A short walk in Steenbok Nature Reserve, Knysna

When we clicked over to the New Year, I didn't write a list of resolutions or decide on new goals to achieve. I'm still working through myriad ones from the last six months. I think that incrementally working through the boxes that need to be ticked and then adding new ones as they pop up is (in my opinion) a healthier, more organic way to approach life and reduce overwhelm.

For those who read my last post, you'll know that one thing I'm committing to is walking regularly again. I have some baby weight I'd like to lose but apart from that, I know that a brisk 10 minute walk does funky things to your brain and body! The release of endorphins (dopamine, serotonin and Norepinephrine) and the reduction of cortisol all help to reduce pain, anxiety and depression as well as obviously having the physical benefits. A few years back I got into running. I used to run between 5 and 10kms every second or third day and it was excellent at combatting stress. I'd love to run again but if I ran now, I'd probably die (not actually, figuratively but I'd feel like I did). Maybe one day I'll get there again, who knows, it's not impossible.

We took a short drive to Leisure Island where there is a little nature reserve. It looks over the salt marshes of the lagoon and has a well maintained walkway with many benches along it. While it is essentially run by the local council, it was officially founded in 2006 when the Leisure Island Residents Association and Knysna Municipality entered into a joint partnership to manage the reserve for the enjoyment of both residents and visitors of Knysna. There is an active "Friends of Steenbok Nature Reserve" group who raise funds and lobby for improvements of the area.

---

Lory was very excited to be out and about - after I had told her we would be going for a walk later, she hounded me incessantly (for what felt like hours) before we left.

She was delighted when we finally arrived and diligently clutched the map I retrieved from the information board for her. She was the field guide for our excursion, pulling out her map every few minutes and telling me tales about various things along the way. It was rather entertaining considering she can't read yet but she was very good at finding the flowers and trying to match them to the pamphlet.

The whole Knysna area is filled with little gems like this and I am very keen to get to know each of them well. I doubt there will be a shortage of places to go for short walks.

---

The marshes are also home to a number of estuarine/salt marsh loving birds like Spurwing Geese, Dabchicks (Little Grebes), Herons etc., and I'm sure there are plenty of amphibians and crustaceans too, although I am not about to venture into the mudflats to find out lol.

---

The walk is dotted with some lovely flowers which add a splash of colour here and there to the landscape. The ones that I could identify included Agapanthus, Brunsvigia orientalis and Geranium incanum. Some of the flowers are purely ornamental and not necessarily indigenous to the area.

---

The walk around the whole island is approximately 4kms and the straight walk from the parking lot to the other end of the island is about 1.8kms. Between these two there's plenty of room for us to start out on short little walks and then build on them. Obviously I need to keep things entertaining for Lory and I'll have to find some other walks for us to do in between so that she doesn't get bored of the same routes each time. Variety is the spice of life they say.

There is also a beautiful seating bench a little way into the reserve called the Reflection Seedpod. This is a stunning functional wooden art installation that overlooks the estuary wetland. It was so moving to learn about that I have decided to dedicate and entire post to it in the next few days. From afar if you don't know what it is, it looks like some sort of summoning portal aimed at the sky, the kind that you see if sci-fi movies. With the low hanging cloud cover, this was my first thought. I know, I'm a weirdo.

The walk is flat and easy going, perfect for getting us (and by us I totally mean me) back into some form of fit, then I can start looking for more challenging things to hike like hills.

I'm enjoying exploring the area that is now my backyard. And a freaking stunning backyard it is. I am very grateful to live is such a beautiful place!

_{All images are my own}