Namakwa, Namakwa………Northern Cape!

Posted on October 30, 2012 by Mark

Well, I might as well share this quick 10 day trip to the Namakwa….. :wink2:

Frans aka Hou da nou da from Groblersdal contacted me (as he does every holiday….. :lol: ) for a quick trip he has been looking forward to for some time…..

So we agreed and quickly made bookings for April 2012 with Namakwa District Municipality (Tourism Office) Email: marikag@namakwa-dm.gov.za
Website http://www.northerncape.org.za
Private Bag X 20
Springbok
8240
Tel.027 712 8035
Fax.027 712 1421

Cost of the 5 day trail is R150.00 per vehicle (bargain…. :!: ) however you need to be self sufficient during this period :!:
Map info:

Attachment:

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Vehicle / occupants:
Myself / wife (Danelle 0000DS) – Hilux Vigo DC 2.5 D4D – Crysten (14) & Kiara (6)
Frans / wife Denise – Hilux Vigo 3.0 D4D – x4 kids – 2, 9, 11, 13y

Round trip Jhb / Jhb 2746km’s

Day 1 was to push through to Upington approx. 800km’s via Koster, LIchtenburg, Vryburg, Kuruman and then Upington. There Cobus aka Kaspaas recommended we stay over at Oranjerus Camp site (S28 38.350 E21 07.107) and we were not disappointed one bit :thumbup: Nice green grass with shaded camping area, pool, bar, restaurant, braai facilities and immaculate bathrooms. (Rate 80.00pp kids U13 R40.00) And on the bank of the Orange river :wink2:

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That afternoon Khalahari Seun & Kaspaas came to visit as we had not met before…..What nice guys :thumbup: Please do contact them if you are in the area, they know it well and will gladly to assist

The following day (Sunday) we took some time to explore the area Kanoneiland and some of it’s attractions…..no much but pleasant :thumbup:

Cobus had kindly invited us on a tour of Oranjerivier Wine Cellers which we obviously agreed to just before Keimoes :thumbup: Was an interesting tour to say the least and some……wine was drunk……only a little :lol: :lol:

And obviously we had to take some home :thumbup:

After a nice tour we had to say our goodbuy’s and headed for Kakamas. But first lunch @ Vergelegen Restaurant, also recommended and not disappointed at all :thumbup: S28 45.105 E20 38.626
Expect some of these on route…… :twisted:

n Kakamas we stopped traditionally at ‘Die Pienk Padstal’ for some snacks….. :thumbup:

From here we headed to the recommended farm Raapenskraap S28 37.454 E19 30.550 (via the Onseepkrans road) and the campsite was wonderful and rustic!!! We were the only people there and had the place to ourselves :dance1: Bit of a bush camp, next to the Orange river, with a donkey, nice fireplace and wood for Africa :thumbup: What more could we ask for :wink2: For R100 per vehicle per night, not bad !

There are also a few guest houses available, should you not want to camp.

The campsite

Oh yes carefull the thorns…… :lol: :lol: :lol:

Supper, hamburgers and chips on the fire, kids favourite :wink2:

They farm here mainly with grapes and lemon’s and is part of Karstens Boerdery !

The following day we headed S/E towards Pofadder S29 07.509 E19 23.796

When in Pofadder main spar or whatever they call it, make sure to get some delicious billies……don’t forget to share…… :thumbup:

Anyway from there we moved to Klein Pella farm (S29 00.343 E19 00.705) also mainly farming grapes and dates (export) and part of Karstens Boerdery. Camping here was R150.00 per vehicle, swimming pool, braai facilities, clean ablutions and friendly staff :thumbup: There are also some rooms available for those who do not wish to camp and a small restaurant and bar facilities.
Pella here:

Campsite view :dance1:

Kids enjoying the pool….

Afternoon nap for some…… :roll:

Such a relaxing place we decided to stay for 2 nights :thumbup:

For the next day which is actually part of the Namakwa4x4 route we left most of our goods at Klein Pella camp site as we would do the circle route to Pella about a 6 hour drive.

Type in these co-ordinates S29 00.902 E19 01.166 which will take you from Klein Pella to Pella viaa very scenic route :thumbup:

Once you get to Pella follow these co-ordinates which will take you through Charlies Pass :dance1: Ask the locals for directions should you get lost, absolutely worth the drive :!: :!: :!: Follow these co-ordinates S29 01.319 E19 10.432

Stunning scenery :thumbup:

The pass eventually takes you to the banks of the Orange river :wink2:

hen along the route we spotted this road…..on the Namibian side…..and ‘other’ thoughts were going through my mind. Where does it come from, why and leading down to the river?

Anyone driven this road before :?: T4A shows no road there…… :roll:

Clearer view of the road.

So along the river just North of Pella heading East (oh yes….forgot to mention, for those that don’t know the trail can only accommodate 10 vehicles per day so bookings are essential as well as the ‘permit’ for the Namakwa4x4 trail! The trail can also only be driven from East to West, thus eliminating traffic I suppose :thumbup:

Found a nice spot in a dry riverbed :thumbup:

Time to cool down :thumbup:

Frans almost getting into a bit of a situation….. :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Luckily he managed to get out……but later it would be my turn….. :oops: :oops:

From there it’s another hour drive to the farm Klein Pella, where we would overnight again :thumbup:

Break :!:

Some more date plantations

Pickers still at work at the end of the season

O….K, where was I….. :o:

The older girls slept outside as the weather is still pleasant

While the younger one’s felt better in the tent

We left Klein Pella or shall I say the kids left KP with heavy hearts, towards Grootmelkhoutboom

Witbank, a small settlement on route

Ruins

Almost at Groothoutmelkboom and I was getting hungry…… :oops: For a sarmie and some coffee……However when we got there the group ahead of us were still chilling there….. :aggresive:

So we stopped and said our hello’s…just passing through…won’t stay long and disturb the peace……

Danelle said ‘lets leave rather….’ Me not happy agreed and pulled away in a huff….not far and……..damm, STUCK :!:

Front wheel….

Back wheel….

All wheels….. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Frans quickly deflated his tyres and came to assist with a tug :thumbup: Tx Frans :wink2:

Back to he Klein Pella camp site

So off we headed to out favourite camping spot, Ramansdrift :dance1:

And that was that :!: We decided as we have no further bookings we would stay here, no further :thumbup:

What more can one ask for :?:

We really had an awsome time here and the ladies even remembered to pack easter eggs for the kids :thumbup:

Some more pics

Kids even managed to catch some fish, this entertained them quite somewhat :thumbup:

If you like loud music, malls and crowds….this is def. not for you…. :blackeye:

Here I must add the awnings came in pretty handy, there is little shade in this area :wink2:

Sunrise

Easter some easter eggs for the kids, which they enjoyed! Another advantage of having x2 fridges – they come in quite handy :thumbup:

The following day/s we just spent chilling next to the river. Kids loved the riding the small rapids with the tubes…..& kept them occupied :thumbup:

Frans trying for the big one….

And this is what I live for :thumbup:

It doesn’t get better than this… :!:

The following morning waking up to this was awsome, pic from RRT :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

Packed and ready to rumble……

We could not exit the way we came in as the water was rising, so found an alternative :thumbup:

Back on the road again

We found this fella crossing the road….3 inches long!

From here we headed towards Augrabies, Khamkirri

http://www.khamkirri.co.za/

Zimbabwe – Hwange (Wankie) National Park

Posted on October 29, 2012 by Mark

As my birthday present OOOODS suggested we go away… :dance1: …which sounded just like a fab idea :thumbup:

Initially we planned to go to South Luanga (Zam) however time would not be on our side as we only had 9 days of holiday.

So we decided to visit Hwange National Park in Zimbabwe.

Frans (Hou da nou daar) and his wife, Denise (from Groblesdal) have been very keen and decided to join us. (x4 kids – 2, 8, 10, 12y)

Frans towed an off-road trailer and myself, wife and x2 daughters (6, 14y) went with my DC with x2 roof tops.

So we chatted one Sunday afternoon and quickly finalized the food arrangements and general stuff….

The plan was to avoid Beitbridge (for obvious reasons…. :thumbdown: ) and travel through Botswana via Zanzibar border post
Francistown
Nata
Hunters road
Pandamatenga border (into Zimbabwe)
Vic Falls
Hwange National Park
Bulawayo
Plumtree border (back into Botswana)
Francistown
Zanzibar back to ZA

Total km’s 3006km (Jhb – Jhb)

We left on 02/10 Sunday at 02h00 as Zanzibar border post only opens at 08h00 and would meet Frans and his family at 05H00 in Pietersburg (Polokwane). From there we would travel together and reach Zanzibar by approx. 07h30. The last 16km to the border is pretty badly corrugated gravel road.

The girls were nice and comfortable in the back after a nice morning sleep :crazy:

Zanzibar border crossing has two low water bridges and is not always open, depending on the level of the river. However we had no problem at all. Upon our arrival at 07h45 there was only one vehicle and took us about 45mins to complete both sides. No problems!

Water crossing in ‘no man’s land’ :dance1:

Botswana side: Please note, take Botswana Pula to pay for your road tax (TIP) if you are planning to exit the country and re enter, ask for a re-entry pass. It is cheaper!!! Cost around 160 Pula for a vehicle.

Just outside the border post is a lodge called Oasis and next time we will sleep over there for sure :thumbup: Starting a trip at 02h00 in the morning is for da young ones….. :oops:

From the border we drove to a nice picnic spot +-50km (boabab tree) and had some well deserved breakkie :thumbup:

Back on the road again….towards Selebi-Phikwe

At Serule we encountered our first vet check point, but no problems at all :thumbup:

Heading towards Francistown, there was another vet check point, however they just wayved us through. We filled up with Diesel and where the ladies popped into the Spar.

Once again it is much easier paying in Pula :!: :!: :!:

Frans, Frans, Frans…… :lol: :lol: :lol:

The road was very busy to Nata as the locals celebrated some National holiday….

We headed off for Nata, where we would stay overnight and rest at Elephant Sands lodge approx. 50km North of Nata:

We found a nice campsite and decided as there was a pool, pub and restaurant and animal drinking hole we would relax here for two nights :thumbup:

The camp site was was not spectacular imo, but we had some ellies visiting us that night about 5m from out vehicles….while we were fast asleep……….. :thumbup:

Some more pics of Elephant Sands campsite, pool & lodge: Camping US$10.00 kids US$ 5.00

At around 18h00 some ellies came for a drink :thumbup:

Campsite:

Girls helping with the salada

Heinie in a bit of a situation…… :lol: :lol: :lol:

That evening the rangers found a dead leapard 30m from the water hole. Apparently it was hit by a passing vehicle……sad sight :twisted:

There were quite a few ‘international’ visitors in the campsite, however they were quiet and not a problem at all :thumbup:

The next day we just lazed around the pool and had some cold one’s :thumbup:

That evening a few more visitors and this time right in the campsite :o:

The kids found this quite facinating and plenty of other visitors :thumbup:

We took the turn-off to Hunters road and really an amazing drive :thumbup:

There are some side roads withe really very thick sand :thumbup:

Downside is it took us almost all day to complete 180km, as the going was slow but well worth it :thumbup:

There were plenty of ellie droppings however we only managed to see a few of em :cry:

The bush was dry and in need of good rains ;-)

Eventually we arrived at Pandamatenga border post, but the troops were hungry so we stopped of for some toasted sarmies :thumbup:

There was also no fuel available (near Pandamatenga), not even at the truck stop however we were OK :thumbup: As we could get fuel in Zim. So after our expensive toasteds we headed for the Zim border.

Small but neat border post with ‘time’ not really being a factor…….

From the border a gravel road about 65km which lead us to the turn off to Vic Falls

Here we saw lots of animals as well as herd of buffalo :thumbup:

The roads in Zimbabwe were very good condition and off we headed to Vic Falls ‘The Smoke that Thunders’

From the gate to the falls not far you first see Livingstone :thumbup:

The falls – once again spectacular :!: :!: :!:

Then the stiff walk back to the campsite….

