a day and a half before getting on the boat to Malgas, which is not a bad thing per se, but would have been nice to try and still get some stuff sorted out before heading back out again. But yeah, we are here to work and yeah haven’t really had much to do so far in that aspect so the hope of doing something here was nice.. But okay, that was a little short lived as well. But maybe as usual I should start from the beginning.
So we were on Ichaboe, we were there about 2,5 weeks and hoping to get off since there really wasn’t much to do and knowing there would be more to do in SA, why waste time being there,.. so then hoping for a boat.. The boat we came with, from the Fishery Research, well there were some problems (like usual) so we were hoping for a lift from the lobster boats. The season opened back up again on the 1st of January so they would be out, but yeah the 1st was bad weather but on the 2nd you saw plenty coming out. Then wait for a boat coming to gather their findings or one to return back to main land, Luderitz. But that was gonna take a while, but then lucky us a storm was coming.. so the boats all had to return back to shore. Now hoping one would wanna give us a lift..
Then there was a boat, one with a manual dinghy-boat and yeah, with the strength of the current I don’t wish that upon anyone, ha.. All the crates we have etc, but yeah so we are on a boat heading back to shore. And yes this time I took 2 anti-sea sick tablets.. and guess what?!.. Of course they didn’t work! Argh, I think I just need to grow some sea legs. Okay, the water was worse this time and your going into the stream instead of along with it, but okay, I didn’t really feel like I was gonna die so oh well and this boat was faster than a lot of the other small ones, but it was still a looong 3 hours. Ha, oh well. I guess that the captain when we were up in his quarters lighting up a joint didn’t help that much either ( it didn’t help Ralf that’s for sure.., think he felt a bit worse than I did this time).. But okay we got back to Luderitz all wet and pukey, so I was freezing, but okay. We contact Ralf’s girlfriend and lucky us the car needed repairs and thus.. yes, lucky us, we were stuck in Luderitz again and now without transportation which means it’s really damn boring. But okay, we survived, met some cool people and besides them stealing our food from the hostel it was alright. Had another reason to go out to dinner. So a few days later we are back in Cape Town after a 2 day road trip with Lorien’s dad along with us as well since he was visiting. But this time the road trip was in the sweltering heat, yes it is the desert and it is summer, but this time it was a damn lot worse, was nearly 45 degrees man,.. phoewieeee…
But okay, so I got to stay by Rene and his wife Annette again, this time it was a bit shorter as the next day I heard to be ready the next morning at 4.30 am. Yippie and I’m such a morning person. So did some quick errands and the next morning up bright and early, off to Langebaan, Saldanha Bay, where we were in a nice harbour where we got a lift with a NICE motor boat belonging to South African National Parks (SANPark). This time the boat trip was lovely (with the sun that had just risen and it only being about 20/30 minutes and practically flat water) and the road trip was just under 2 hours. So all was well. The boat had to go and pick up Martha, who was researching on the island. So now it’s really just the two of us, but a damnnnn lot more birds. It’s a totally different island. It is beautiful! It’s all boulders and it’s really more like an island and it actually has vegetation growing on it and some more interesting animals, like the Ibis and sparrows and sterns, pigeons as well and yeah more stuff and pelicans of course which are supposed to be a problem and also a part of Martha’s research cuz well somehow they’ve tended to evolve a new foraging specialty, small birds.. some have seen or heard stories of pelicans doing weird stuff like that, but here it’s normal as of the last few years. They have turned into one of the predators to watch out for here when having chicks. Very weird. But they are HUGE. I thought oh they aren’t so big when they were up in the air flying away till I saw them sitting next to the gannets. Holy crap. The gannets weigh bout 3 kilo’s and yeah the pelican’s about 10! Damn yo! What a sight, yes I have some pix. But okay, my welcome to the island was interesting as well since pelicans aren’t the only prob here, you also have the seagulls and of course the seals. Seemingly there was a seal that was predating a lot of chicks and causing havoc in