The weather in Mossel Bay, our new home town, is nothing if not variable, typical of coastal towns along the southern Cape coast.

This past week the mist has rolled in from the sea every day, sometimes dissipating by mid morning but often remaining for most of the day. Without the usual sea breezes the days have been warm and humid, so the cooling mist has been welcome.

Let’s start with a mood-setting video taken at The Point in Mossel Bay yesterday afternoon – listen for the mournful sound of the foghorn in the background and the whistling calls of the Oystercatchers flying past – it was completely fortuitous that they flew by just as I took the video

When not flying about and whistling, African Black Oystercatchers can usually be found on rocky shorelines at low tide, looking for mussels which they prise open with their bills.

We were not put off our customary coffee time visits to the Point this past week, it just meant the sea view where we usually park was somewhat limited. However the mist did recede enough while we were there for us to be able to make out a couple of pelagic species such as Parasitic Jaegers and Cory’s Shearwaters in addition to the usual complement of Swift Terns, Kelp Gulls, Cormorants and the occasional Cape Gannet

I ventured onto the rocks below the parking area to take a few shots of the scenery, softened by the mist and with that slightly mysterious aura that such conditions impart.

Meanwhile back at the ranch – well actually the golf estate that is our home nowadays, the mist was creating scenes like this when I went for a late afternoon walk