Just before the campsite, there is a Pizza and Ice-creap parlour….we had to stop :dance1: and decided to have lunch at the pool before leaving for Hwange :yahoo:

Before leaving for Hwange, Frans had to add diesel to his KZ……outch Diesel in Zim was R13.60 p/l…… :o:

Anyway, what can you do….zilch! :roll:

So off we headed South towards Hwange and…..outa the bush jumped a uniformed man flagging me down me to stop…’Eish officer was I speeding’

:lol: :lol: ‘Yes Sir, I hope I am not going to spoil your holiday’ he replied in a very friendly manner :thumbup: US$ 20.00 fine, so I gave him (them x3) a tip for cooldrinks and we parted as friends.

He kindly advised that there was another trap 70km from there…nice guy really :mrgreen:

10km’s further….a toll gate US$ 1. But we were well stocked :thumbup:

Kids enjoyed the ride…really :tease: :tease: :tease:

Brick factory along the road

What really surprised me was from the turn-off, the amount of coal mining going on along the first 20km sand road stretch…..

Why are we supplying em with electricity if they are exporting all the coal???

So off we headed to Sinamantella Camp (there are two Main camp sites, the other being Hwange Main camp…. :roll:

). Upon our arrival at the gate, I saw old original buildings as they were in the 70’s. Seems everything has been left as it was before 30 years ago and time has rather stood still. We paid and were directed to the campsite….wich was rather barren, no grass, just soil and no trees with broken down braai area’s.
A friendly worker offered to bring us wood with a smile.

The view however was very nice, on top of a small mountain and one can see for miles :thumbup:

As it was getting rather late in the afternoon we decided to head for the nearest water hole! Approx. 15km from camp.

Upon our arrival we raised our eyebrows as this was far better deal than Sinamantella Camp. It is a pvt. campsite and you have to pre book. However there were no other campers in sight.

A friendly ranger (William) came to us and asked us if we were the guests staying over? Nope but we could certainly be….. :mrgreen:

So he radioed the Main office and they said that if the ‘booked people’ were not there by 18H00 we could camp there but would have to pay in the difference as the pvt camp sites were more expensive.

It was a no brainer and Frans quickly drove back to the office and settled :!:

What a beautiful setting right in front of a large dam, with plenty of hippo’s, crocs and fish eagle to put the cherry on the cake so to speak :thumbup:

So within minutes we had a nice fire going :wink2:

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The tents were up in a flash!

We spotted a number of huge crocks lying on the banks of the dam.

CHECK OUT THIS ONE :!: :!: :!: Those little ones in the water are hippo’s…I would be afraid….. :!:

Best camping bush food ever :wink2:

This time we took along a large foil dish, easier to dispose of :thumbup:

Heat up the oil, under a roaring flame until piping hot (this takes some time….!)

Throw, the chips into the oil…carefull and stand back, as the oil falls into the fire and walla :!:

Hwanke 2011 211 (Small).JPG

Repeat at least twice a week… :dance1:

So after a lovely breakkie the next morning,

ranger William asked us if we would like to take a walk around the dam…..hmm, me thought, oh well why not, so off we went. The kids really enjoyed this :thumbup: ….me well no fine….I was watching ranger William, as his eye’s were in the bush, looking for lions and thirsty buffalo…. :!:

Heinie just loving it….. :lol:

We stopped for some snacks :dance1:

Where we felt safe :thumbup:

Until we found these….. :!: :!: :!: Mamma’s eggs, a few metre’s away… :oops:

So we left quietly………..!

Was an awsome walk getting close to the hippos’s and crocks :thumbup: Tx to ranger William who allowed it

There is plenty of birdlife around so a definate must for birders :!:

And the cutest birds….. :lol: :lol: :lol:

After the 3 hour walk aroound the dam…..afternoon laze around watching the wildlife around the water :thumbup:

The next morning we headed for main camp, and heard over Wilson’s radio that a pride of lion had pulled down an elephant at an onroute water hole. So we headed in that direction, asap.

Girls loaded!

When we arrived at there were x3 huge males lying around, protecting the remains…..I have not seen huge lion’s like this in a long time….. :roll: :roll: The valtures were hanging around as well as a jackal, waiting for the big boys to leave, but they remained….. :!:

There were about x8 hippos in the water I could see,

and within 30 mins it was like happy hour :thumbup: Ellies came in from all over the place, from all directions for their afternoon drink :yahoo: :yahoo:

What an awsome sight :dance1: Later a heard of buffalo and some giraffe also pulled in :shock2:

eading towards Main camp the road was fair to very poor, with some bad pot holes in places….the tipe where it is better driving on the side of the road…. :!:

We encountered a number of ellies and my imperssion was they were very skittish. Obviously ‘man’ afraid due to poaching and so on :thumbdown:

Some huge bulls roaming around….

We arrived at the Main gate, paid at the office :thumbup:

Still all as it was 30 years ago…. :o:

There is a basic restaurant. shop with some goodies and a poorly / expensive curio shop. (very basic)
:thumbup: But importantly, a variety of beer :dance1:

The campsite was empty at our arrival but another x4 vehicles arrived later that afternoon / evening. Nice shady trees with lots of ablution blocks. The cleanest abutions I have ever come across :thumbup:

Lots of these okes wandering about, so pack away food stuffs….

I would certainly not hesitate camping here again :thumbup:

The gals doing the dishes….. everyone has a job…very important :thumbup:

Mine supervising… :lol: :lol: :lol:

]

That afternoon we came across a herd of +50 ellies at this drinking hole. What an awsome sight :!: Babies, males and bossy females :oops: :oops: :oops:

Some playing in the mud:

Daughter had the best view….. :twisted:

All good days have good endings :thumbup:

Supper alla Denise….pasta and mince…not my all time high, but something different and very tasty :blackeye:

………..anyway………the kids seemed to enjoy it :thumbup:

These are only for show…..there is no fuel available in the park.
There is however a small town 10km away, who can supply, called Dett. When we got there, we were told the owner with the key was at the police station, as he had not renewed his ‘fuel’ liscence, so we went to the station, found him and he gladly topped up the KZ (once again….)

The next morning we headed for Bulawayo (280km) form Hwange Main and came across these funny signs….WTH is a painted dog???

Low and behold….my daughter spotted the Painted Dogs …. :lol:

Amazing :thumbup:

Then off to Bulawayo around 270km….with 2 or so more US$ 1.00 toll gates, but the road was good :thumbup:

I was really looking forward to Bulawayo, and was reaaly amazed how clean everything was :thumbup:

Sorry petrolheads……. :wink2:

Really a pretty town, even today :thumbup:

Some more of B :thumbup:

From there we headed for Plumtree border post back into Bots, to avoid BBridge…….

Once throuh the border we headed for Francistown, where we would overnight.

We opted for Woodlands…nice place! But the unfriendliest staff ever…well that’s another story….never again :!:

Nice camp area, ablutions and pool :thumbup:

The next morning a quick cuppa and hit the road….

Through a couple of vet points, no problem :thumbup:
Only in a Toyota!!!

Some boababs, along the road towards Zanzibar border post :thumbup:

Once through the Bots border post we stopped halfway in no mans land for breakkie :thumbup:

Almost done….

All of us :thumbup:

The long road home…..

Some tips and hints to follow :blackeye:

The end :!: :!: :!:

Tips:

– Two way radio’s with two or more vehicles are not an option…..a must :thumbup:
– Use currency of the country :!: :!: :!:
– Be friendly and patient, especially at border and vet check points ie. let your wife do the talking… 😳 :oops:
– Make sure you have warm clothing, it can get cold in the evenings
– Take spare slops / shoes along
– Take 2/3 camera’s along, you may miss something
– Ensure all fridges, connections are tested before the trip. At least 4 weeks in advance.
– Keep to the speed limit at all times
– Have a comprehensive medical bag…very handy!
– Take a few nuts, boltz & washers along, they come in handy
– Don’t go looking for relrctive tape the day before you leave….AA has for between R10 – R20 p/m :thumbup:
– Up-to-date GPS, makes looking for campsites, filling stations, shops easy!!!
– Paper map, the kids understand it better :wink2:

ZA – Bots – Zim – Nambia 2010/2011

Link

It was a very wet Sunday morning 12/12/2010 when our 26 day trip started :thumbup:

Some info:

4 vehicles: All Hilux4x4 Club Members
9 x Adults, 6 Children
– Hilux 2.5 D4D (OOOOMS / OOOODS + Kiara(5))
– Toyota Prado 120 (Derick ‘Vellies’ / Belinda + 4 kids, Charlize(8), Charl(8), Bertus(11), Rene(13))
– Land Rover 110 TD5 (Marius Smit / Carmen + Olinka(10))
– Land Cruiser76 SW (Cassie / Magda + Anabell(23))

Trip details / distance:
Round trip 7410km

Radio Comms:
VHF Hilux 4×4 club frequency

General rules:
Leave at 08h00 – 08h30 in the morning
Find a camp site by 14h00 daily
Men – make fire, coffee, braai meat, bake bread
Ladies – make salad
Kids – dishes

Countries visited:
From Johannesburg / Pretoria
Botswana (Chobe / Moremi)
Zimbabwe (Vic Falls)
Namibia (Caprivi & Kaokoland)

Accommodation:
Camping, camp sites, bush – no lodging!
No pre bookings :!:

Here is a map of our route travelled:

BlankMap-SouthernAfrica123d (Medium).PNG

Day 1: Travel from Jhb / Pta to Nata (Botswana) – 900km via Groblers Bridge Border post :!:

We arranged to meet at the Zambezi Garage (Pta) at 02h30 fill-up…..well that was the plan when ‘Vellies’ and his crew overslept and arrived at 03h00….good start….., well this gave us a chance to have x2 cups of coffee :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: And time for me to fit a http://www.hilux4x4.co.za sticker on the Marius’s Land Rover :lol: :lol: :lol:

Sleep at Nata Lodge: S20*13.515 E026*16.121 http://www.natalodge.com/
Camping rates BSP – 60 Adlts, children BSP 40 (R1.05 = BSP 1.00)

After a hard day’s drive we decided to quickly set up camp……(tell you about that later)….have a dip in the pool

set up camp,

and have supper in the restaurant (fair prices and food) OKish….)

Nice, clean abutions!

The next morning we would head for Kasane 312km(Chobe River Lodge) S17*48.512 E25*08.770
Where we planned to stay 2 nights :dance1:

Driving through Nata:

Arriving at Kasane, one could certainly feel that this is quite a busy little town. Banks, ATM’s, Spar and a few garages to choose from. Lots of trucks waiting to cross over to Zambia!

Fuel prices (diesel) varied from BSP 6.13 to BSP 6.37….not bad….

Quick stop at the Boabab tree, as you enter town:

We headed straight for Chobe River Lodge where we would set up camp, on the bank of the Zambezi. http://www.chobesafarilodge.com/
Camping adults: BSP 70.00, children BSP 55.00

Nice pool area:

Campsite with very nice clean ablutions

Vellies booked and paid for an afternoon boat cruise which I would def do again :thumbup: You get a boat / guide / on-board drinks and snacks. Beauty of it all is that one can really get up close to the animals without too much effort! Here are a few pics.
3 Hour boat trip: rates link,
http://www.chobesafarilodge.com/rates.php

Lots of calls……no…..not telephone calls…..from the beautiful unmistaken fish eagle :!:

We even spotted a lion about 100m from the bank, watching some buck from a distance. The lion was about 200m from a lodge…..

Herd of ellies crossing from an island to the mainland

What a wonderful experience!!!!! A must do :!: :!: :!:
That evening we just chilled out and listened to the night-life…

The next morning we would head for the Zimbabwe border-post to view ‘The smoke that thunders’ Vic Falls!

Grab your passports we are heading for Zimbabwe. An 88km drive, paid R480.00 road tax per vehicle, but a lot cheaper than going via Zambia.

Entrance fee to see the falls $20 per adult and half price for children under 12. Remember to take your pasport with to the entrance gate otherwise you will pay international tourist rates :wink2:

A comfortable walk through a forest area with the roar of the falls in the back round….amazing!!!

The famous Livingstone statue

The falls:

Oh, and don’t forget to take a raincoat along…..it get’s pretty wet!!!!!!!

