Quathlamba
“A
mass of spears. Named thus by the Zulu warriors before the white man came.
Today called the Drakensberg, mountains of the Dragon, a name given by the
Voortrekkers. Evocative names, both equally applicable to South Africa’s
mightiest mountain range with its spear-like peaks – reminiscent of the
saw-toothed spine of a gigantic dragon.”
Panorama April 1966This blog is all about the Drakensberg Mountains and its Wilderness area, South Africa. I have lost my heart and soul to this area and every single time I hike these mountains, I stand in awe all over again at this magnificent beauty.
"How often in the course of our travels through Kwazulu-Natal do we stop and gaze at the beauty of a distant range of mountains? The Drakensberg stands as a monument to one of the greatest cataclysms the Earth has experienced. As you approach the mountains, you realize why early Zulus called it "Quathlamba", meaning “Barrier of Up-pointed Spears". A cradle of rivers. Listen to the streams as they gurgle from their cradles and you will hear the story of the mountains. You will hear fascinating tales if only you listen! Lie next to a stream and listen to the song of the mountains. The smiling faces of the flowers, dancing in the wind. Venture into the remote valleys or stand on a peak at sunrise or sunset, after snow has fallen, and you will hear a song that you will never forget - the Song of the High Mountain". (DA Dodds)
Hiking adventures, hiking gear reviews, day walks, accommodation, books, articles and photos, all related to these magnificent mountains will feature here.
Should you want to accompany me on a hike or need some information or advice, please make contact with me. I hope you enjoy the articles.
Please visit the archive for some more interesting stories and reviews.
Available in the Archive
(Do read it!)
1) Injasuthi to Lotheni
- Epic 6 Day Hike
2) Review: Hi-Tec
Altitude Pro RGS Hiking Boots
3) Drakensberg
Wilderness Hiking - 14 Day Hiking trip - Lotheni Reserve (Part 3)
4) Lotheni - 14 Day
Hiking Trip (Part 2)
5) Lotheni - 14 Day
Hiking Trip (Part 3)
6) The Bushmen of the
Drakensberg
7) Thunderstorms in the
Drakensberg Mountains
Please note that all photos on this blog are copyright protected. If you would like to obtain
Photos please make contact with the author, Willem Pelser.
THUNDERSTORMS
IN THE DRAKENSBERG MOUNTAINS
“When
you see lightning, it has already missed you. When you hear thunder, relax, the
show is over. The noise is just the audience rushing for the exits.”
The Dragon of the
Dragon Mountains comes out of his lair and roars defiance with Fire and
Fury…………………
One of the most dramatic and awe-inspiring
displays of nature is the sky-splitting spear of light that flashes from the
thunder cloud during a storm and the deafening roar that follows it. It is not
surprising that our ancestors were unable to explain lightning, and consigned
it to the world of the supernatural. Today, we know that lightning is no more
than a gigantic spark, and our scientists have been able to explain exactly
what brings it about.
When a thunder cloud is being formed, a mass
of warm, humid air rises until it cools and condenses into water vapor and tiny
ice crystals. In due course, as the clouds grow in size, these droplets and
crystals coalesce to form raindrops and hail. When this happens, a separation
of electric charges takes place within the cloud by a complicated process that
need not detain us here. What is important is that the cloud mass now becomes a
huge dynamo, generating millions of volts of electricity. It acts, too, as a
huge storage battery, with the positive terminal at the top of the cloud, and
the negative terminal at the bottom – perhaps several kilometers below.
Meanwhile, the base of the cloud which
carries an overall negative charge induces a positive charge on the surface of
the earth directly below. As the cloud drift over the countryside, the positive
charge on the ground follows the negative charge like shadow, climbing trees,
ridges, pinnacles – anything that will bring it closer to the cloud.
We must now note that when a negatively
charged object is brought into contact with one that has a positive charge,
electrons flow from one to the other so that the two objects become equalized,
and the tension between them neutralized. If, however, the current is high
enough, they do not even need to touch – the electrons will leap across the
space separating them, making a spark. Lightning is nothing more than spark on
a gigantic scale. It is in fact, the high current discharge which cancels the
electrical imbalance within the storm cloud itself, or between the cloud and
the earth. The potential difference in energy between the cloud and the ground
can be as much as a thousand-million volts of electricity! It is estimated that
there are about 1 800 storms in operation throughout the world at any one time,
and that lightning strikes the earth about 100 times every second.
When lightning flashes, we do not see the
electrons themselves. What we see is the air particles in the strike path which
have been super-heated to incandescence. The particles are made white-hot by
the lightning current, and reach temperatures as high as 30 000 degrees
centigrade. The super-heated air expands explosively, producing a shock-wave,
which breaks the sound barrier and we hear thunder.
