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STRAIN HUNTERS LIVE THREAD! - SWAZILAND


Mr.X
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STRAIN HUNTERS SWAZILAND - DAY 3

When the alarm goes off I need a few moments to understand where I am. My throat is still painful, but far less than last night.

I get up, wear some clothes and walk outside to go knock on the doors of the crew, I want to make sure everyone is awake and getting ready. By 4:45 am we are packed and ready to drive. It's still completely dark, and we drive into the night towards a nearby mountain area. After leaving the tar road behind us we drive on a dirt track for about half an hour. We are entering a large pine-trees forest, it is private land used by the local forestry department for logging concessions. We leave the cars hidden by some bushes, and walk into the forest, guided by our man Thunder, and by a local guide. The first morning light is coming up and the sky is beautiful. After a short walk we reach the fields, deep into the forest. They are guarded by a group of local growers who welcome us in their shack.

After some chatting we start walking through the plants. They are massive, 3 to 4 meters tall, and in full flower. This fields are planted with high-density, there is barely space to walk through, and we have to watch out not to break branches as we move around. The early morning dew is still shining on the buds, and when the first sun-rays hit the fields the visual effect is amazing. We hang around for a while, talking with the local growers about their watering techniques and the way they plant, then we move on to film a second field adjacent to the first one, even bigger and more beautiful. There is a small germination bed on the ground, covered by a metal net, where hundreds of seedlings are sprouting. From there the growers transplant directly in bags or into the field. While walking around in this field we notice some large plants growing in container bags, not in plain soil. They are massive, 2,5 to 3 meters tall, and full flowering. The growers explain that they always leave a part of the crop in bags, so if the police comes to cut down the fields, at least they can grab the plants growing in bags and carry them away into the forest and on to a safer location. This way they get to save a part of the crop, and they know they can always survive.

Cannabis is the only real cash-crop of Swaziland, and aside from some income from tourism, it is the backbone of the local rural economy. Cannabis fields guarantee the survival of the majority of the Swazi population, and they pay for the school fees of the majority of Swazi children.

It's almost 11 in the morning and we are up since 4, so we are getting tired and hungry. We walk back to the cars and drive to the lodge near the dam, where we take a shower and eat a good lunch before checking out. I am feeling better, my throat is finally starting to give me a break, the pills were good. Around 13:00 we drive away towards a field in Pigg's Peak area. It is the center of one of the most famous cannabis producing regions of Swaziland, everyone here is involved in the crops. The field is hidden in the bush few hundred meters away from a main road. We hide the cars in the tall grass and we walk. The plants are younger than in the fields we visited in the morning. Most of them are just starting to flower, but there is also a group of far more advanced plants in a corner of the field. A sprinkler is showering the plants in the hot mid-afternoon sun. The plants that are flowering are tall, lanky, it is clear we are getting closer to the real Swazi now. Some influences from external genetics are still visible, but overall the Swazi is dominant. The buds are long, skinny and covered in an early layer of glittering crystal. The smell is still green yet already pungent, with a woody, incense-like background and a wide range of sweet and fruity over-layers. There are many bugs bothering the plants in this field, mostly crickets, caterpillars and white fly. Nevertheless the plants are doing great, and only a small part of the crop seems affected.

Also in this field we see a germination bed full of young seedlings forming a thick green carpet. We shoot some scenes for the documentary, then take a break for a good smoke and some drinks.

We drive away hoping to reach the lodge in time for a swim before sunset, but half the way on the dirt road the Volkswagen from the crew gets a puncture: the front right tyre is busted. We try to lower the spare tyre but it's blocked, the cable is jammed. After trying for over an hour we decide to split. But and Simon stay behind to try to fix the tyre, while I drive the rest of the crew to the Lodge where they can start working on the backups of the day. we get to the lodge just after sunset, and as the crew is busy backing up Arjan and myself jump in the pool for a quick swim. Finally But and Simon solve the issue with the tyre thanks to the help of some locals, and are able to drive back to the lodge. When they arrive it's dark already. It's now time to enjoy some beers after the long, hot, dusty day. We eat a good dinner, smoke some good bud and relax.

We decided to swap the Volkswagen for another 4x4, because it has been giving trouble since the very beginning. Not only the spare tyre was jammed, there was also an issue with the gearbox. For an entire day But was forced to drive in first and third gear, the second wouldn't get in. So now we wait for a new car coming from the airport, organized by the rental company after our complaints. After an hour a second Toyota Hilux arrives to replace the Volkswagen. We are fully ready for tomorrow, and finally it's time to get some well deserved rest.