A pleasant walk to the Zimbabwe / Zambia bridge, where the brave can bungeeeee…..

The heavens opened up, not that we were wet enough……after a long walk back to the car park we decided to visit the Elephant and Lion Hotel just a few km’s away for something t drink and eat. Very nice hotel, pool and gardens in immaculate condition!
http://www.e-gnu.com/elephant_hills_hotel_zimbabwe.html

Falls view from the hotel

Thereafter we headed back to the border post / Chobe Lodge.

Caution!!!! Cassie and his wife decided to give the Hotel a miss. When entering Botswana the took all his meat….. :thumbdown:

The next morning, up early and headed for Chobe National Park on route to Katimo Mallilo (Namibia), only a 127km drive. We decided to drive along the banks of the Zambezi.

Entrance to Chobe National park, you will have to pay the following:
BSP 120 per adult, BSP 50 pe vehicle, children under 8 free

We did not see a lot of animals, however lots of birds, rooibok, kudu and some ellies

Nice quiet border post, however when entering Namibia the ‘officials’ wanted to take our meat…… :banned:

Luckily I obtained a letter from the Namibian Parks board where they advised me we were allowed to take 10kg of meat into Namibia without any problems. So they let us go!You can not get your TIP (temporary import permit) at the border and have to drive to Katimo Mullilo (TOTAL Garage – S17*29.798 E24*16.156
) to get the papers, Namibian $200.00 per vehicle.

Thereafter we drove into town (P&P, bottle store, pharmacy) to stock up on some of the supplies.

Soon we had to get all the troops together and find a spot to camp :thumbup:

On our way from the border post we spotted a few lodges along the Zambezi river before Katimo Mullilo and decided to camp at Namwi Island Campsite. The right choice :thumbup:

Lovely, clean and very well managed. Sorry no co-ords just their contact number

+264(0)66254188 email namwlsi@iway.na
Camp fees: N$ 90.00 per adult, kids (3 – 11) N$ 45.00Camp site on the banks of the river!

Forgot to mention….when travelling from South – North in Botswana the Veterinary check points do not bother you with meat or dairy products. But indeed the other way round :!:

So on with the trip, we headed South from Katima Mullilo toward Linyanti Swamps along the 1 C49.

1 C49 heading South

‘Rickety’ bridge we had to cross….

It was evident that there was plenty of water around :!:

We eventually arrived at a point where we could not go any further due to the wetlands being un-drivable and camped at Rupara S18*19.742 E023*39.742.
Camp fees N$ 60.00 adults, children free

Each camp site (x5), with running water, thatched area, toilet and shower with donkey.

The next morning we headed towards Mundomo National Park S18*08.248 E23*25.959, where we would stop for breakkie later that morning and head for Poppa Rapids.

Brunch next to a lake in the reserve

Most pools were full of hipo’s :!:

These clouds did not make the ladies happy as washing was piling up……

From here to Poppa Falls, where we would look for a camp site.

Map of where Poppa Falls is(in case you are lost….)

We arrived at Goabaca Community Campsite S18*06.777 E021*34.877
Camping fees: N$ 60.00 adults, children U12 free

It was evident that the Okavango was pretty much in flood :!: Beautiful!

Each camp site (large), with a deck, thatch lapa, shower & toilets

Attachment:

Kids having some starters. Stokbrood!

Vellies….stoking the donkey

View from the deck

The next morning we headed for Rundu first crossing over the Okavango river

Rundu…wow what a busy little town…..

All lodges in and around Rundu were flooded so we headed East to find alternative camp site.

Samsitu Riverside Camp S17*50.993 E019*40.164
Nice pool and clean abutions:
Wow….what a beautiful camp!

Lovely campsite :thumbup:

The next day we decided to detour via Eenhana / Ondangwa / Oshakati then Ruacana
On route: Cassie

Marius making dust again…..with his LR…..

Quick visit to the Boabab tree at Eenhana:

Inside the tree is a small chapel….for special occasions…

For those who have’nt seen Ondangwa / Oshakati in some time…… wow since I was there….things have changed. And lots of rain! Lots of memories and brought a tear to my eye seeing what was left…… :thumbdown:
Ondangwa has grown…..and the Air forcebase now controlled by the Nam police.

Remember this?

Main gate

We could not believe the amount of pub’s in and around town….literally 100’s!!!

Now even with CTM…..

From there we headed to Ruacana, Kunene Island Camp site, where we met Wynand our host:
Email: kunene.island@gmail.com
S17*25.777 E14*09.205
Camping fees: N$ 60.00, children free, vehicle N$ 10.00
Ablutions clean, boat trips available on request.
View entering Ruacana falls:

At the camp site…first things first!!!

Neat and tidy camp site with free wood :thumbup:
Wynand and his wife quickly introduced themselves and made us feel at home!

Some ammo found lying around

The next morning Wynand agreed to show us around town, free of charge, no obligation and we gladly accepted his generous offer :thumbup:
He took us to the old SA base, some may recognise, now manned by Nam army….

Ruacana Falls

The brave took the walk down to the falls…..not so brave and fresh afterwards, but I knew there would be a cold one waiting back at the car-park…..if we made it…. :dance1:

Wynand then took us to some ‘secret’ pools in the mountains :thumbup: Where we could have a swim!

On our way to the next pool, Belinda accidently slipped cutting open her knee…..

We had no choice but to turn around and get her back where we could clean and evaluate her injuries! It was decided to take her hospital where she could get some stitches.
Please note the pain liquid in her hand :shh: :shh: :shh:

When we got back to camp, Wynand decided to take the kids on a trip along the river :naah:

View of the river from our camp site

Beautiful sunset

Amazing how things change within 10 mins :thumbup:

We stayed at Kunene Island Camp site for two nights as we felt very welcome.

The next morning we headed off towards Swartbooisdrift along the Kunene river. Nice drive where we would camp at Epupa Falls the following night 200km :thumbup:

Something els I wanted to mention earlier but seem to have forgot…….In my first post of this thread not sure if you al noticed……something?

Vellies his wife(Belinda) and four kids……all in a Prado :!: :!:
Now what can I say….congrats, some guys know how to pack – no trailer!

Here are some things that I knew of that went along
1 x Roof top tent with room extenion
1 x 95l fridge
2 x tables
6 x chairs
2 x jerry cans
1 x 40l water tank
4 x disco beds for the kids
4 x ammo boxes
Pots and pans

Now for those who think space is a problem…..speak to ‘Vellies’ he will show you how :wink2:

Respect :thumbup:

ps Cassie aka Caskru goes down to CT for a long weekend, him his wife, two small kids for a weekend…….and has to tow a trailer :lol: :lol: :lol:

From Ruacana we took the recommended scenic route via the Kunene river to Swartbooisdrift. A beautiful journey about 52km river side, till you get to Swartbooisdrift. There we turned left on the D3701, to Epupa.

What we should have done is continue along the Kunene via Swartbooisdrift to Epupa, but only found out later that the route was in fairly good condition.

Here are some pics: leaving Ruacana

Some locals

Just before Swartbooisdrift we stopped off at the Dorslandtrekkers Monument
S17 20.725
E13 50.739

Then back onto the D3701

We then stopped for brunch, dodging into a riverbed. Then this funny idea came upon me to follow the riverbed. I got some strange looks form the crowd at first, but they then soon followed :lol:

We found ourselves in some tight situation as ther was no turning back….so Vellies and Marius convinced me we would make it! No choice in the matter we pushed on having to deflate our tyres. Fun it was indeed. Some did not think it was toooo funny :naah:

Somewhere here:
S17 36.958
E13 28.908

Then Marius followed

Toyota leads….others follow…. :lol: :lol: :lol:

The 120 Prado impressed me the most….effortlesly through the thick sand!

Then Cassie’s Cruiser

Till we came out here

Continued in the dry riverbed

Some obstacles we encountered

Note: Riverbed driving can be very dangerous, floods occur and rain 100km away can cause rivers to flood. So before doing this make sure you check the weather patterns and weather forecasts.

On route to Epupa you come across this beautiful mountain range. called The Zebra Mountains:

And some local Himba’s

The camp site was pretty empty
S17 00.133
E13 14.640

The Deck, nice place to relax, have a drink and view the falls

A lot more water than last year :thumbup:

Primitive ablutions, but clean!

Local curio shop,
Note: there are no shops / fuel around this area, the closest is Upuvo

View of the falls from the hill

The camp site right next to the falls now has a nice pool, which the kids enjoyed. Also camping and a small restaurant. But is not in front of the falls.

Danelle and I decided not to do Van Zyls Pass this time around as we did it last year. So we decided to stay an extra night at Epupa and he rest of the group Marius, Vellies and Cassie left for Van Zyls the following morning.

We would travel down via Upovo and meet them 2 day’s later at Puros.

I have asked Marius to continue the report taking you through Van Zyls, Marienfluss, Camp Syncro and the Puros.

Tx M

Hi guys and girls as Mark mentioned,they decided to give Van Zyl’s pass a mis,seeing that they done it the previous year and as we discovered later,there was a few other reasons,but we will keep u intreeged for a while before we can tell you that.We would then meet up with them 2 days later at Piros camp site.

“Well I suppose we are allready on Van Zyl’s pass,pitty we missed the official starting point”

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As I said and believe me I doughted myself and my fellow travellers a few times whether or not we where on the right road

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: Still on the road or direction to Van Zyl’s,as these are not the kind of roads we are use to.

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Nice big old trees in the riverbeds.Nice to stop and refresh with a cold drink and a snack.

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Crossing some amazing dry river beds and then re-routing our way in some riverbeds for a few km’s

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Finally on our way to the legandary Van zyl’s pass,passing a Humba chief grave next to the road,

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Leaving eary the morning,still have to full up some vechiles.As Cassie didn’t have a longrange tank,that left him in some predicament ,as he had to buy diesel from a local ‘garage/work shop”@ N$15.00p/l diesel

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Confused as we arrived at the camp site,knowen to be the a few km’s before the start of Van Zyl’s pass.We are all amaized that the “road/opsticall” that we have being doing the whole day and that was just the road to Van Zyl’s.

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By the time we reached the camp site it was passed 17h00 and the local camp adminastrator has “left the building”

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We took a drive through the camp site and decided to camp slightly away from the general camp site as the cow dung was every where and that attrackted a lot of fly’s ect.With sites like these that doesn’t get visited so often during this time of year,the locals let there hair down and get a bit slack when it gets to keeping the camp site clean and mentained.Within an hour the camp adminastrator made his appearance and sorted out the running water and got the donkey started up for hot water.The community camp with flush toilets,hot showers etc was all we needed to sleep over and freshen up for the next big day.

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After a long dusty and extremely rocky road,Van zyl’s campsite was very welcoming. At our arrival we met up with Andre & Louise Benecke who also conquered the road from Epupa Falls. Only the two of them with a Jeep Wrangler and a Jurgens Explorer off road caravan. With the campsite being deserted they were very happy to see us and we decided to camp together.

With everyone being exhausted and no one feeling like making dinner, me and Derik decided to braai ‘n lekker skaap ribbetjie. Seeing that Cassie had his long awaited Bully Beef and went to bed not longer after that, left me, Derike and Andre and the ladies to feast on the rib.

Andre and Louise left early the next morning while we packed up camp and got everybody ready for the big day. With Andre and Louise being 2 hours ahead of us, we were expecting to see them soon as they were travelling with a caravan over Van Zyls pass (and a “Jeep”) and we would easily catch up……

Some beautiful scenery along Van Zyls.

More scenery, rocks and beautiful, amazing and funny looking trees growing in this harsh part of the world.

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After many twists and turns, rocks and dust, we could see the long awaited Marienflus in the distance. What a breath taking picture.

A real “voetspore” photo. The 3 trust worthy vehicles making it to the viewpoint on Van Zyls.

The few hurdles, dongas and ditches between the viewpoint and the end of Van Zyls.

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Some misfortune of previous travellers on the Pass.. This made us greatful and happy to have done Van Zyls pass safely and without any problems.

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Himba Kraal down at the bottom of Van Zyls/start of Marienfluss.

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The last official ritual, finding a rock, writing our names – WE HAVE DONE VAN ZYLS!!

