Our recent trip to the spectacular landscape of the Eastern Cape to cover The Mdumbi Green Fair Music Festival gave us the opportunity, or should we say we made the opportunity, to capture some beautiful sunrises, sunsets and night skies. We stayed at the awesome Mdumbi Backpackers this time and Matt and I woke up early and put in the effort no matter how tired we were from the night before’s work. We were rewarded with these moments:
One of the most memorable and spectacular sunrises that I have seen in a long time. Matt got some unbelievable video footage as well. And to think that I nearly never woke him up.
The Mdumbi area is always mooooving for me. I think these local cows love the beach more than me if that is possible. Respect.
This was an unexpected pic as I have never captured waves in sync before. Their choreography was admirable.
Sunset on the first night there. Just wait till you see how clear that sky was and how many stars were visible.
The Mdumbi Backpackers under the most unbelievable sky. We were pretty tired after the long drive but I just couldn’t help myself and told Matt that I had to make use of every moment whilst there. We went out down to the beach at about 6:30-7pm(not long after sunset) and the Milky Way was like this. Usually you have to wait until very late in the evening or early morning to see this. Absolutely astounding. And the next few nights were cloudy or the moon was too bright.
The sand banks on the sides of the Mdumbi River at low tide.
I kept trying to sneak up on these birds but they were too sharp and flew away each time.
This was that amazing sunrise. And if you think that this is from Photoshop then you are wrong as it doesn’t come close to what it was actually like with the naked eye.
Afternoon over the Tshani hills.
Dodgy looking weather but it actually came and went without anything actually happening. It made for an incredible photo though.
This was the first day at Mdumbi and I just had to cross the river to capture the birds and cows on the other side. I waded across in my undies(thankfully for you and me I don’t like selfies) and found that it was only waste deep. Somehow on the way back, just a few minutes later, I couldn’t find the same banks and ended up wading up to chest deep with my camera above my head.
I see this view all the time down at Mdumbi but for some reason this day I was captivated by it and had to capture it. Maybe it was the blue skies in the background.
This was the morning we left. We got up early and after a heart breaking surf check we decided to pack up and leave. The swell was predicted to pick up at 9am but it was dead flat at sunrise. My friend who lives there now kindly let me know that it did actually pick up from 9am and was gangbusters later on. You win some you lose some. This is the view from the Mdumbi Backpackers lookout tower.
Something that I have noticed down at Mdumbi is the sunsets and often that it is better to be facing in the opposite direction to the actual sun. This is looking out to sea with the beautiful pastel hues creating a pretty backdrop for the white, puffy clouds.
What fun, cycling along the most beautiful beach with your dogs running along beside you.
Sunrise over Mdumbi with some sunbeams making an appearance and creating a beautiful image.
Long exposure of Mdumbi point in black and white for a change.
I love this pic as it is so simple. King of the hill.
The dirt road leading down to the boat launch area at Mdumbi point.
Sunset over the Tshani hills.
A local off to work with his “tractor” following.
Sunset over the Mdumbi River.
A beautiful sunset over Tshani.
The three wave dance continues.
Waves heading in all directions near the shore.
A typical Eastern Cape scene of huts, hills and cows.
Sunset over Tshani with just a sliver of a moon visible. This was the when we saw all the stars.
Mdumbi point in black and white
This was that amazing sunrise but a short while later when the red had disappeared.
The steep hill heading down to the beach at Mdumbi. Always a treat heading down but requiring a lot more effort coming back up.
The early evening making the bumpy, dirt road even look good.
Sunrise in the Eastern Cape.
That same amazing sunrise but zoomed in on a few huts across the river.
More of the sunrise but with a wider view of the river as well.
Sunrise over Mdumbi Bay.
Sunset and early evening looking back from Mdumbi point towards the Mdumbi river.
Under an African sky.
That red, orange sun making those clouds look quite threatening.
Have a look at the event coverage of the Mdumbi Green Fair Music Festival here or if you would like to see some other events then head back to our events page here.
