Exquisite colors made by the ground water trickling out of the cliffside as it meets the sea

in Amazing Nature2 years ago (edited)

It never ceases to amaze me how beautiful the natural surroundings are here on my exploration of the southernmost shoreline of the African continent. Although it is comprised of mostly hard rock, salty sea and apparently limitless sky, sometimes I come across something quite exceptional. Today I want to share with you the photos of what appears to be a fresh water spring. I came across this water flowing down the steep rock surface of the cliff side just where it reaches the water’s edge at the Indian ocean.

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There is only a thin stretch of coastline at this point. Here the steep cliffs drop all the way to the actual water’s edge and there is no beach or flat land, only boulders and rocks where the cliff arrives at the shoreline. So I have to climb over masses of rock or hug the sloping diagonal cliff wall if I want to move along the shore itself. And at this one particular point I was impressed to find fresh water.

What a bonus. This is the main item that differentiates this region from an otherwise arid desert-like condition. It’s not desert of course but with only sea and rock, it may as well be, except for today’s discovery. The water seems to be flowing from high up above at the cliff top. It then goes into the earth and eventually pops out of the cliff wall here at the bottom, just as the cliff meets the sea water on the shore line.

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On occasion it flows like a stream, just after the rain. However, today, it is only the slightest trickle since the weather is warmer and dryer at present. Still, I was able to see it dripping down the rock and actually washing the rock surface which caused the rock to shine beautifully. Abundant green moss now covers it too and the overall colors that have emerged from the scene are really impressive.

It really brings the rock surface to life and it shines brightly from the moisture. And all sorts of fascinating colors pop out of the otherwise dull rock. I presume the water flows here much of the time and so over the years this rock surface has become smooth and rounded, as well as developing a shimmer. The striations and streaks of color activated by the water make it look like all sorts of minerals exist in the rock. Also the moss seems to have added to the rich color combination.

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It’s nothing as dazzling as what you might find in a city and thus you probably think it quite boring but when you live in these conditions, like I do, your senses become heightened and attuned to the subtleties of nature far more than they would in the city, where they get bombarded by artificial light and color. Compared to the rest of the rock and stone along this coastline, this moistened wall jumps out as something truly dazzling.

The purples and greens that are caused by the combination of water and mineral in the rock are a rare sight to behold. I presume – by the appearance of the overall rounded stone here- that on some occasions the water actually pours down here like a waterfall. This has been going on for decades or longer, and some seasons may have been much wetter, resulting in a constant stream of rain water running out of the ground and down this slope. I can see that much more volume of water has poured down the slope here in the past.

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Today it’s just a slight trickle but the rock has been smoothed and also retains its awesome colors, perhaps from all the moss that has existed here over the many years. It has left a permanent splash of emerald and lime green, along with all shades of red, burgundy and even purple, which bring the sight to life. And this wall lands right at the water’s edge, where the waves actually wash up during a high tide. You can see just how close it is to the actual sea in this photo, where I have turned to face the ocean right at the waterfall. Only the mass of rocks exposed now at low tide are separating the waterfall on the cliff slope from the actual sea itself. At very high tides they presumably meet directly.

This is yet another display of nature’s work as an abstract artist, painting vast canvasses of color on the rock face here on the south coast of Africa, in the region called the “Garden Route”, Plettenberg Bay. I’m sure not more than a handful of people actually see this remote region, so I’m happy to bring it to you today so that you can also see the more artistic side of nature, which would otherwise go totally unobserved by anyone other than one or two fishermen...and me.

(photos my own)