A peaceful drive back to Cape Town from George became Much more interesting once we turned off the N2 just past Riviersonderend. The idea was to head for Hermanus to check on the whales, but we ended up getting hopelessly side-tracked by the magnificent scenery along the way. The canola fields in full bloom are a sight to behold...
Then - A SIGN!! Powerless to resist, we stopped in at Boschrivier estate to taste their shiraz (which wasn't bad At All) & had a quick, late lunch out there on their sunny porch.
Having left & driven just a couple of 100 metres, Kev spotted a black eagle on the hill side so we veered off the road, leapt out & scrambled for long lenses. The poor guy had managed to nail a guinea fowl, but just didn't quite have enough juice to take off with it!
After Several attempts, the only right answer was to stop & do the sit-down thing, rather than take-away...
About 20 minutes later, it was time to get going & we were treated to an incredible low pass!
We were still reeling from all that when Eagle 1 (or in Hannah's technical nomenclature: Eagly) cruised past the mountain on the other side of the road & was descended upon by a pair of territorial jackal buzzards.
Much swooping & diving ensued between those 3 before our attention was diverted by the arrival of Eagle 2 (aka Beagly)!
Impersonating an oversized peregrine falcon, Beagly did a bit of a stooping manoeuver on its way down to what was left of the guinea fowl.
Beagly'd had a decent share of the snack when Eagly returned & decided that enough was enough. A bit of a squabble ensued & while we were snapping away at that - Eagle 3 (Weagly) came blasting in from stage right & announced her intention to claim whatever was left!
A few minutes later, Eagly set off again - heading back to the ridge behind us, another superb flyby...
Then Beagly's turn - the flyby of the day, & it was Quite a day!
Lastly, as the sun was dipping behind the mountain, Weagly took off & cruised *low* over us on her way to join the other two... WOW!! :)
The light was gone, the action was over & we were somewhat eagled out by that stage so we raced off to Hermanus for a quick scout-around for whales before sunset. They weren't doing much so we opted for kahlua coffees instead, then found a cozy Italian place for dinner before making the rest of our homeward trek. What an Incredible day!!
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