The long drawn-out peal that issues from a
single stroke of lightning may last for several seconds. There are several
reasons for this. In the first place, sound travels at about 330 meters per
second, or about one kilometer in 3 seconds – far slower than the speed of
light. If lightning strikes nearby, the first acoustic signal to reach our ears
(usually a deafening crash) will come from the end of the stroke, perhaps only
a short distance away. Sound, however, will be generated along the entire
length of the lightning path, which might extend several kilometers into the
sky. This means that thunder will be heard continuously until the sound waves
from the furthest point of the strike channel have reached us. The sound we
hear is uneven because lightning normally takes an uneven path. This brings
about the rolling and rumbling effects which last for many seconds.
Reflections, or echoes, from mountains or valleys may accentuate these sound
effects, and cause them to continue even longer. This is one of the reasons why
storms in mountain regions are so dramatic.
Incidentally, with our knowledge of the
speed of sound, we can easily determine the approximate distance of a lightning
strike. All we have to do is count the number of seconds it takes for the peal
of thunder to reach us after the flash appeared, and divide the time in seconds
by three. This will give the distance in kilometers between us and the point of
impact.
Every year, people in Kwa-Zulu Natal are
killed by lightning. Most of these are people living in grass huts, but
lightning fatalities are not unknown in the Drakensberg. Many years ago, a man
and a girl (daughter of the Administrator of the Free State) were killed on the
escarpment close to the Namahadi pass near the Chain Ladder in the Royal Natal
National Park. A brass plaque, commemorating their deaths, use to stand at the
spot – a solemn reminder to all passers-by of the perils of a summer storm. A
game ranger, John Clarke and his girlfriend, Carol Richter, together with their
dog, were killed by lightning during a “dry storm” on the 20th
December 1979. They were standing on a ledge overlooking the Injasuthi Valley
at the time, watching the storm built up.
Lightning generally follows the shortest
possible route between a cloud and the earth. For this reason we should avoid
tall trees, rocky outcrops, and high summits, particularly if they are well
defined. There is, however some evidence to prove that a tall pinnacle or rock
projection can act as a lightning conductor, and provide a zone of protection
for the hiker. The area protected by the high point is termed the lightning
shadow, and its area has a diameter four times the height of the projection.
If the hiker finds himself in an exposed
position during a thunder storm, he should avoid running for shelter at all
cost. Running in a potentially charged area creates a magnetic field which
attracts lightning. He should crouch down on some kind of insulating material,
such as a sleeping bag or pile of clothing. Standing or lying down can be
dangerous. You should keep out of vertical cracks and chimneys flowing with
water, and away from dripping overhangs. Water is a good conductor of
lightning, and hikers have received severe shocks even hundreds of meters below
a summit after a strike. Rock climbers should remember that a wet abseil rope
will provide a good path for an electrical current, while belay ropes can
direct a stream of water on to the body.
Perhaps the very best advice is, keep calm –
never give way to panic. If you have taken reasonable safeguards and
precautions, your chances of being hit by lightning are very slim. Enjoy the
show!!
Sunrise from the summit of the Berg is never
more beautiful than after a night of storms. The air is clean and bracing, and
the silence is undisturbed. The light breaks through the parting clouds in a
blaze of glory, and lays a mantle of gold over the rain-washed peaks. This is
the moment to be awake and alert, for the beauty of daybreak never lingers.
If
you are in the mountains, you need to assess your situation and decide what to
do. Here are some guidelines:
If
you’re above the tree line on an exposed ridge, get lower. Don’t hide under
trees.
If
you’re in a forest and can’t find a clearing, find the lowest group of trees
you can and try to stay away from their bases.
If
you can, look for a cave, or find a low, open space, a meadow or a clearing of
some kind, and head to the lowest ground possible. The entrance to a cave
can be hazardous, so move in and out as quickly as possible.
Stay
away from taller rocks. Rocks can attract lightning the same as anything; if
there’s an appealing shelter under a rock; make sure it’s not very tall.
If
you’re in an open space, spread out about 20 feet apart from each other and
away from tall trees, and try to stay dry and warm. Wait for the storm to
clear, or until you haven’t had lightning closer to you than 10 seconds (mark
the time from when you see the flash to when you hear the thunder) for ten
minutes, and then get to safety.
Once
you’ve found your place of refuge, whether in a group of shorter trees, the
back of a cave, a low spot in a meadow, or a low spot on a talus slope, get
into the lightning position. Minimize your contact with the ground by standing
on a foam pad with your feet close together and crouch or squat to lower your
overall height. If you don’t have a foam pad, you can use your pack. Make sure
to keep your shoes on, as the sole will help insulate you. The idea is to
minimize your contact with the ground and stay insulated from the ground.
