Eskom has announced they will implement Stage 2 load shedding today, from 5:00 p.m. until 10:00 p.m. this evening.  Based on the new load shedding schedule for the Greater Mossel Bay area (which went into effect on July 1st), this means if you're on The Island, you can expect to be without power from 6:00 p.m. until 8:30 p.m. tonight.

Have an Android phone or tablet?  Download News24’s GridWatch app and receive load shedding notifications for locations you choose (Groot Brak, George, etc. - and yes, George is on a different schedule...) direct to your device as they are announced.

Good news for Apple users, too - the iOS version of the GridWatch app has been released and is available for download (free) from iTunes. 

Not to be outdone, albeit, rather late to the game, Eskom has just launched their own MyEskom apps which also provide load shedding schedules and information.  You can download the Android version from the Google Play store or the iOS version from iTunes.  I've not used either of the Eskom apps - but the GridWatch apps, above, work like a charm.

The folks at News24 have a couple of handy apps if you're looking to keep up-to-date on the latest load shedding status.  The Android GridWatch app has been out for a couple of months.  Download it from Google Play to receive load shedding notifications for locations you choose (Groot Brak, George, etc. - and yes, George is on a different schedule...) direct to your device as they are announced.

And this week the iOS version of the GridWatch app for Apple users was released - it's available for download (free) on iTunes.  


Both of these mobile apps are in addition to the GridWatch website.

There is a great website app which News24 have developed which allows you to put in your preferred location(s), such as Great Brak and Port Elizabeth, and it shows you the current load shedding status for that city, including any that has been announced for later in the day.  It's called GridWatch.  The only flaw, if you can call it that, is that the app strictly adheres to the load shedding schedules, whereas Eskom doesn't (i.e. Eskom seems to end load shedding at 10:00 p.m. every day, whereas the schedules go to 10:30 p.m.).  Check it out - it's free of course.  Thanks to Andre for pointing it out.

UPDATE: Besides the website, mobile apps are now available for both Android and iOS.  Click here to see a subsequent post which provides full details.

IMPORTANT UPDATE:  Effective July 1, 2015 there is a new load shedding schedule for the Greater Mossel Bay area - see this post for the new schedule.  Until that time, the February, 2015 load shedding schedule (below) remains in effect.

UPDATE:  Check out the (free) GridWatch apps for either Android or iOS from News24 and receive load shedding notifications for locations you choose (Groot Brak, George, etc. - and yes, George is on a different schedule...) direct to your device as they are announced.

Mossel Bay Municipality's Technical Department has just forwarded a new load shedding schedule for the area (it comes from Eskom).  It is quite different from previous versions as not only are there 4 stages now (1, 2, 3A & 3B), but it is also day-of-month-dependent.

You may download it below or find it on the Municipality's own website which has also been updated.

UPDATE:  Check out the (free) GridWatch apps for either Android or iOS from News24 and receive load shedding notifications for locations you choose (Groot Brak, George, etc. - and yes, George is on a different schedule...) direct to your device as they are announced.

Ever fancied yourself a modern-day Galileo Galilei or just curious about the stars, planets & constellations swirling around above us?  The Island is a great place for star-gazing - there's very little ambient light and the skies are usually clear at night.

But if you're like me, those little white dots in the sky can be a bit of a mystery - while I can see all kinds of shapes (a shopping cart and an open tin of "Lucky Star Pilchards" are just two of my discoveries which have yet to be officially recognized by NASA....), I struggle with recognizing the, umm, more conventional constellations.  

Planets are equally confounding.  Earlier in the week when I ran into the house, excited about spotting a new planet which NASA's Kepler mission had missed, my wife was a little too quick to point out that she didn't think planet Kulula and its 147 inhabitants counted.