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good to hear you getting better franco

wow you work that crew hard getting up at 4 thats shows commitment to the cause grate videos as well keep up the hunting and stay safe

p.s franco you should be a rally driver the speed your doing in the truck in the first vid lol

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Strain Hunters – Swazilandia – día 3

Hoy toca madrugón de los buenos, son poco mas de las cuatro de la mañana y ya estoy lavándome los dientes e intentando despertar del todo, tengo que recoger todo el material y desconectar los cargadores, olvidarme algo sería una problema y es algo que suelo hacer.

Parece que todo está en orden así que antes de las cinco estamos en la carretera, es de noche, queremos llegar pronto al destino pues tenemos que cruzar una zona en la que temprano empiezan los trabajadores del gobierno. Es un increíble pinar, simétrico hasta donde llega la vista.

El camino no es muy largo comparado con otras veces y nos acompaña el frescor de la mañana, lo que se agradece. Llegamos al punto donde se encuentran los cultivadores y después de una pequeña pausa nos adentramos entre la maleza.

Pocos minutos después se empiezan a ver a contraluz altas sativas, que adornan todo el entorno, los lados del camino, todo lleno de cogollos. De nuevo sorprende la calidad de la mayoría de las plantas, con muy buen nivel de resina y algunas de gran porte y cogollos densos, con todo tipo de aromas, desde los más acres a los más dulces, pasando por olores a tierra, pimienta…un placer pasear entre ellas e ir oliéndolas una a una, podría estar todo el día.

Seguimos caminando y visitamos un segundo campo, de la misma calidad, el Sol empieza a bañar todo de dorado, así que aprovechamos para hacer unas fotos y vídeos, hay mucho que hacer y poco tiempo.

Los cultivadores nos comentan que una parte de las plantas son cultivadas en sacos, para que si la policía va a por ellos, al menos poder salvar una parte de las plantas llevándolas con ellos corriendo entre los árboles. Obviamente las plantas mejor desarrolladas están en tierra madre, y son todas bastante grandes, pero salvar algo es siempre un hábil movimiento por su parte una vez les toca la mala suerte de que les corten los cultivos.

También vemos las zonas de germinación, resguardadas con mimo bajo unas redes en sus primeros estadios, luego las descubren para continuar su crecimiento, antes de llevarlas a sus emplazamientos finales.

Por el camino vemos un pequeño secadero, una valla con todas las ramas apoyadas en ella, sin mas complicación. Pero parece que tampoco necesita mas.

Son cerca de las once y llevamos desde las cuatro despiertos, así que es hora de volver a cargar energías, una ducha y un rato de descanso antes de partir de nuevo.

De nuevo en el coche nos dirigimos a Pigg´s Peak, una zona con mucha cultura cannabica y donde empezamos a ver plantas más sativas, también en fase más temprana, pero aparentemente menos hibridadas y más cerca de las genéticas que nos interesa encontrar.

Aprovechamos para charlar con los cultivadores y recrearnos un rato más entre estás hermosas sativas, mientras realizamos los últimos trabajos de cámara en esta zona, queremos recoger para poder ir a filmar la puesta de sol y algunos exteriores.

Pero a media camino de vuelta, uno de los todo terreno ha pinchado, tiene un enorme boquete y hay que cambiar la rueda, lo que en principio no debía llevar más de unos minutos, se convierte en una misión imposible porque el sistema antirrobo de la rueda de repuesto no se libera, parece que se ha pasado de rosca y se ha roto. No cabemos todos en un coche, así que optan por mandarnos al equipo de cámaras de vuelta a la estancia para poder adelantar trabajo con las copias de los discos duros y las selecciones del día, tanto de fotos como de vídeos.

Ha sido un día muy largo y de provecho, hemos vuelto a ver plantas de gran calidad y nos hemos acercado un poco más a las zonas de cultivo más interesantes, con plantas que sin duda hay que preservar.

Muchas gracias por seguirnos,

Thanks a lot for the comments and good energy!

Mr.X

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Hey family, remeber to watch the photos in good quality push and folow with the "next" bottom!

Familia para ver las fotos en máxima calidad, pulsad sobre ella y sobre el botón "next" para ir pasandolas!

Saludos :wub:^_^

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