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As we reached the end of Van Zyls pass we realised that we did not pass or caught up with Andre and Louise but noticed that they wrote a rock and also left us a smiley face packed with rocks in the ground. Very happy and surprised that they made it we would be seeing them at Camp Syncro, we set of to conquer the Marienfluss.

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We tried to take a group photo at all the nice spots we visited (we are now better know as the 9’ers).

We are officially entering the Marienflus with an up-side-down board welcoming us.

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We had to stop and take a photo. With only dents and scratches our landy is still going strong. Unfortunately can’t say the same for this burnt out landy. This must have been a landy coming with the Dorslandtrekkers :lol:

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… and then finally we caught up with Andre and Louise in their Jeep and Jurgens caravan. They immediately pulled over and although they were happy to see us things weren’t going so well for them. As you can see from the picture the caravan’s axle bent beyond repair. While they were waiting for us at the bottom of Van Zyls, Andre was winching the axle side ways up and down through the Marienflus trying to straighten the axle but with no success. After they waited for us for an hour and a half, and a half a bottle of whiskey later, Andre and Louise decided to start driving towards Camp Syncro hoping that we would catch up with them, which we did. We assessed the damage and decided that it would be best to continue with the axle as far as we could hoping to make it to Camp Syncro…..

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Some scenary of the Marienflus with Angolan mountains in the back ground.

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At this time of the day anything that lives is seeking shade. We saw the most amazing gemsbok, ostrich and springbok on the Marienfluss, all standing in perfect harmony.

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Driving at 30km’s per hour we escourted the Jeep all the way to Camp Syncro. What felt like a day’s drive, we eventually reached Camp Syncro and we all were very grateful that the caravan made it.

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Camp Syncro is based on the banks of the Kunene river with Angola on the other side. Like most Nam camp sites this time of the year there was nobody else at camp, but still the camp was clean and ready to accomodate tired travellers like us.

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In Nov a car burned out due to electrical fault and a part of the camp site was totally destroyed.

The water from the river was inviting, it was VERY hot.

After all the formalities of setting up camp, myself, Derik and Cassie went to help Andre stripping the axle from the caravan. In the meantime Louise was making long distance calls trying to organise spares to the closest town which was Opuwo (a day’s drive to Opuwo and a day’s drive back to Camp Syncro). After a cost of R10 000 Andre and Louise left the next morning early for Opuwo to pick up the new axle. Keep in mind this was the 24th of December. (Waar ‘n wil is, is daar ‘n weg). Cassie and Magda joined them. Unfortunately due to illness in the Cassie, Magda & Anna had to cut their trip short. That left only Team Smit and Team Vellies (aka the 9’ners) to complete the rest of the trip to Puros (via a few other scenic stops) where we would meet up with OOOMS and OOODS. Still after all the hassles we had time to social and build great bonds with Andre and Louise the last evening we were all together at Camp Syncro, two very pleasant people from the Eastern Cape.

eish, ook maar goed ons het nie gaan swem nie… A cold shower is much saver than a swim in the river.

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Early the next morning we set off to the furthest point of the Marienfluss at the Hippo pools where we came across a ” former cruiser club member” who obviously did not make it.

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On our 10km detour we reached this breathtaking oasis in the middle of the “almost” desert.

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From the Hippo pools we back tracked past Camp Syncro and the Himba village camp (also a nice camp site). Through the Marienfluss and then taking the road over the Haertmansberge.

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Let me add my side of the story here….without pic’s….as I am pictureless…. :thumbdown:

We stayed at Pupa Falls for for an extra night and would meet up with the 9ers a day or two later at Puros.

We (myself, Danelle and Kiara) leisurely packed up and headed South for Opuwo S18 03.691 E13 50.360
Quite a busy town with lots of irritating hawkers. Town is filthy unlike other towns in Namibia.

We filled up the vehicle with diesel, went sopping at Checkers to stock up with supplies and headed down a good sand road. Soon the road became rather bumpy and the going was very slow towards Orupembe S18 09.612 E12 33.960. Beautiful scenery, rocky and also passing the beginning of the Puros riverbed. We spotted lots of elephant spoor but saw only assssstretches and buck.

Near Orupembe we spotted a sign Campsite ‘ Little house on the Hill’ so we decided to camp there in the middle of nowhere. We were very surprised expecting nothing….however the camp site was indeed very neat and tidy. Nice showers, hot water and a goat wandering around.

We were the only people there :thumbup:

The next morning we headed for Puros Camp site S18 44.115 E12 56.573 dipping into the lovely riverbed where we would meet up with Marius and Derick (9er’s) whenever they got there :thumbup:

Marius floor’s yours …………..

The road leading over the Haertmansberge also had a few challenging obsticals. A real threat in this part of the world is sharp rocks and one need to be very carefull not cutting a tyre. We were very fortunate not having any problems (including the Toyota’s) :lol:

at the top of the Haertmansberge the landscape changes dramatically, getting the feeling that almost nothing can survive in this part of the world.

As mentioned we left Camp Syncro very early and was driving the whole morning. This part of the trip felt like forever. Looking at the scenery of rocks, dust and dry river beds it felt like you are the only people there for thousands of km’s and that you really not making any progress untill we finally reached Blou Drom. From what we understand this is one of the few “drom” beacons in this part of the world. As you look around you everything looks the same and you can get easily lost. These beacons have been put there to give you some guidance. Luckily these days we have GPS! With our hopes up high I made a quick “call” to OOOMS telling him that we are on course and will see them soon.

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Attachments:

Leaving Blou Drom, with our hopes up high, we conquered the last few 100 km’s over corrugated roads. After driving on the left, on the right, side ways, inflated tyres, deflated tyres, you name it and we tried it, it was the worst corrugated piece of road in the world and I have new found respect for any motor vehicle not falling apart after driving a few hours on this road. But besides the corrugated road there is something about this piece of the world that still remains so beautiful. It seems that no photo can do justice to the beauty of this barren land.

and before you know it the landscape changes again driving through mountains towards Orupembe. We stocked up on cold drinks and beer at a Spaza shop in Orupembe, called Shop 1. Orupembe consist of Shop 1, Policy Station & a few donkeys.

We climbed into a dry riverbed and followed it for a couple of km’s following the green tree trail. We knew that we would find elephant and giraffe and soon enough we came across these beauties.

After a few hours of dry riverbed driving we reached Puros Conservancy. This road leads through a mountain pass down the canyon and into a dry river bed which led us straight to Puros Campsite an hour or 2 later, where we met up with the very happy OOOMS and OOODS. It was the 24th of December! We achieved a personal goal by doing Van Zyls pass, Marienfluss and the Haertmansberge all the way to Puros. This is something that every keen 4×4 and nature enthusiast should do at least once in their life time. There’s many places to be visited in Africa, some better than others, but the memories and the experiences we encountered from this trip will stay with us forever and we encourage everyone to stop dreaming about a trip like this and just do it!

Thanks Mark for allowing us to capture our experiences on this leg of the trip report.

Keep on reading this trip report, we are only half way and there is a whole lot more to share! :mocking:

OVER TO MARK, Mark Mark Mark kom in….

MARK ——

Puros, a small town with no fuel and a small spaza shop, airstrip and not much more. But certainly one of our favourite places.

What better place to spend xmas with some good company. So at about 15h00, switched on my 2way radio and jokingly called ‘Marius / Derick come in……..’ Not expecting a reply…..but surprisingly Derick replied, ‘Staan by!’

This meant that they were no more than 30km away and we would have company for the the rest of the trip.

The camp site is not easy to find as it is ‘on an island’ in the rainy season so you have to keep your eye’s peeled to spot it. There are only 7 camp sites and x3 were still available. But as the camp sites are about 200 – 300m apart we opted for 1 large site.

It took the 9ers about 20 mins to find us as the site is a bit hidden…..Finally through the bushes came 2 vehicles ….. not 3 (Marius and Derick) no Cassie and Magda…..?

Puros camp site:
S18 44.115 E12 56.573
Here on the map:

Kassie and Magda had headed home, IMO he wanted to see Eenhana and do V Zyl’s and their daughter was ill due to the mozzie bites.

So that left our group with x3 vehicles.
Purros campsite reception area:

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As it was xmas the kids decided to build a xmas tree while the men made a roast beef, ribs and the ladies made salad and veggies. Belinda made dessert and the little one’s decorated the tables.

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To say the least we had a feast :!: :!: :!:

Nice and shaded camp sites all with donkey shower, toilet, basin with running water

Purros a special place in our hearts

The next morning 26/01 we packed up heading for Purros canyon towards Sesfontein.

…..Marius and myself drove to the ‘office’ paid and I filled up my water tank.

We waited and waited for Derick….but he didn’t come. called him on the radio and no answer….strange….Derick likes to talk on the radio…. :lol: :lol: :lol:

Then my phone rang, it was Derick, his car was smoking….inside (Derick does not smoke!)

When we (Marius and I) arrived back at the camp site where he was parked….the battery was flat…..??? Hmmmm….his Prado wouldn’t start….there was no smoke :!:

So we hooked up the jumpers, started the vehicle and the smoke began….from the A-pillar!
Switched off, stripped and traced the problem. The wires running in the A-pillar had chafed through and created a short. IMO due to all the corrugation of the previous days driving.

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So we stood there looking at about 10 wires, all just copper……

We managed to trace the burnt wire’s, luckily going via a harness and unplugged from the fuse box.

In 30 mins we were ready to hit town(Purros)…..as Derick’s petrol Prado was thirsty!
We found nothing……..(all his cans were empty)

From Purros you can take the boring sand road D3707 to Sesfontein S19 07.549 E13 37.074 (110km approx. 5 hours drive) or head South for Purros Canyon and Tsuxub Canyon. Derick made the obvious choice to join us no matter what, he did not want to miss it for the world :!:

So we headed South :yahoo:

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There was quite a lot of water, more than last year.

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Some ellies wandering about

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Beautiful rock formations, in the Canyon

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Then you see this lodge….abandoned….empty…..eye sore….you head left out of Purros Canyon towards Ganias Flats

The Ganias Flats are a beauty of it’s own :thumbup:

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Gary’s favourite pet….. :lol: :lol: :lol:

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We stopped for lunch in the Hoanib river where we were sure to spot lots of game

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The most amazing scenery :dance1:

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This really made our day!

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By this time Derick’s fuel light was glowing but Sesfontein was around the corner….. :yahoo:

About )10km via the riverbed) you get ‘extreme dust warning’ on your GPS also known as powder dust. Quite nerve wrecking driving through it, but also a lot of fun at the same time. Warning: Keep your windows closed….it’s better that way :lol:
Note this is what you see from inside the vehicle, pics are not blurrrrred!

Marius and myself having some Low Range fun :thumbup:

I could hear the relief in Derick’s voice over the radio :thumbup:

The excitement soon ended when we stopped next to the pump…………..

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Hmmmm….no fuel since the 01/12 today was the 26/12….!

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With no other choice we headed for ‘Warm Quelle’ where we would camp for the night.

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Rocky campsite, not my favourite but liveable with refreshing pool!

Derick decided, not that he had much choice and drive to Palmwag early the next morning 80km, where he was assured there would be fuel. He made it in record time and joined us again by 09h00, at the turn-off to the Khowarib Canyon (S19 15.612 E13 52.119) heading for Kamanjab (S19 37.261 E14 50.615) where we would overnight.

The drive in the Canyon is awsome, rocky at first and the into the riverbed:

All road lead to Rome when you get to a vet control point: We had no hassles!

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As mentioned no hassle through the vet check point, just open the cooldrink fridge and walla.

A couple of km’s from the checkpoint, we were on tar again :thumbdown: But then for the first time on this trip it poured with rain….

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Arriving in Kamanjab we were surprised to find all the shops closed…..
Town….

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cause as we found out it was a public holiday in Namibia….so we filled up and drove to the first and nearest camp site, literally 1km from town.
There was a lovely notice on the gate ‘Closed until 12/01/2011’ The owners were on holiday and as it is their off-peak season…closed!
So we headed off towards Outjo where we camped at the Himba Village Community camp site.(approx. 30km from Kamanjab)

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Everyone relaxing after a hard day’s drive!

