Lazy Sunday morning lagoon

The Palmiet River chatters, gurgles and tumbles its way over rocks and pebbles,  through fynbos-covered mountains to end up in a tranquil lagoon on the beach between Betty's Bay and Kleinmond.   In summer the river is deliciously cool and deceptively peaceful but in winter when the rains arrive, it can become a raging torrent and a favourite destination of paddle skiers and kayakers.

In the early mornings there is no better place to stroll with a camera than on the firm sands of the beach.  Gulls float like ducks in the sun-warmed water of the shallows, rising in great flocks of agitation every now and then, disturbing the burnt sienna reflections of the rocks and boulders in the water.

The mouth of the lagoon is open to the sea and the rise and fall of high and low tide are marked by the marine growth on the rocks.  At the top of the outcrop is a stone cross, one of the many to be seen along this coast.   When I first visited Cape Town as a young girl my father told me about these memorials to the  numerous fishermen swept off rocks or the fishing vessels lost at sea.  All these years later the hymn For Those in Peril on the Sea  brings those images back to me

Perfectly composed images lie in the sand at the edge of the water, just waiting to be noticed.

And pawprints let you know that this is one dog's favourite place.

It takes some persuasion before Cassie will let go of her rubber ball even though she prances around eagerly begging for it to be thrown again.

Back from the lagoon, across the highway and looking out towards the sea.  We decided that a short hike would be in order.

A little further on and the path began to to rise steeply and fall alarmingly and I decided that there were far more important matters to be attended to.  Like taking more pictures.

And yet another.  After all, we were on holiday, weren't we?