The Athlone Towers

Friday 20th August 2010 and I’m on my way from Somerset West towards Cape Town. I’m going to take my last photographs of the Athlone Towers. I approach from the East, so I first take the Bungu Road turnoff and pull my car off the road on the Northern side of the bridge.

I walk back across the bridge to see where the good photographs may be taken. A lady sees me walking with my bag, pulls over and calls to me. “Do you have car problems” she asks. I am so touched by this act of kindness. “No”, I said, “I just want to take some photographs of the towers before they are taken down on Sunday”. I thanked her and she drove away.

I walk back and forth across the bridge, taking photographs from different sides and angles. Suddenly there were 2 other people taking photographs. We chat a bit discussing viewpoints. I leave first – I want to take more photographs from the Jan Smuts Avenue side.

There are about 12 cars on the Jan Smuts side. All taking photographs of the towers. Some creative people are standing as though they are holding up the towers with the photographer a bit further away – I’d love to see some of those photos.

As I walk backwards and forwards taking photographs, I stop and speak to the others. The feelings are all the same – deep sadness that they are going. “El kannie glo dat onse torings nie hier sal wees nie ” (I can't believe that our towers won't be here). Residents of Athlone who were born and brought up in the vicinity of the towers – “Onse Torings!” (Our Towers!)

For me, they were my “weather cock” for about 40 years. I think that they played this vital role for every Cape Tonian who lived in the Southern or Eastern Suburbs. Whatever the journey, it is just second nature to check the wind direction on the towers. Is it going to be a nice weekend, or a wet weekend? Is it going to be good at the beach, or should I give the beach a miss today? Which beaches are going to be best – those on the Western side or those on the Eastern side of the Peninsula? The towers are more reliable than the formal weather forecasters in those days.

It took some getting used to, to not see the steam when they were decommissioned in 2003. It was just habit to check out the wind from the steam rising out the top of the towers – the ultimate forecaster for weather in Cape Town.

They are also key locational and directional indicators. “I’m just before the towers .... just after the towers ..... about 2 kms before the towers .... stuck in heavy traffic at the towers!” Everyone knows exactly where you are and how long it’s going to take you to get to where-ever it is that you are going.

Now its Sunday afternoon, 22nd August, and the towers are gone. The silent giants that played – not an important role really, but a definitive role in my life for so many years, are gone.

But I suppose that they haven’t really gone – at least, not until I have to drive that way again.