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Marius taking care of the meat :thumbup:

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Beautiful sunset!!!

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Next morning we headed for Outju, South of Etosha as we wanted to be at the gate early morning! But proved to be wrong……

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We ventured into town found a nice place for brunch

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Thereafter we headed for the the butchery and OK to stock up on supplies!
We drove about 5km out of town towards Etosha where we found a nice lodge with campsite.(Bushveld Lodge)…..more about that later….. :!:

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We were the only visitors in the camp site / lodge we all had a dip in the pool

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That evening at about 20h00 it started to rain, Danelle put Kiara to bed and I still sat with Derick and Marius having a last cuppa.

At 21h30 we decided enough was enough as the rain was becoming a bit of a problem under the awnng….so we all headed for our RTT’s as we were going to be up early 05h00 and head for the gate at Etosha…..
As I would usually do empty my pockets and put it on my seat, Danelle asked from the RTT ‘do you want me to lock? I said no it’s safe here and no one is around anyway accept us……..’Big Mistake’ :!: :!: :!:

….Big mistake indeed :!:

We slept like babies the whole night through…..

Woke up at 05h00….when I opened the door of my van….I found this…….

Not a nice feeling at all….I was asking myself 100 times, why didn’t I lock, why……!!!! But the deed had been done. Fact is we had been robbed during the night….and that’s about that!

Passports, both camera’s, both cell phones, DVD players, all our ZAR cash & USD and my bag with goodies in……

We started combing the area and Danelle found a paper trail down a footpath about 400m from the campsite.

Our Passports was our greatest concern…. :!: :!:

You do not want to loose your passports in a foreign country….it’s a major schlep :aggresive:

Under a small bush were some ‘unwanted gifts’ the thieves did not require…..
:yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo: Our passports were amongst the stuff and vehicle papers….wet but that was OK :thumbup:

So the cops were contacted and arrived 20 min later, but could not do much and requested us to come down to the local police station and open up a case. Which we did (took 2 hours….).

We then had to find a bank and draw cash as we were not planning on ending the long awaited trip just then.

We then drove to Etosha still fuming and disappointed at the same time….we arrived at the gate at 11h00 (not as planned :thumbdown: )

Entrance for Adults was N$130.00 and half price for children U12
S19 19.909 E15 56.392

There is plenty of game in the area and it wasn’t long before we realised the beauty of Etosha

Not long and we spotted 7 cats lying 10m next to the road :yahoo:

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Beautiful pans of Etosha!

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Overgrown!

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Anyone know what these are? …and no, they are not normal Rooi bokke

More!

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There was plenty of rain around….the rains had come early this year :dance1:

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After driving around all day we headed for the Halali camp site S19 02.107 E16 28.265 Prices were relatively high (R550.00 for x2 adults and 1 child per night) + we would have to pay another day’s park fee p/p so we headed for the gate (besides imo the camp site was nothing special!)

Out of the park we headed for the camp site Sachsenheim S18 45.328
E17 15.520
Camp site was nice and tidy but the restaurant was closed as the owners were away, but the skeleton staff would gladly assist us :thumbup:

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Food was prepared, while my dear friend Marius attended to his LR……!

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After some investigation we found his front universal was poked….removed the front prop-shaft and would continue till Tsumeb where we would hopefully find some spares!

Beautiful sunset

Pretty dirty vehicles from all the rain at Etosha

My number plate…..

The following morning we headed for Tsumeb! Where we would hopefully get some spares…

Of all the towns so far visited Tsumeb was the nicest! Situated on the East side of Etosha, seemed to have most almost everything.

First stop CYMOT = ZA’s Midas equivalent, to find the LR’s prop-shaft universal. No problem, Marius bought x2 (one for spare) I asked the sales-man behind the counter if he knew Trevor (Hi-Hilux)? Sure….everyone in a small town know’s one another. So he called him…..but Trevor was playing golf with is son did not answer his phone….. :blushing:
The salesman directed us to his wife’s nursery (just around the corner), where we were pleasantly greeted by his wife :thumbup:

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Before we knew it she hopped into her car, sped off and said “I am quickly going to fetch Trevor…..” :lol: :lol: :lol: ummmm OK!!!
3 mins later Trevor arrived and we had a cuppa and chatted :thumbup: The ladies shopped in the nursery / curio shop, while we decided how and where we going to repair the LR. As it was not a big job we did it on the pavement!

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Trevor’s fly away pet….

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Once the universal had been repaired Trevor recommended we drive to Bush Baby Lodge where he would later catch up with us about 60km towards Grootfontein.

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the next morning it was off to Grootfontein, where we refuelled and headed for Khaudum National Park.

Weather looked fine behind us….!

Ahead was a different story….!

We entered the Park from the South (Sikereti camp). The road was wet, very wet, but had lots of fun driving through the puddles!

We visited ‘Dorslandboom’, quite a sight! More here from WegRy: http://www.wegry.co.za/bestemmings/nami … ste?page=3

The Tsetse flies really bugged us, so he hurried along!!!

Sekereti kamp is petty run down….sad, but you are almost assured to be here alone!

Attachment:

The ablutions are pretty neglegted, although Khaudum a beautiful Park :thumbup:

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While off-loading some wood we had collected, Maruis fell off the back of the LR…. injuring his shoulder….good excuse for a ‘bush massage’…. :lol: :lol: :lol:

The following morning off towards Khaudum Camp.

Not long and we came across a heard of ellies!

The bush was very dence and finding animals proved to be very challenging!
It started to rain again as we stopped at Khaudum camp, had brunch and headed North!

Attachment:

Extreme thick sand….warning signs all over, 4×4 only and no trailers!

And beware of the Hiena’s :!: But the rain was here to stay. Khaudum camp was also run down due to lack of funds.

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We quickly looked for a camp site on our GPS units and found a camp site nearby, on the Okavango river. Be prepared to pay more, a lot more for these prime camp sites.(N$160.00 p/p camping)

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The girls seemed very amused with the horses roaming around the camp site!

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This would sadly be our last day in Namibia…..and we would be back again, hopefully soon :!:

Heading for Muhungo Game Reserve (drive through free) we prob saw the most animals of the entire trip!! S18 10.712 E21 40.814, just sign in at the gate and drive through.

Drive till you get the Muhembo Border post entering into Botswana

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Road in pretty good condition….here and there…but is rain, rain, rain…which did not suit the Mom’s at all :!: :!: :!: Washing was piling up and clean clothes was becoming scarce!

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We headed for the nearest lodge ‘Gumo’ lodge on the banks of the Okowango (Pula110 p/p/n camping, but the place was nice!

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Nice camp sites and clean ablutions :thumbup:

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Then it was off to Maun / Moremi :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

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On with the trip….Maun / Moremi!

Once back in Botswana clearly donkeys, cattle and goat are more than the population of 2million people. Donkeys appear to be the main mode of transport.

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We camped at Camp Audi, not the best (very commercial) but at 55Pula for adults, suppose it’s OK….

Washing clothes was the first and only item on the agenda and everyone helped….us all looking like a bit of a squatter camp… :lol:

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Everything, even insects are bigger in the Delta

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My favourite Mopani worm!!!

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In Botswana there are many, may vet check points. Taking meat from South to North is allowed even through the border. But not allowed from North to South. If your meat is found you can be assured it will be taken. The officials enforce this law!!!

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We soon spotted our first ellies cossing the road

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Then took the more adventurous route to the Moremi….and more scenic, along the Khwai river :!: Getting stuck here is not an option…..you will!!!

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The bush is very dence in places and difficult to spot animals…unless if you happen to drive into a heard of course, which is very likely to happen! Plenty of water lying around everywhere as the area is pretty flat.

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Plenty of bird life around in these swamps

Plenty of these river crossings….fun and at the same time nerver wrecking…. :wink2:

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View from inside Marius vehicle.

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Note the water coming over the bullbar!

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Derick almost getting stuck….Icould hear Marius saying….” Ek gaan vandag ‘n Prado uitsleep” :dance1: He, he, he….he didn’t, the Prado 120 amazed me!

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While driving, every now and again I would hear a funny noise coming from the Lux….. :eh: No…can’t be, must be my imagination, but then I heard it again….. :!: :!: :!:

After a little inspection…..found that my CV boot was torn by a stick, or something of that nature… :twisted:

“No, not here”… I was thinking, all that water / mud surely ain’t good :!:

Having little to no choice in the matter we added bearing grease, wrapped the CV with duct tape and cable tied the lot together. This was however the best we could do for the time being. Now I know why Uys has looked at designing these CV boot protectors.

Just another handy tip I picked up from Marius, have a piece of cloth 2m x 1m handy so you can lie on when in the bush :thumbup: Just incase, it’s handy to have and does not take up a lot of space or weight This patent is held by LR :tease: :tease: :tease:

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Once done we cleaned up and had lunch / brunch / left-overs :thumbup:

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The Hornbills always around when there is food. Actually quite sweet :wink2:

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Back on the ‘road’ again not more than 30 mins later, everyone drove around this ‘little’ mud hole….except me…and walla Mr Grootbek Toyota was stuck….. :oops: :oops: :oops:

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Derick was quick to the rescue, and a little tug an we were off again!!!

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Soon we saw the sign….thinking we were already there…. :o:

S19 10.258 E23 45.062

…..Park Fees…. :!: :!: :!: Hmmmmm, they are expensive here in Botswana…..1 x vehicle, 2 Adults and one child….980.00 Pula for the night……. :eh:

Well we did not have much choice as the ladies were not about to camp with us in the ‘bush’ so we swallowed the bitter pill and paid… :twisted:

That night at the camp site lions kept us awake and alert almost every 20 mins calling, making the 150m walk to the loo feel like 5km. The sound of lions calling absolutely amazing even if they 1000m or more away…but they were coming closer :!:
The camp site: very basic, no tap with clean ablutions (150m) and a lockable dustbin

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That evening it was we made a huge fire and everyone huddled around it…wonder why?

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That evening we planned to have ‘Man’ seize steaks – with chips (slap type chips)! Marius and Derick had picked up some tips from the Voetspore team and tonight they were going to put it to the test :yahoo:

* Take a steel pot
* Fill it half-way with cooking oil
* Heat up the oil to 200deg (very hot….!!!)

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In the mean time get the gals to peel and cut the potatoes (wedge of normal chip seize)
Once the oil is piping hot, (caution, this can be pretty dangerous!!! Get all to stand back :!: )
Then throw the sliced potatoes into the boiling oil….like so:

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20 – 30 mins later…crispy slap chips covered with a lovely juicy mushroom and black pepper sauce made by Belinda & Carmen…..WOW :mexwave:

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After a good nights rest, well sorta….worrying about my broken CV, we opted to head ‘best’ road back to Maun, as the game wardens warned us about the poor condition. From here we would meet up with the group in Maun while looking for a replacement CV, which did not prove to be much of a problem, as there are 100’s of Toyota’s driving about.
Here are some pics of their adventure.

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Walking / wading through these rivers ain’t pleasant…… :thumbdown: :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Kids having a ball :taunt:

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We managed to find a complete CV, shaft, boot and bearing but opted to drive home (good choice!)

Our holiday time was now running out, fast….. and we headed home leaving us with fond memories of our 26 day experience.

Good friendships were made, another memorable outing, looking forward to the next overland trip, currently being planned (more of that later…)

Before Cassie hands out all his meds…and all loose their sanity, her are some funnies :thumbup:

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Smile…. :roll: :roll: :roll:

Handy crew :lol: :lol: :lol:

Derick doing the daily washing :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

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No man….not another snake chaser….

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Hilux finatics :tease: :tease: :tease:

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Family of Derick….

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Morning run :roll: :roll: :roll:

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Coffee anyone?

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Ag Ma, ek miss jou baie en ons drink glad nie….. :shh: :shh: :shh:

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Gonarezhou…..the truth ! (….complete!)

Link

Well, Gonarezhou National Park in Zimbabwe has been on our list of things for quite some time :wink2:

Did some research and came up with some interesting info. This link inspired me and plans were made to travel there: Read…..