That's why I've resorted to using Google's way-cool SkyMap app (see this earlier post on Stargazing for more details) - or other apps like Satellite AR or Space Junk Lite - to try to figure what's out there before announcing any more new discoveries.  But even with all that technological help, it's clear that in our household, I'm still not viewed as an authority on the subject.  Now I wonder if maybe I should plan to attend the next meeting of the newly-formed Brak River Astronomical Club (BRAC) and really build up some street cred.  The club was started by Andrew Gray who is new to the area (I was a bit disappointed to read he'd relocated from from Cape Town and not planet Zorgon, but as Past-President of the Southern Africa Astrological Society, I guess he's still pretty knowledgeable).

The club held their first meeting on March 13th and plan to hold meetings on the 2nd Thursday of each month at 19h00 at the Eden Country Inn in Little Brak.  The next meeting is scheduled for April 10th.  They have a distinguished guest lined up who will try to help solve the mystery of what's out there as well.  For just R20 you can join in the fun and have a bit of tea & coffee, too.

You can find out more details on the Great Brak River Community Network website  or contact Andrew Gray on 044-696-5913 or via e-mail at magray@xsinet.co.za

If you haven't heard of it already, there's a great site for nature-lovers (or just people who are curious) called iSpot.

They describe themselves as a "Facebook for Nature" - it's basically a place where you can post photos of any living organism, plot it on a google map, and if you happen to know what it is, identify it.  If you don't know what it is, you can ask the community for their input - apparently over 90% of new contributions are identified within the first 24 hours!  They've just passed the 100,000 observations mark a few days ago.

So, if that weird slimy thing in the tide pool has got you stumped, or perhaps you've spotted a plant in a neighbour's garden or on a footpath that you'd like to identify, or maybe you're unsure just what bird that is that's sitting on the feeder, or if you don't know your grunter from your harder (or your elbow), it's the perfect place to find out.  It's also a great way to get the kids involved in discovering and engaging in the natural world around them (what kid wouldn't like to combine creepy-crawlies with playing detective?).

Or maybe, get together with some friends and do your own "bioblitz" and catalogue an entire area (big or small).

And if you're a nature fundi, you can help others identify their mystery observations or simply contribute to plotting the biodiversity that exists within our very own backyard here in the Garden Route.

Click on the image above to check out their neat website!

Ever been curious about the large ocean-going vessels offshore?  Well, www.marinetraffic.com is a neat website where you can find out more information - just zoom in on the map to the area you're interested in (Great Brak & Mossel Bay, for instance).

Or use the port search function on the left and type in Mossel Bay and you'll see some small coloured icons...

Click on one of them and you'll get a photo of the vessel - if you're curious about where it's come from, just click on the "Vessel Track" on that same photo and you'll see its path to its current position in the last hour. 

Use the zoom in/out unction and you can see what else is happening along the coast...

With the particularly low tide this morning it was a perfect day for a walk to the Reebok tide pools (and to Little Brak beyond).  If you only want to go as far as the tide pools, it's about a 45 minute walk.  Be sure to bring tekkies or old beach shoes so you can explore them without cutting your feet on the barnacles and mussels).

Oh, and if you're wondering what the helicopters are doing circling overhead - usually off Reebok - they are no doubt spotting Great White sharks (see the Ocearch shark tracker images below - but note these are just for the sharks that are tagged - and in order to "ping" the transmitting device must be at the surface & dry for 90 seconds - meaning this just scratches the surface of shark activity in the area).

Click on any of the images below for the full details of the beach walking route and for more photos on the sports-tracker.com website.

We've had some wonderfully clear skies the last few nights - and with such little ambient light, The Island is the perfect place for stargazing.  If you're a novice like me, but have a gps-enabled android smartphone, you'll find the Google Sky Map incredibly handy.  It is one of the most amazing free downloads I've come across. For iPhone and iPad users, the Star Walk app is similar and is available on iTunes for USD $2.99  Either way, just lay back on your blanket and point your phone skyward and voila! - the stars, planets, constellations, etc. are all be labelled for you.