I’ve had a lot of people ask me to do an updated video of the Ghost Vines of Theewaterskloof. So I headed there early Friday morning. This time I didn’t struggle through the sludge, but instead drove all the way up to the vineyard.
It was yet again an amazing site to see. A perfect morning to put my DJI Phantom 4 in the sky to get a better perspective of the vastness of these vineyards. The air was cool. Crisp. It was quiet, with that eerie feeling returning from the first time JD and I walked up to those unknown vines. They still stood there, mysterious yet proud. They had grown in numbers. They are now an army compared the the vines you saw in the first video. The drought that strangles the Western Cape really shows when you stand there – right on the edge of the dam. New blocks of vineyards are now exposed, the old Villiersdorp road now completely elevated and dry – drivable for the first time in decades.
I see two local guys fishing when I drive back. They have found a pond within the dam where the carp is stuck. They tell me that if they don’t catch them, the fish will die on dry land within a matter of a few weeks, even days.
For the people that live here the impact is real. For most city dwellers it is a myth, sometimes a conspiracy. A series of videos posted on Facebook and youtube with mostly false information and accusations.
But this post is not about the water crises, instead it is a dramatic view of these relics. My wife laughed when I showed her this new video. She said that “dry times calls for dry drama”. Very funny 🙂 Because this video is out of place with some I have made, but I think it is worthy of these vines and the current situation we are facing as a province. Be sure to crank up the quality gear in youtube – I didn’t buy a new drone just for fun! Enjoy