Our route initially was to enter via Beitbridge, but due to the still problematic border control we decided to head for Pafuri border crossing (S22 26 55.1 E31 18 46.4)

Our route:

Places we wanted to visit:
Gonarezhou
Great Zim Ruins
Motobo Hills National Park

People in the group:
– Myself, Danelle (0000DS), Kiara (7) – 2.5 DC 4X4 D4D
– Frans (Houdanoudaar), Denise, Heinie (2), Bianca (10), Tersia-Marie (11) – 3.0 DC 4X4 D4D
– Mike, Sonja my cousin from Hermansburg / Greytown – Mazda Drifter 2.5 DC 4X4
– Val – SFA 2.4 DC 4X4

Plans were quickly put into place and we scheduled to leave JHB on 30 June 2012 and returned on the 13 July. So time was a bit limited.

The round trip from Jhb – Jhb was 2950km in total.

The only booking required was at Gonarezhou as it was in season and we did not want to risk the chance of being turned down at the gate as it was during the school holiday’s.

Info on Gonarezhou: http://www.zimparks.org/index.php?optio … &Itemid=83

Zim Parks Central booking office can be made via Christina Mhuriro, cmhuriro@zimparks.co.zw or RESERVATIONS AGENT
+263-772432148
+263-772111834
But email worked well, provided they have power……. :surrender:

Val arrived in Jhb at our place on Friday the 29th June (with GI-Jane)

and plans were to leave the following day and meet up with Mike / Frans @ Millies just before Machadadorp around 10h00 for breakkie.

After a ‘min maar in’ disappointing breakkie Frans advised that he still had things to do on the farm and would only join us the following day.
Abel Erasmus pass on route: (S24 27 02.7 E30 36 26.9) just before the JG Strydom tunnel

So the three of us headed for Phalaborwa where fellow Hilux residents (Nico / Christie) aka Vlak Vark kindly opened their back yard to us where we could climitise for 2 nights and do some last minutue shopping :mrgreen: Wow, what a stunning back yard and once again, many thanks for allowing us to stay over and njoy your company :thumbup: Much appreciated :wink2:

Nico’s back garden with a beautiful view of the Olifants river and KNP …… :o: Some people are really fortunate……. :wink2:

Nico aka Vlak Vark and Christie our hosts :thumbup:

We had a wonderful braai that evening watching, ellies, buffalo, giraffe come for a drink :thumbup:

Sunday Nico took us for a nice scenic drive around Phalaborwa :dance1:
The mine industry which keeps the town alive…..pretty sad to see such a huge industry around the beautiful nature……:

Open cast mine which is no longer active as part of the road has collapsed

Phalaborwa famous for it’s palm tree’s

We visited a lodge down the road from Nico’s place where we njoyed some sundowners

Monday, it was time to say good-buy and we headed for Punda Maria (S22 44 08.1 E31 00 46.6) where we could also fill up with fuel.

We had a quick breakkie on the go at Punda Maria rest camp (S22 41 31.8 E31 01 05.0)nb. last fuel stop also!

Some nice sights on route

Val, with her mik en druk…… :mocking:

That evening we camped at Pafuri river camp….which is outside the park…. :o: (S22 25 22.1 E31 02 09.0)
We had an nice quiet evening @ R100 p/p kids half price ;-) Info Pafuri River Camp info@pafuri.co.za

Hamburgers and chips for supper…a real winner :yahoo: :yahoo:

The following morning it was up early and we headed for the Pafuri border crossing (which when we got there only opens at 08h00 and not at 06h00…… :o:

)Into Moz….to be continued :!:

Approx. 1.6km from the Pafuri border post (S22 26 59.5 E31 19 52.3) my GPS T4A showed a road (left) which would save us approx. a 192km 4hour detour if possible :thumbup:

So we headed in the direction, as we are always keen for some adventure….and it was :wink2:

The road got less, however the Luxes were not afraid :yahoo:

We got to an rather empty Limpopo river………..but we expected it as it is dry season :slap:

From there it was dust and more dust :cooldude:

Some pretty scenery

Crossing the Naunetsi river (S22 18 49.5 E31 28 16.3)

On the other side ot the riverbank we came to an abrupt HALT……….Moz Police……. :!:

They had all the time in the world …… and searched our vehicles one by one…..almost everywhere :twisted:

This STOP took almost an hour…. but we just kept caln and played their game, without any nonsense or prepared to pay any bribes as they gently suggested…..

We continued along the Moz / Zim border where we headed for the border post at Chiquelaquala (S22 04 18.2 E31 40 52.1)

Old railway station in Chiquelaquala, just before the border crossing.

The broder crossing into Zim was slow as there does not seem to be much traffic going via this route and there was no power so everything was done manually. However after an hour or so we were heading to the entrance gate of Gonarezhou, a 120km good sand road drive.

The old bridge still washed away by the floods 2002, or somewhere around there…. Runde river (S21 15 49.9 E31 53 26.6)

Entrance to Gonarezhou

Road into the park….hippo and croc crossing beware :!:

Some curious onlookers…..

We arrived at the Main gate / entrance, exit? Still not sure … paid our stay…which took almost another hour, friendly staff but not so efficient…. We were booked at Chipinda for the 1st night, three nights at Pokwe and the last noght back at Chipinda.

and headed for our campsite approx. 4km from the main gate, Chipinda Pools camp (S21 17 15.8 E31 54 51.3)

Just what the doctor ordered :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

There are x9 campsites at Chipinda, each with a lapa, braai area, drinking water, hot showers and clean ablutions :thumbup: Wood is available at the gate on request @ 5 US$ per bundle but we negotiated a wheel barrow for that price :mrgreen: Thereafter hunted self as it would have meant a 70km drive to the gate :roll:

Quote:

I have reserved your booking as follows
Booking Ref XXX
Park Date in Date out Facility Cost/Night
Gonarezhou Chipinda Pools 3/07/12 4/07/12 Site 8 and 9 US$15/person/night
Gonarezhou Chipinda Pools 4/07/12 07/07/12 Pokwe US$25/person/night
Gonarezhou Chipinda Pools 07/07/12 8/07/12 Site 7 and 8 US$15/person/nightEntry Fees
US$12/person
US$10/Vehicle
Note these are once off payment for a period of 7 days.Print this invoice and pay upon arrival @ the Park

The hippo’s kept us entertained all night with jackal / hyena’s calling all night :celebrate:
Ladies preparing the salads while we braai’d :thumbup:

Note: there is no electricity at any of the campsites or bush camps. (bush camps are another story…..)

Kiara doing some washing

Bianca helping with the dishes :thumbup:

The following morning, we headed for Pokwe camp, saw this nice Kudu next to the river

View point

Southern view

The roads were generally in good condition (easy travel) but I think it can be another story in the rainy season :dance1: Another time :thumbup:

On route to Pokwe camp we stopped off at a private camp just to have a look :shock2: Called Chivilla camp (S21 18 26.2 E31 54 59.7)….stunning but will be very hot in the summer month’s.

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MIL swimming area :acute:

Val, was in love with this place and really tried hard to convince me to stay but we had move on to our allocated campsite…. :angel:

Soon we had a view of the cliffs, which is prob one of the main attractions of the park ! Chilojo Cliff’s (S21 26 34.3 E32 05 11.0)

The cliffs are stunning and we spent over an hour just soaking in the beauty :thumbup:

And another for Cassie…… :celebrate:

Val, Denise & Frans

On route again :thumbup: There are a few legal places one can cross the river.

But first time for brunch :thumbup: As the ellies were dinking on the other side of the river bed and we did not want to disturb them :surrender:

Sand was thick, but the water was little, but enough to clean our dusty vehicles :wink2:

Mike filling up his shower bag

Still on route to Pokwe, quit a 70km drive if you are having fun and stopping frequently!

Ellie’s obviously visited here…..

The road conditions gradually got worse, think this can be pretty hectic in the rainy season….

Finding the campsite Pokwe was a bit of a challenge……as it is an area and not really a designated site….no toilet, no water just a view of the river bed.

TBC….

_________________
Map of Gonarezhou and where Pokwe is:

The next morning after hearing raging ellies / hyena’s and, laaws……we decided to head for pans:But first a fresh bacon bread, made by Mike and the kids :wink2:

Yummy!!!

…and… yes wait for it……………unbelievable sight…….. :oops: :oops: :oops:

Shaving in the bucket………. :lol: :lol: :lol: What a sight…..I am now a dead man…… :frustrated:

While Mike was fiddling with his contacts….. :eh: the advantages of Alu-canopy…… :roll: :roll: :roll:

Heading for the oasis via an elephant entrance / exit road :wink2:

Mike requiring some Toyota assistance…..

Some big bullies around!

Riverbed exit

And another beauty…..these baobab’s are really special, somehow :thumbup:

Upon arrival at the lake / oasis…..was beautiful, zebra’s birds, ellies, hippo’s and a lot more (was a stunning sight :thumbup: ) Animal Heaven no doubt :!:

Breakkie time, what a view :yahoo:

Popping in for a drink, right in front of us ;-)

Spend a day her if not two, you will not be disappointed :thumbup:

Heading back to our designated site, which could have been better we decided to pop in at some other sites and see what they looked like….perhaps we got lucky and they would be ‘leeg’ :idea:

But first a good luck chant……… :oops: :oops: :oops:

And stu’s bob we found one :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

The pool was FULL of crocs….I mean full, I counted 28 visible at one time….. :!:

We had the lovely task…..”the guys”…..of collecting shower water, pretty scary I may add, but the ladies wanted to shower….so off the “braves” had to go……. :roll:

Water is no problem in the park……getting it is :!:

Anyway all was well and so was the camp & sunset :thumbup:

The following morning it was “difficult” (was gonna say hard….but) getting outa bed….. but that would sound wrong….. :surrender:

Val keeping the tummies full for the day’s drive ahead :mocking:

The last night we were booked for Chipinda again and decided to drive another route ie via the top of the cliffs! The roads were however in a poorish condition, but what the hec, that’s why we have 4×4’s so off we went :mrgreen: Animals were scarce along this route :!:

And arrived to this view :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

Black eagle admiring the same view as us :wink2:

We headed down towards the river and time for brunch :thumbup:

There were plenty of nice big trees to choose from :thumbup:

Note to Val…..even if you like monkey’s or babboons, make sure to close you canopy and windows while in the bush…….they made off with some goodies…. :shh:

Group pic…. :wave: :wave:

Carefully watching for left overs….

Runda river crossing

Free car wash, to get rid of some of the dust…… :wink2:

Back at camp Chipinda camp, some washing had to be done.

Campsite No 7.

The following day it was off to Lake Kyle or also known as Lake Mutirikw….shortest route via Chivamba (S20 36 11.6 E31 23 36.7)

On route via the consession area

Very scenic route and roads were in excellent condition :thumbup:

What was very noticeable was the cleanliness of the country :thumbup:

Police checkpoint ahead, there were not many along this roure, however the ‘main’ roads were hectic, prob. no less than every 10km’s…….pretty frustrating as this adds a huge amount of time to you travelling time. So take this into consideration. We were seldom stopped due to GP registration, however all locals were stopped and checked at all the points.

Closer to the dam the road become less, but not hectic, just caution for oncoming traffic…..

Some farming, but very little, we also managed to buy nice fruit and veggies along the road :thumbup: Naartjies, oranges, huge butter avo’s and bananna’s

Glimpse of the dam, noticed it was rather empty…… :!:

A truly spectacular dam…something very special about it! I have said in the past I can easy spend 2 weeks here :!: :!: :!:

There is little accommodation available around this area, Great Zim ruins being one and an old guest houe nearby, but way to expensive to my liking, however the Lake Kyle boat club offers camping, hot showers and loo’s. In summer the pool is blue. There are permanent structures standing around with some delapidated old caravans from the 50’s. We stayed here years ago and seems they are pulling things together slowly. Basic, but we are there for the view and atmosphere :thumbup:

Camping for 5US$ P/P kids free, good value imo :!: :!: :!:
Lake Kyle boat club (S20 15 29.0 E31 00 59.7)

We decided to chill here for 2 nights :thumbup:

Fishing seems popular for the locals

and visitors

There are a few permanent cottages and caravans standing around….

