Welcome to RalphPina.com

Thank you for visiting my outdoor blog. RalphPina.com documents my experiences over many years of appreciating, and adventuring in, Nature. It celebrates visual beauty, advocates minimal impact, reflects on humans’ relationship with our ecosphere, spans the planet but focuses on the wild diversity of southern Africa. Photos, videos and GPS maps of hiking, cycling, kayaking, abseiling, canoeing and windsurfing..

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Jonkershoek colour explosion

by Ralph Pina | Nov 1, 2009 | Jonkershoek Nature Reserve

Photos of the Watsonias in Jonkershoek after the big summer fire and the winter rains. Deon and I took a cycle up the valley to capture them before the summer winds take their toll.

Climbing Victoria Peak

by Ralph Pina | Sep 9, 2009 | hiking, Jonkershoek Nature Reserve, scenic walks, trails

At 1589m Victoria Peak is the highest summit in the Jonkershoek area. It is visible beyond the valley from Stellenbosch and is often - as it is today - covered in a white blanket of snow. The route as shown in this Google Earth track winds up the eastern edge of the...

Baboons matter

by Ralph Pina | Aug 23, 2009 | conservation, Table Mountain National Park

On the Cape Peninsula there are few people who are neutral towards the local Chacma baboons: you either love them or hate them. The remnant troops of the Table Mountain National Park which now protects a large portion of the peninsula, range from the southern table of...

Doring River rafting

by Ralph Pina | Jul 25, 2009 | Cederberg Wilderness Area, trails

The Doring drains the Tankwa Karoo through the Cederberg range into the Olifants River. It can only be rafted in the winter-rainfall months of July to September. Photos and a Google Earth file. The weather forecast for this weekend promised nothing good. Consecutive...