the colony so the people from Sanparks came along with a gun to shoot him off. And yes got welcomed here right away with seal culling. Supposedly after missing a few shots they shot 2 who seemingly were hanging around the island for a while. Now,..peace and quiet. Except for the pigeon breeding in my window and the pigeon chicks by the kitchen who are most probably abandoned now since we keep disturbing them by walking past them. And of course I can hear all the birds from my room which I can get used to, but I have a new problem.. BEDBUGS!!! Eeuwie.. hhaa. But yes, they aren’t very pleasant and I’ve sprayed my mattress enough times, but okay, after a few bites a hope they will leave me alone. Hanging out my sleeping stuff doesn’t seem to help either. But okay, so I might get some war wounds this trip now anyway just from them chewing on me..since the amount of contact with the birds is also quite minimal. The prob on Ichaboe that there were no chicks and the ones there were just too young to really do anything with, well here it’s different, very different! All the chicks are old! Ha, yeah here most are about the fledgling age and thus yeah, hmm.. what do I do. Well I’m still gonna try and do the whole begging behaviour thing, we found an area with some younger chicks, except with the chicks being mostly older they are mobile as well so I can’t look at the effect the breeding site has on their hormonal state which is kinda sucky, but yeah, what can you do, it’s nature, you have no control over it.. There are still the odd birds out that still has an egg as well but still (not that I can do much with that anyway).. So it’s worth a shot.
I have seen some predations again though from seagulls and thus some of the young chicks that have just hatched have disappeared again, but not from where I’m observing at least. But yeah, after measuring adults today, one flew away and we had to chick-sit again for a bit as one of the gulls started nibbling on it already. Poor thing!
So the plan is to be here for about 3 weeks and yeah you don’t feel so secluded here even though you might just be even more secluded cuz now it’s just the 2 of us. But yeah you can see the lights from the harbour and the coastal houses and there is a military/army (?) practice area here so you hear planes and all and see some boats sailing by etc. So it is a bit diff and of course I also have mobile contact here. That changes everything. Sitting in the field using the stopwatch on my phone and getting a text message is kinda weird, haha.. a bit different. But I do feel at home here and the sunsets are gorgeous so it’s all good. Man, this pc is gonna be so overloaded with my pix. It does suck that my lens kinda got damaged and now I guess has a dent or so in it (maybe desert sand to blame?) and so my pictures have a purplish spot on most of them since it happened. So you’ll have to excuse me for that one. Now I just have to see if I will get to use the damn centrifuge I brought all the way down here and has been travelling from continent to island to.. yeah, you get the picture, but we shall see. Until then, my tan is getting damn good. Too bad it’s actually only my legs and arms, maybe bikini observing time then?!.. Nah,.. Never mind, but okay I see I’m on page 3 already, time to sign off again then, till the next time I have lotsa stories to tell.
And oh yeah, the house here is really nice, didn’t have to clean it, yahoooo. It belongs to the Marine Coastal Management people (MCM) and they come by every so often, so we might have visitors then as well. They are quite strict as wel so it’s nice and tidy, ‘cept there is no electricity, but there is a solar for our pc work and yeah gas for the stove and fridge and no running water which is strange to see in the respect of tubs, basins etc but with no faucets, haha.. but lots and lots of buckets haha, we have a cistern with rainwater which will last way long so that’s all good. I’m used to this as a post-hurricane state. Ha, memooorieeeesss… And yeah the toilet, hmm.. poop in a bucket, haha.. tis a bit more like a potty than on Ichaboe, but more like a port-a-potty. Hmm.. think I like pooping in water more than in a bucket, no cleaning!..But yet again, I shall survive! Haha..All the lovely experiences a person can build up huh?!.. ;-)
Hope all is well and what we’ll be up to will follow as I don’t if I’m going back to Namibia and if so I might have to postpone my ticket, but okay.. that’s to follow, otherwise just work on my report in CT for a bit and then vacationnnn!!!..
Lotsa luuuv!!!..
African tanned Flower
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