Clubhouse still in use

End of day…..

The following day Val, Frans and family would visit the ruins as we had been there twice before.

Great Zim ruins to follow :thumbup:

So while Val, Frans and family were off to the ruins we lazed around more and baked some bread’s :thumbup:

I handed my camera to one of Frans’s kids and they took the pics :thumbup:

Some more pics :thumbup:

It is believed that more than 18 000 people lived here :shock:

Some more ref’s:
http://goafrica.about.com/od/zimbabwe/p … mbabwe.htm
http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/364/

Great Zimbabwe Ruins (S20 15 38.6 E30 55 55.2) only 10km from Lake Kyle boat club :thumbup:

From there we headed towards Masvingo, to refuel and get some fresh supplies from the Spar in town :thumbup:

Masvingo (Spar co-ords – S20 08 20.3 E30 50 32.0) :thumbup:

The Spar is well stocked with literally everything you can think of from chocolates to meat, plaas wors (truly… :!:

) & fresh baked bread….plenty. Prices were reasonable and some luxury items 50 – 70% more expensive. But it’s all relative, you really want condense milk in your coffee, you buy, you need petrol you gooi….. :wink2:

Most garages in Masvingo were low on diesel or already out, but the fuel tankers were rolling in by the dozen.
Diesel was $1.28 and petrol $1.45 about the same as in ZA @ 8.5 :wink2:

The ladies convinced us to go to the Wimpy for breakkie…..not my idea of fun, I said fat chance……and true as nuts we arrived there and they had NO power……… :lol: :lol: :lol:

But spotted the Pizza joint….. :!: I was ignored……. :oops: :cry:

For Ali3n…..plenty of them in Zim :thumbup:

We headed for Mushandike National Park just 40km’s out of Masvingo

Staff were friendly, however was not worth our while staying over for a night. Campsite was clean an basic but we decided to head on to Motobo NP (S20 24 39.2 E28 30 23.2). A pretty stiff drive……

Our first toll gate $1 per vehicle, on route to Bulawayo

Just a few pics of Bulawayo, to get an idea, friendly town with some nice development. Friendly Rhodesian’s to be seen everywhere. Seems they are keeping things together :thumbup:

Matopo NP entrance (phixed foor Val’s :wink2: )

You come here for the powerful view’s, beautiful rock formations, but animals were scarce…… :wink2:

We decided to spend 2 nights here :thumbup:

Campsite, situated next to a nice dam

If you don’t like the view, just move….. :lol:

There is hot water, washup facilities, clean and neat :thumbup:
More details here and the rates.
http://www.zimparks.org/index.php?optio … &Itemid=88

Some more of the hills :D:

Back at the campsite :mrgreen:

We had another nice cholesterol free meal :shock2:

Some woke up with a smile the next morning and some …. well let the pic tell you…… :mocking:

We headed for Plumtree border, as other travelers we met advised us it had taken them 6 hours to get through Beitbridge….and were decided to travel to Zanzibar border post instead!
On route to Plumtree.

Coffee break, quite a few roadworks currently being done…….along this route.

40min later, we were in Bots and headed for Francistown, as some had to refuel :thumbup:

Roads were hectic and busy as usual….

500m from the Zanzibar there is a Lodge (Oasis Lodge) that offers a ‘bush camp’ @ P120 pppn, personally I njoyed it….would have stayed there 2 nights….
Donkey showers + towels, clean loo’s, and a truck load of free wood :yahoo: :yahoo: :yahoo:

Zanzibar opens at 08h00 and quick and friendly staff assisted us :thumbup:

Note: this border post has low river crossings and is not always open especially in the rainy season!

By the time we got to Potties everyone was hungry and ….

….so we headed for the Wimpy….my favorite :twisted:

and met up with Jaco aka Zandyl where he joined us for a megga cuppa :thumbup:

We said our good buy’s to the Eksteen family whose company we truly njoy and hopefully wil still see on many further trips, you guys have become great friends indeed :thumbup:

Mike and couzie Sonja, always a pleasure having you along, with all your twitching and tweeting…. :thumbup: Hopefully next time in a Toyota :lol:

Anty Val, was great having you along, even if your mik and druk is bigger than mine……trust you njoyed it and hopefully see you on another :thumbup:

To my wify and kids, you rock :!: It’s great having an awsome crew at hand :thumbup:

That’s all from my side, hope to meet some fellow travelers, ON ROUTE
some day :thumbup:

:wave: :wave: :wave:

Namibia – Kaokoland OOOODS / OOOOMS 2009/10

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Well here goes another trip report, but with a difference….Our journey started in Jhb, unplanned as we only decided 5 days before departing to go, while visiting some friends in Pta. They (Zieg and Debbie Bokkelman) were going to travel alone and asked us again to come along, So OOOODS convinced me within 30mins and ya, time was short.As we are 75% packed at all times, I only had a few alterations to do to the van(Sweetie), as we usually take the off-road trailer along, but not on this trip.OOOODS went shopping with a list and I attended to the alterations to the van.

Our plan was to drive off the beaten track, riverbed driving as many as possible, many not on general maps.

– Time for the trip: 24 days
– Total round trip 6551km
– Average fuel consumption Tar / Sand road 9.4km/l (2.5 D4D DC)
– Average fuel consumption Riverbed driving 7.3km/l
– Fuel, accommodation and permit costs R9300.00 (excluding food and drinks…)

Here is a map of our route as we went along:

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Day 1: Left home and popped @ Bosfark 4×4 track in Noordheuwel where the other Hilux members were playing for the day, just to say cheers.We slept over at my BIL’s farm near Koster and would meet up with Zieg and Debbie in the morning and head for Zeerust. The border was quiet and their insurance department computer was down so we left with a signed piece of paper and a stamp from the Botswana officials.
Coffee 25km before the border post:

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We drove through to Kang 624km from home and camped near the town as there are many places to choose from.

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Day2: Road Trans Kalahari road / highway in very good condition, with lots of cows, goats, sheep, donkey’s and horses on the side or crossing the road, so you have to be quite cautious!

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But quite a boring drive so I decided to take a nap….and OOOODS took advantage of this photo opportunity….

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From Kang(Bots) to the Namibia border post 430km Buitepos. The border quite busy with quite a few SA residents going to Henties Bay or Sakopmund.

From the border, we decided to go through to Windhoek as there is a camp site on the outskirt of town(Arebbusch Travel Lodge(R120p/p children u12 free.

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That evening we dicided to visit the famous Joe’s Beer House in Windhoek before the fun began….

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Zieg tucking into some meat

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Day3: We went shopping in Windhoek and found some interesting buildings here. People were very friendly, most people speak Afrikaans and German. What struck me the most was the country was very tourist friendly and very organised.

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Off we headed to Spreedshoogte where we saw the last of tar road for many, many km :thumbup:

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From Windhoek we decided to go South West to see Spreetzhoogte Pass, well what a beautiful drive not even to mention the scenary! Only 154km very good Namibian sand roads.

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As our tyres were at 2.5 – 3.0bar, we quickly stopped and deflated to 1.7 – 1.8bar

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Beautiful mountains in the distance with a taste of things to come

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Drove past this donkey cart at 100km/h, saw the sign on the back and reversed 100m to take this pic for the forum! Classic :thumbup:

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One see’s 100’s of these trees with huge and small bird nests along the road, so I decided to take a pic!

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Good condition of the roads, always a pleasure to drive on.

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Then finally we got to our long awaited sign-board!

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The pass has a number of viewpoints that took our breath’s away….one of those places you could sit / camp at, for days just staring at the beauty of the valley’s and mountains :!:

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The road after the 2nd view point becomes very steep, and 1st gear low range is required, as you decend into the valley!

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From Spreetzhoogte Pass we travelled to a beautiful little town called Solitaire only 60km. Well I fell in love and so much wanted to spend a day or two there, at the camp site :!:

_________________Solitaire’s entrance to the town just made me feel at home :lol:

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With old classics parked all around the one horse town, embedded in the sand.

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The town consists of a…..

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….inside…..

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…. a bakery which is famous for it’s apple strudle(so get some for desert), garage / bar and a camp site. This is the last reliable fuel station in the area, so be sure you fill up here in Solitaire :wink: before you head for Sossusvlei our next destination :thumbup:

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From Solitaire to Sossusvlei about 90km through the Namib Naukluft Park. This was certainly one of our highlites of the trip! You stay / camp at Sesriem which provides easy access to the dunes, there are a couple of places you can camp at. Many tour operators also camp here, as the best time of the day to visit sthe dunes is at sunrise.

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The road is in very good condition, whith beatiful mountains!

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All the camp sites have 220v power and running water.

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We were there quite early so Kiara(4) quickly did some clothes washing

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We all got to bed early as we had to get up at 04h30 and head into Sossusvlei a 45km drive

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By 05h00 we were all packed up and headed for the dunes :!:

About a 45 minute drive!

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Sunrise, always spectacular

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The drive to the dunes is amazing as the mountains transform into huge dunes

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Within 20 minutes you are surrounded by monster dunes :thumbup:

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They had x2 round 4m swimming pools…..not very clean though.The tar road was in very good condition, I must say. It must have been repaired.
Unfortunately we did not visit the canyon :thumbdown:

as we spent almost the hole day at the dunes…..next time though!
Some more pics of the dunes :thumbup:

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At about 11h00 we had a nice breakkie under some shady tree’s!

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The drive back after breakkie was also spectacular…..

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These are really ‘monster dunes’, walking up them is quite a challenge!!! Onece the sun is up, you will notice how the dunes transform.

Leaving the area was almost sad :!: But glad to have been there :!:

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Next we headed back to Sesriem, through Solitaire and then through the Naukluft Namib (restricted area, permit required)

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Solitaire and then North West in the direction of Walvisbaai. From Solitaire to Walvisbaai is approx. 230km, through the Naukluft Namib, but you drive through the Gaub Pass, small, but beautiful :thumbup:

On route to Gaub Pass saw this entrance board to a farm:

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Flat straight road, still before you enter Naukluft

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And then in the distance you spot something interesting up ahead:

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Literally from nowhere, the little Gaub Pass

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In the middle of the pass there is a very nice picnic spot, so if you have not had breakkie, here is a good place to stop and if you have had breakkie, you can stop for some road-side coffee :thumbup: ….and admire the beauty

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The rock formations, abselutely magnificant! Ok, so I had 3 cups just incase we did not rush hings toooo much 😆

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Our next stop Vogelfederberg where decided to sleep over approx. 57km from Walvisbaai. (incidently, this is where Andy, MD spotted me with my, pink PJ’s in the middle of the desert…. :lol: :lol: :lol: )

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Vogel……whatever from a 600m distance. (permit required)

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Vogelfederberg is approx. 57km from Walvis Bay, it is a solid rock formation in the middle of no where, I and I mean no where. Not much from the distance, but when you get closer…..

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So we decided to camp right here for the night, without a doubt. 4×4 is required to park on the overhang, but that’s the reason we have!!!

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The view, abserlutely spectacular!

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And time for some Namibian lamb ribbetjie

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Kiara enjoying the camera….

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Sunset…

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The following morning we went exploring behind the boulders.

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I spotted a nice incline and headed straight there. OOOODS said ‘Nee man, is jy nou (&*@$$#*) mal?’! But toooooo tempting… :thumbup: 1st gear low range….all the way up! May not seem that high in the pics, but are 480m High!

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So we explored a little more and there were also some camping sites behind.

Off to Walvis bay!

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……sorry guys, hectic schedule lately so here on a Sat night while you are braaing, my 16y old is having a hengse party in my lapa……no comment 30+ aliens here……

So off to Walvis Bay, we had not much scheuled here other than driving through and have a quick look around!