If
you’re at your camp, evaluate how close a proper shelter is. If a building or
your car is nearby, then head for it. Otherwise, evaluate the safety of
your camp spot. Are you near tall trees? Are you on a highpoint in a clearing?
If your tent is not near tall trees, and you’re in a low spot in a clearing,
you’re probably best staying in it. Remove all the metal items you can and put
them far away from your tent. Try to stay insulated from the ground using your
sleeping pads and backpacks. The exception would be if you have an old tent
with steel or non-anodized aluminum poles, as these will conduct electricity.
If your tent has anodized aluminum poles or fiberglass poles and you’re pitched
in a good spot, staying in your tent may be your best option.
If
you’re climbing, you’re in a tough spot. The best option is to go down. If this
isn’t possible and you have to wait it out on the wall, try to find a good
ledge or a cave you can take shelter on or hide in. Space out as best you can
from your climbing partners. If you get stuck at a hanging belay, have some
people lower down so your group is as spaced out as possible. Bolts and chains
will attract/conduct electricity, but your anodized aluminum carabineers won’t (provided
the coating is not worn off). It’s important to remember, however, that
everything conducts electricity when it’s wet.
If
someone gets struck by lightning, there are three major risks: electrical
shock, secondary heat production, and explosive force. Electrical shock and
skin burns are the most common injuries sustained after a lightning strike.
Send for help immediately, treat for shock right away, make sure the victim is
breathing and has a strong pulse, administer chest compressions and rescue
breathing if necessary, and then treat any burns. Make sure to minimize
additional lightning risk while treating victims.
Remember:
the easiest and most effective way to stay safe in a lightning/thunderstorm is
not to get caught in one. Be alert to signs in the weather that will tell you a
thunderstorm is coming. If you do get caught, assess your situation. How far
are you from safety? How severe is the storm? Can you go down? Should you stay
put? In high alpine terrain, speed is safety. Early starts help you get off the
mountain or out of the danger zone before a storm hits. Having a good base of
fitness, whether hiking, climbing, or paddling, will help you be able to step
on the gas and get out of a bad spot if a storm moves in on your fun.
Do NOT seek shelter under a picnic
shelter, lone tree, or other object to keep you dry. It will attract lightning.
The rain won't kill you so it is better to be wet and alive than dry and dead.
Come down from high places. Seek a
valley or depression in the terrain. Be careful of entering a dry wash that may
channel a flashflood from the rainstorm.
Seek shelter in a low stand of trees.
This will help keep you dry and not attract lightning.
If you are above tree line, seek
shelter in the lowest area you can reach, preferably with large boulders around
so you can get some protection from driving rain behind some smaller boulders.
Put on your raingear and remove your
backpack.
If you have a metal frame pack, leave
it 100 feet from where you are seeking shelter.
If you have a hiking stick or poles,
leave them with your pack.
Your group should not huddle together.
Instead, have each person find shelter about 100 feet apart. This minimizes the
possibility of multiple casualties from a single strike.
If you are not able to get to any
shelter, you need to become a small target and cross your fingers. Minimize
your contact with the ground and minimize your height. Crouching down on the
balls of your feet placed close together with your head tucked down is the
recommended position. This position reduces your exposure and encourages any
lightning strike to travel down your back and hopefully have less damage to
vital organs. Lightning travels through the ground from the point of impact in
random tendrils similar to tree roots. The smaller your footprint, the less
chance there is of you being shocked from a nearby strike.
Cover your ears and close your eyes to
protect from the intense noise and light of nearby strikes.
Lightning First Aid
Lightning
is an extreme electric shock and has similar first aid requirements for burns
and heart attacks.
Immediately after a close strike, do a
headcount of everyone in your party having them call back to you that they are
ok. If someone does not respond, go to their location. Only allow those you
need to gather. Keep everyone else spread out since there is still danger of
additional strikes.
There is no electrical residue after a
strike. It is safe to touch someone that has been struck.
If there are multiple victims,
prioritize care needed. A victim that is not breathing is highest priority.
There is a relatively good chance of reviving a lightning victim with CPR.
Check for and give first aid for burns.
Check around jewelry, buckles, and fingers and toes especially.
Treat for shock, keeping the victim
warm and calm.
Immediately send for help.
Compiled by Willem Pelser
References and Acknowledgement
“A Camera in
Quathlamba” – ML Pearce
Black and
White Photos – “A Camera in Quathlamba” - ML Pearce
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