Are Nature's Wonders Truly a Wonderful Thing?

It’s not often the Nice and Serious crew get to escape the shores of the motherland for filming, but when they do, they certainly do it in style. For those of you who don’t keep up to date with our Twitter and Facebook feeds (and shame on you for not doing so... we’re quite a big thing on the interweb don’t you know), I’m talking here of our recent trip to South Africa.

While we were in Cape Town to get footage of a sustainable Hake fishery for an on-going fisheries project (watch this space, film to be released soon), we had the chance to see some of the amazing sites the area had to offer, the highlight of which was Table Mountain. I mean, what self-respecting ethical film crew could go to South Africa and not get multiple time-lapses of Table Mountain...?! Anyway, while waiting for the cable car to take us up the 722 metres to the summit, I noticed that the mountain was in the running for the new 7 wonders of nature. And quite rightly too, not only are the views from Table Mountain incredible, but the view of the mountain itself is not to be stiffed at. When you combine this with the fact that it hosts the smallest yet richest floral kingdom on earth, with around 1,400 different species, as well as many fauna, it’s no surprise that on the 11/11/11, when the final new 7 wonders of nature were announced, Table Mountain was included.

While I was in Africa, I got the chance to speak to some locals and asked if there was any big game present on the mountain (my boyish excitement at seeing a lion or elephant was impossible to hide!). “There used to be, a long time ago but not anymore” was the reply. Apparently there used to be many animals living on and around Table Mountain but due to the spread of Cape Town, these have long moved on, or more likely, been hunted out. So this makes me ponder how beneficial being one of the “New 7 Wonders of Nature” can be. Sure, it’s going to boost the tourist industry and local economy. And sure, many people may gain more appreciation and respect for the natural world. But with the millions of bucket-listers that will travel to these spots over the coming years, one does have to wonder how long they remain wonders themselves.

For those of you who want a little taste of Table Mountain for yourselves, without the environmental impact, check out this montage of clips we shot whilst there...it’s WONDERful stuff: