My Recent, Unforgettable Experience

It is spring here in the Western Cape of South Africa, so all around us the flowers are blooming, and it's really invigorating to be out in nature. We enjoy the fresh air, beauty and tranquility, while at the same time we look for crystals.  Pierre does this on a weekly basis, and I sometimes join him.  I want to share a very recent experience I had, something which I'll never forget.  

But first, images of some of the flowers we came across in the mountains, in an area that has burnt down several months ago:

Flowers alongside the road, on our way to the farm.

               

Below, close-up of the above

Flowers on the farm

 

Beautiful purple flowers in front of a burnt shrub

     

Above: These small, green flowers look so shy, their little heads are always hanging down. 

Below:  To see its face, one needs to turn the flower's head upside down.

Small, pink flowers growing in abundance

A lovely, bright orange flower

A small cluster of flowers, partially sheltered by two rocks

Some of the few taller flowers

My unforgettable experience:

 

It was the 2^nd of October 2021, and I was out in the mountains with Pierre on the farm of a friend, looking for crystals.  After having sat on my cushion, scratching around looking for crystals in a small pocket I'd found, I got up to stretch my legs, and walked around for about 15 minutes.  When I got back, I sat down on the cushion again, had something to eat and then decided to continue.  I thought that perhaps I should open the pocket more in the direction of where I was sitting, because the best crystal I had found that morning was in the opening closest to me, so perhaps the pocket extended in that direction.

Instead of getting up again to move backwards, I simply stretched my left hand backwards, lifted myself off the cushion and simultaneously pulled the cushion backwards with my right hand, before sitting down on it again, my feet apart so I could look for crystals in the pocket right in front of me.  Looking to the front again, I saw a small snake lying in an s-shape, right between my thighs, about 10 cm from my body, and it started sailing towards me.  It was a mountain adder!  They're quite poisonous, and people bitten by them usually go through agony for about 3 weeks, and often end up on a ventilator for a while.  I really cannot remember how I got up and moved away ...!

While I was walking around, it was probably disturbed (unknowingly) by Pierre who was moving rocks, looking for more crystal pockets, about 10 meters from me.  It had probably taken refuge under my cushion, and I then sat down just behind / in front of it (because it was not injured) but the pressure of the foam cushion (with me on it) possibly immobilized it while I sat on it. 

 

I thank God for His mercy, because I could easily have been bitten after I'd moved the cushion.  Although it was only a small / young snake (about 1 cm in diameter and roughly 20 cm long), it was still poisonous.  So easily it could've gone into the outer casing of my cushion, ending up in either our vehicle or home!  Below is a picture Pierre took just as it slithered over the quartz rock, and the other one is an image we got from the internet, confirming what it was. 

I believe one day we'll be astonished to see how often God had protected us, even without us being aware of it sometimes!  God's grace is unfathomable!  

Above:  The venomous snake that was under my cushion ...

Below:  An image we got on internet, confirming it as a mountain adder

Although we found quite a few crystals that day (nothing spectacular), this is one outing I'll never forget!

Riana Joubert 

USEFUL LINKS TO ARTICLES I HAVE WRITTEN

Here are a few interesting and useful links to articles I wrote on FMF Mineral Forum.

Quartz collecting in Southern Africa:

http://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?t=2520

How to find a pocket:

http://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?p=44505#44505

Blesberg:

http://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?t=3311

Oddities from Brandberg:

http://www.mineral-forum.com/message-board/viewtopic.php?t=3621

Beautiful Time of the Year

About three weeks ago Pierre and I drove out to a farm, quite some distance outside of our home town, Ceres.  This year Spring came quite late, but in full splendor.   It was a beautiful, sunny day, and sheer bliss to be outside, drinking in the quietness of our tranquil surroundings.

Colorful and lovely

Intertwined petals 

This color combination in flowers is not so common.

Although we found only a few crystals, we had a most enjoyable day, and even had the privilege of seeing a Blue Crane dance with outstretched wings.  Unfortunately, by the time I had our camera ready, the dance was over!  They were quite some distance from us, so I had to zoom in the camera to photograph them.  The Blue Crane is South Africa’s national bird, and is currently on the list of vulnerable species.  Until several years ago, it featured on South Africa's 5c coin.  For that reason I often referred to these birds (especially when speaking to my children) as 'the 5-cent birds'.

The Blue Crane is South Africa's national bird.

While looking for possible crystal deposits, Pierre came across a snake, which was lying motionless on the hard ground.  It was so well camouflaged, he could easily have stepped on it!  It was a horned adder.  Fortunately for us, the soil was very hard, because these snakes often wiggle themselves down in loose, sandy ground, until they're just beneath the surface and virtually unseen, where they can lie waiting for their prey!  Pierre pinned it down with a stick, then took hold of it behind its neck to have a closer look (when he was younger, he often caught snakes as a hobby).  I was quite a distance away, so he called to me to bring the camera.  It moved its head around quite a bit - the exposed fangs moving very close to Pierre's fingers - too close for comfort!  So he put the snake down again, and restrained it with the stick until I got there, and we could take some photographs.  After a successful photo session, he released it into the field again.

Pierre pinned down the snake with a stick.

The horned adder at a safe distance.

... posing for a photograph, head twisted back towards its tail, showing its red tongue.

Many flowers grow in seemingly barren ground.

Close-by, there is lush growth.

Lovely, sunny color.

We found some crystals, and a few pockets that were nicely encased in large rocks, so we only photographed them, and did not attempt to remove any of these.  They were prettier there, in their pockets, than what they'd be as single, removed crystals.  

Some crystals looked better, just left in their pocket.

I found a small pocket with crystals that I thought were part of a cluster, but as I gently worked the soil loose around them, I saw that they were all double terminated crystals.  Although they were a good size, and with bits of manganese coating, they weren't very clear, but will still look good once we've cleaned them properly.  

A beetle is getting away from my mining spot, the one that yielded ...

... a few double terminated crystals, yet uncleaned.

Beautiful flowers grow in seemingly barren soil.

Floral beauty

Succulents growing among bits of quartz rock.

A beetle looking for a bite to eat ...

We got to a pocket where Pierre uncovered a lovely cluster with fairly big crystals, located about 30 cm beneath the ground surface.  In total we spent several hours trying to loosen it, but found it impossible.  We gently cleaned away all the (very hard!) soil, but eventually realized that they were set on solid rock, too big for us to get out.  So I guess one can say that this cluster was a big one that 'got away'.  At least we have a photograph of it, one we took before we realized that we couldn't remove it.

Pierre at the pocket that yielded a cluster on solid rock.

The cluster that 'got away' ...

We came across several strange, reddish plants, many of them growing where there didn't seem to be any plant growth possible.  They appear to be some type of succulent and some of them have seeds/flowers that remind me of toenails protruding from an octopus's tentacles ...  Some grew on dry, flat soil among other plants, others grew on hard, rocky ground, and some protruded out from rocky, vertical overhangs.  South Africa has the largest variety of indigenous wild flowers in the world, and we're privileged to see so many of them in our part of the country.

Unusual plant ...

Many grow on hard, rocky ground.

Octopus's protruding toenails?

Some grow from vertical overhangs.

We enjoyed the splendor of all the wild flowers, and there were some patches that had us wonder where to tread, because of their abundance.  Although our main aim of the outing had been to find crystals, which this time was not very rewarding, we had a full, lovely day!

Flowers in abundance!

I hope that you enjoyed our outing with us!

Riana