Namaqualand Wildflowers, Northern Cape Province, South Africa

Many of you won't know that Tim has this thing about wildflowers that goes back to his childhood. Well, when he heard that the desert blooms in northwestern South Africa in September and October, guess where we headed? Laugh if you want, but it was spectacular. There are lots of pictures here. Blame it on Mr. Flower Child.

"What's so interesting about this and the next shot?", you might ask. Well, when you haven't seen anything green in months (thanks to the dry season in Zambia), you get camera-happy. This is just outside Cape Town, as we began our five hour drive north to Namaqualand.

Green is so, so good.

You know Ceres Fruit Juice (the one in a box that tastes great but, like everything else at Fresh Fields, costs a fortune)? It comes from this neck of the woods and is a heckuvalot cheaper here.

We wonder if the residents of Clanwilliam, South Africa could ever tire of this view.

The long and not-so-winding road north from Cape Town to Springbok, South Africa. Paul was snoozing, so Tim played with the camera while driving. What else was there to do?

Bingo! We'd worried that we might miss the peak of the flower season. It seems we didn't.

Pretty backyard, eh?

Just outside Springbok is the Goegap Nature Reserve, where we did most of our wildflowering. This is the road approach to the park.

Many of the flowers close at night and open only after the sun comes up. You can tell from this shot that Tim insisted we get an early start to our flower viewing.

The Kokerboom Tree (aka Quiver Tree) is a relative of the aloe plant and is found only in this part of the world.

More Kokerboom trees and a view of the rugged terrain inside Goegap.

Many of the plants are succulents and their blossoms are tiny, like little colorful jewels set against the sand (provided they aren't eaten by this caterpillar). They flower shortly after the early spring rains, before the place turns back into a completely barren and dusty desert.

Ornithoglossum viride. There's a mouthful for you, with more to come.

Lachenalia carnosa.

Because of the harsh environment, some of the flowers' foliage creates micro-environments that retain more moisture. That is why the leaves of this plant, Masonia depressa, are broad and pressed against the ground.

Babiana curviscapa.

Osteospermkum pinnatum. Wonder if this means "flower that grows between a rock and a hard place"?

Don't know this guy's scientific name, but he was getting around pretty well.

We were being watched....by a Dassie (aka Rock Hyrax). The closest relative to this overgrown guinea pig? Yep, the elephant. Seriously. You can look it up yourself.

Of course, to see the flowers you gotta get around on foot.

Common name: A bunch of flowers. Scientific names of them: Way too long to fit in this space.

How long before it hatches?

Paul, as The Thinker, circa 2002.

Spot the meerkats. We sneaked up on these little guys' den and lay on our stomachs for a good while, watching them try to figure out why the two large primates with the funny tool in their hands were making fools of themselves.

Vern! I told you to not drive on them there flaiwers!! Actually, Paul did an admirable job of not trampling too many.

Cheiridopsis denticulata.

How you like them roads? Thank heavens for the 4wd we rented.

Perched on a boulder of orbiculite just outside of Concordia. This is the only place in the world other than Scandanavia where orbiculite is found.

Orbicule Koppie at sunset.

Our luxurious accommodation in Springbok. Hey, it's three-star and there's a Mercedes parked in front!

Springbok was a thriving mining town that by the 1920s had attracted a sizable Jewish community. The synagogue, completed in 1929, is still there, although today it functions as a regional museum and archive of past Jewish life in the town.

Makes you wonder which one of us is really the flower child, huh?

A second flower-oriented park we visited was Namaqua National Park.

A tribute to our dear friend, Larry Woldt, who works at WWF in Washington. You guys are doing some good work out here, Larry.

Hondeklipbaai, South Africa, population 700, in the heart of diamond-mining country on the Atlantic Coast.

Fishing boats? Nope. These are used to suck diamonds off the seabed at Hondeklipbaai. This made us think about getting our scuba certification.