Placing this one to give the boys and girls from the southern suburbs some more game.
Publishing the cache with sadness because as I'm typing the mountain is engulfed in fire, and we're all hoping for some rain asap. From the cache site if you look towards the mountain you will notice the big valley, and that is called Farmer Peck's Valley.
Peck’s Valley
The path up Peck’s Valley is on Boyes Drive directly up from the Muizenberg Police Station and starts through a little stone gateway. Stone steps lead up the valley with phenomenal views of False Bay to keep you motivated. Once you reach the plateau you can choose to have a break before descending or continue on the path up to Higher Steenberg Peak before circling back.
Duration: It’ll take you about five hours if you choose to summit the peak once you reach the plateau.
What to look for
Flora: There are over 900 species of fynbos to be found in the reserve, made up mainly of proteas, Ericas and restios. The slopes are covered in Ericas in various shades of pink depending on the season; with leucodendrons and asteraceae providing a splash of yellow in spring.
Fauna: There are nearly a hundred species of birds to spot in Silvermine. We were lucky enough to see a pair of what I think were jackal buzzards gliding up on the thermal currents and hovering before diving down to catch whatever prey they had spotted on the ground. We also spotted an orange-breasted sunbird and found a small cave with some tell-tale porcupine quills in it. You may also spot a tortoise or two.
At this point I'm not sure what the extent of the fire damage is, but judging from photos on social media it seems just about the whole of Silvermine may be destroyed. We were asked a question tonight as to how long it will take for the felt etc to recover.
With that in mind, I'll ask for you to take a photo of Pecks Valley from GZ and place the photo in the gallery indicating what month and year it was taken. This way we will be able to tell the recovery rate.
This is the third cache here, so if you've not done the other two don't forget to go get them as well.
Enjoy, and be safe.
Ps NO writing tool provided so please bring a pen or pencil.
Opening times: Monday to Sunday 06:00 - 20:00