Highlights of the 2016 Ironman African Champs in PE

This Sunday its time for the 2017 Ironman African Championship here in Port Elizabeth.  The excitement is building up and the vibe is especially evident on the beachfront.  To get you in the spirit of the event, here is the highlights package from last year's event.

Ironman is coming

Preparations for this weekend's Ironman African Championship along with the related events, Ironkids and the Corporate Challenge, taking place on Saturday is in full swing on the beachfront. 

Beachfront Mussels

I took a break on the beachfront yesterday at low tide and walked out on the little wall between Deville and Humewood Beach.  Out at the end there are loads of mussels on the wall and it made a nice different foreground for a picture looking towards Kings Beach in the back.

A silver morning

This morning on the way to work I just had to stop below Brookes Hill and enjoy the sight of the silver ocean sparkling all the way to the horizon

Tidal pool overflow

Everybody loves a waterfall.  Imagine my surprise when I spotted this unusual waterfall at Willows Resort on Saturday afternoon.  It's the overflow out of the tidal pool at high(ish) tide.

Willows view

Miggie was invited to a party at Willows this afternoon and when we went to pick her up I took a walk up to the corner next to the top of their water worm.  A beautiful on a stunning Saturday afternoon.  Actually very sorry that we're not camping there this weekend because the weather was perfect.

Orcas off Port Elizabeth with Expert Tours

Usually this time of the year the sardines start to gather off the Port Elizabeth coastline before they start their run up the east coast.  It gives divers and film crews the ideal opportunity to observe the bait balls along with all the dolphin, whale, shark and bird activity that accompanies it.  Expert Tours based here in Port Elizabeth does a number of tours out to see this phenomenon and a week or two ago they had the most amazing encounter with orcas off the coast.  Their footage have now been broadcast on international television and I got hold of the footage on YouTube to share with you today. 

Seaview coastline

A hazy late afternoon on the coast at Seaview with an approaching thunderstorm

Landman's Lake is a little on the low side

I drove past Landman's Lake (the lake on Lakeside Road) today and could not believe my eyes how low the water level currently is because of the ongoing drought.  PE's biggest fresh water lake is but a shadow of its former self.  It is so low in fact that there is a beach all around the lake now.

Coming from Kragga Kamma side the whole section that panhandles out towards Like Farm Centre is dry.  It just shows how badly we need some big rains to come our way.

Car wash waiting room

With the drought and accompanying water restrictions I have refrained from washing my car in my support for saving water.  Unfortunately it got to the point where my car started becoming an embarrassment so I popped by Soapy Joe car wash in Circular Drive.  While they returned my car to respectability I had look around and was very impressed with the facility they have at Soapy Joe's.  In addition to the standard outside benches, they also have a little coffee shop with inside seating and a basic menu offering things like roosterkoek for you to enjoy while reading the paper. Plus they were cheaper than the petrol station I normally have my car washed at.