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Flamingo’s wading in the water

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…..funny sign at the West side of the harbor

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So off we headed for Swakopmund, where we intended staying for a couple of day’s Walvis Bay – Swakopmund only 35km

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Pleasant drive….along the coast to Swakop

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What a beautiful town, with nice buildings, but first we had to once again fill some rumbling tummy’s with fresh fish. Recommended restaurant right on the beach!!! :thumbup:

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Kiara just loving the prawns :wink:

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Good food and company :thumbup:

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So we decided to book in here! For two nights

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The next day we decided to explore a bit and founf some beatiful restored buildings – very nice busy little town with a lot of visitors from…….ZA

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The next day we decided to drive down the Khan river, from Usakos…..certainly one of the highlights of the trip +- 75km of riverbed driving……stunning, stunning, stunning :!: :!: :!: A must do! :thumbup:

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So early the next morning we set of in the morning fog, not exactly knowing what to expect….we had co-ords of a nice entrance to the canyon (Khan river) off the main road :thumbup:

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And then within a couple of km the scenery started to change. This facinated me the most of the Namibian landscape

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At this point Zieg calls me over the radio and says:
‘Mark, I don’t think you should come in here…….!!!!’
‘Why not…..’ thinking it was a dead end…………’
…..
…..
‘It too beautiful in here……. :lol:

‘

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This was only the start of things to come, for the day :wink:

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Andy, can’t say I saw or was specifically looking for any shells as the unusual rock-formations were spectacular. But I wouldn’t doubt what you are suggesting :wink:

Small little tricky obsticle ahead

but through in no time….

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Back on the planned route again….

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And then for some brunch :thumbup:

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We did not encounter any other vehicles in the riverbed the whole day, now we did see a couple of these? and lots of beezzzzz once I took out the water to wash up……lots!!!
It ain’t a tok-tokkie, not sure what it is called, anyone?

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So after lunch, 1000’s of bee’s had come for a drink at our watertank that was dripping water op the tailgate. Was quite a job trying to convince them that we had to beeee on our way…..also :wave:

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This pic (one of my favorites) you can really see how huge the rockformations are!!!

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Some springbuck roaming around….

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These aaarsstretches (as my mate calls them) were running over 60km/h at one stage.

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From here we drove to….

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…also know as the ‘Welwitchia Drive’ a plant only found in the Namib desert and Angola.

Once out of the Khang riverbed to the Welwitschia drive.

The easiest way to describe this place is: ‘like being on the moon’
Read here more about the plant which only grows 1mm per year.. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Welwitschia

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Plant called the ‘dollar’ plant because of the shape of it’s leaves!

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Track remains from the war, lying in the desert

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As the sign says……1500m – 1600m high rock formations. Worth the view! Camping is also available here!

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Office / entrance to the area

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To get an idea of how large these boulders are we placed some towels and OOOODS standing at the top :thumbup:

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Solid rock :lol: :lol: :lol:

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From here we would go to Brandberge

From Sprizkoppe to Brandberg approx. 150km, no guessing why the name Brandberge….

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So we headed for a riverbed…campsite
:thumbup:

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That night it started raining at 02h30…….OOOODS made me move the Lux to higher ground :!: :!: :!:

The next morning for some more river bed driving JUST LOVE IT :thumbup:

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Small spiderweb along the river bed!

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Even some gerry’s roaming around :wink:

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Map of where we are:

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Back on the road again heading for Palmwag….imo….no judge from yourself….park fees heavy, but beautiful in it’s own way :silent:

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Quick fuel…..DIESEL Stop…..petrol finished….. :roll: :roll: :roll: Bennie, jy sou moes gesit en wag het….2 dae tot Maandag…. :silent:

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Stopped for some refreshments(Twyfelfontein Lodge)….nice place if you have $$$

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Here we camped at Van Zyl se Gat!

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The whole day’s driving was rock’s, rock’s……
:thumbdown:

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From here to Ongongo Hot Springs….yeehaaa, what a beautiful place :thumbup:

Ongongo Hot Springs….yeehaaa, what a beautiful place….

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Campsite area, rocky but beautiful!

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Shower / toilets – all campsites have power points.

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Tooooo beautiful :thumbup: :clap:

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From here we would move on to Opuwo, to fill up supplies, fuel and then head to Epupa Falls!

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Off to Opuwo and then Pupa Falls.

At Opuwo, there is a Ch$ckers which is well stocked (veggies / beers and and most things) The town is dirty with lots of hawkers….pretty much reminded me of Moz…. :thumbdown:

Here you have to fill up fuel (+ jerry’s) as there is other reliable fuel on route we planned to travel for the next couple of days ( Epupa, Marienfluss, Camp Syncro, Hartmansberge, Serra Cafema, Orupembe, Puros, Sesfontein) Fuel would only be available at Sesfontein again approx. 900km drive. Not sand or tar road Riverbed & 4×4 low range! So ensure your vehicle is capable of driving at least 1400km It so happened that when we got to Sesfontein there was only Diesel….the petrol was finished!!!

Back on route, to Opuwo…beautiful drive though :thumbup:

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Opuwo:

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Epupa Falls Campsite:

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As it was the 24 of Dec we decided to chill here along the Kunene river for 3 days :thumbup:

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Some local visitors!

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Fever-tree

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True to our tradition, Xmas had to be held, in the rooftop tent this year :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Even the squirell’s were happy!

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The Deck, overlooking the falls!

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Followed by a lovely sunset :wink:

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Xmas lunch, with good friends :thumbup:

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Epupa Falls, here:

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Then on the 26th we would leave for Van Zyl’s Pass :wink:

Van Zyl’s is only 150km from Epupa Falls. So we if we left at say 08h00 took our time we should be there at say….11h00…

From Epupa to Van Zyl’s 150km (road pretty bumpy single track) at Okangwati there is Diesel available butnot reliable. There is also a shop or 2 you can buy some supplies like tinfood and some cooldrinks.

About 50km from Van Zyls, I spot a Double Cab LC GP plates, pic up travelling from VZ’s so I pull over and ask the gent where he is going? He tells me he was on his way to VZ’s pass and had x2 flat tyres, side wall! So I ask him where he is from? He replies ‘Rivonia’…..Rivonia, you come all this way by yourself, from Rivonia? And now you have to turn back 50km from Van Zyls and go home…..! No mate, you turn your vehicle around and follow us. The 70 Cruiser has x2 spare wheels! So he turnes his Cruiser around and followed us. We stopped for lunch and formaly introduced ourselves……Franken(on the forum also now), was his name and had to join us for the next 5 day’s.
We have since become very good friends and will be joining us again on the next trip :thumbup:
On the road from Epupa / low level bridge with markers, in the rainy season this can be a problem….

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Road to VZ’s

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This was Franken, returning home…..

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Some local Himba woman along the road

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Slow going over rocky sections

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Rocky area on the way!

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On the right track :thumbup:

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Nice seize Boabab!

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Campsite up ahead!

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We arrived at the camp site at 14h00 looked around and rather decided to camp on route closer to VZ’s pass.

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Beautiful sunset

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Viewpoint overlooking Marienfluss….

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Breathtaking view :thumbup:

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Ha, ha, that’s exactly why we are here…. :lol: :lol: :lol:

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Beautiful views while descending!

Tx to my co-pilot & wify Danelle / OOOODS who walked the entire VZ’s removing all sharp dangerous rocks that could damage the tyres…..mwa :clap: :clap: :clap:
Made it :thumbup:

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rom the bottom of Van Zyls we planned to travel up via Marienfluss to Camp Syncro which becomes a dead end into the Kunene river bordering Angola. A 50km drive, wher we planned to camp for the night.

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A beautiful drive with mountains on either side!

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These bare patches are called f…. …… let’s see who know’s what they are called and how they are formed!

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Road to Syncro Camp

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View’s of the Kunene

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Quick swim just to refresh!

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There are x2 campsites in the area the community camp and Syncro Camp, we opted for Syncro. Nice and clean with hot water and friendly staff. R60.00 per person :thumbup: Overlooking the river!

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No swimming is allowed here as there are crocs around :!:

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We were the only people camping here. Later that afternoon another vehicle arrived (a Swiss couple) who we also travelling alone with a rental LR……We later invited them over for supper, as they had no meat or fresh supplies with them…. We introduced the to Boerewors and Pap :lol:

which they had never tasted before and loved it!!! So happend that they were quite afraid of travelling alone so I asked invited them also to travel with us, as they dearly wanted to see Serra Cafema, which was on our route. So now we had Franken and the Swiss couple Ariella & Stephan.
This week we recieved an email from them:
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Hi Mark, Danelle & Kiara

It’s so nice to hear about you.
As we arrived home we had almost a heart attack because of the weather – it was cold (-5 degrees), snowing and foggy!! it tooked us really a few days to accept that we are back home. Namibia was for us such an great experiance, also because we met you guys. We still have some great moments in mind, beeing to the dunes up in Hartmanns Valley 🙂
At the moment I try to sort out a few pictures to send it to you but it’s not that easy with about 2000 I took in total….

And what about your plans to go to Namibia again? If possible – and of course if it would be ok for all of you – it would be graet to meet you on the trip. Because that’s for shure, we haven’t been the last time to namibia! But next time not with a LandRover again… 🙂

Would be nice to stay in touch – regards to Debbie and Sieg and of course to Franken.

Greetings from Winterthur
Ariella and Stephan

From here we would head South and take a short-cut over the Harmansberge to Serra Cafema. The route is marked on the GPS ‘private road’

From Syncro Camp we headed South again (as you can’t go further North), and decided to cross the Hartmansberge. There is a ‘private road only’ that we found on the GPS that crosses the mountains, found out it was pretty hectic at stages but after Van Zyls proved to be a breez. A bit of a short-cut. There is also a deserted mine (granite) along the route. Beautiful route I may add :wink:

Once over the Harmansberge mountains we would go North to Serra Cafema the most North Western part of Namibia :

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Rocky road…

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Deserted mine.

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If you have ever wondered what it feels like on the moon…..take a drive over this mountain range :!:

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Riverbed brunch

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In the backround you see the beautiful mountains of Angola :thumbup:

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The wies are spectacular, also you can see 100’s of fairy circles!

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On route to Serra Cafema Lodge we came across some nice dunes :thumbup:

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Serra Cafema Lodge: we parked, walked into the lodge and were greeted by a happy camp manager. He asked: did you have a good flight? Flight….we drove here! Nobody drives here he says!!! Well come in for some drinks! He was obviously expecting some ‘fly in’ customers :wink:

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Nice lodge, but at 1000 USD per person per night we decided to head for the hills….

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We were then directed to a riverbed we could camp at about 10km form the lodge. So off we went!

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What an awsome place to camp :thumbup:

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From here we would travel to Orupembe, verby Oranje Drom, en dan na :wave: :wave: Puros :wave: :wave: :wave:

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Now where was I? Oh yes….on the way to Orupembe and then Puros!

The road from Serra Cafema was…, a hard ride, jeep rack & with corrogation for wich felt like 100’s of km. Having said that the scenary was good with springbuck and gemsbuck scattered all over the place. Quit amazing how these animal survive in this barren land!

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Then past ‘blou drom’ which must have been painted by a Freestate farmer :lol:

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Gemsbuck all around!

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Spot the chair….

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The HUGE TOWN Orupembe :lol: :lol: :lol: We were looking forward to a nice restaurant and wine :lol: :lol: :lol:
The police station…..

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The One Stop Shop and only :wink:

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Franken saying his goodbuy’s :wave: :wave: :wave: as he headed to Etosha

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And the Swiss couple off to Etosha :wave: :wave: :wave:

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So off we continued to Puros :thumbup:

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Riverbed driving again….me at my happiest :!: :!: :!:

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Kiara (4) named it the ‘Fairy Mountain’ as we drove around it!

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That afternoon after lots of driving we decided to call it a day and camp in the riverbed about 30km from Puros.

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That evening (Kiara’s (5) idea, we went looking for ellies down the river bed…

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Not long and we found some fesh spoor :thumbup:

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The next morning we left for Puros, a short drive.

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Heavy rains in this area cause lots of trees to be uprooted like this.

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Beautiful landscape

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Office / reception at Puros campsite. Each site has running water, toilet, and shower (donkey) There are only 7/8 sites, however if they are full you can make a plan as the sites are spread out quite far apart :thumbup:

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Campsite

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If you want to see LOTS of ELLIES…..this is the place to be. They even come right into your campsite :thumbup:

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This fella caught us by surprise, as did many others. I could not take any more pics in fear of irritating him, however he came approx. 1m from myself and Kiara…..stood there for a few mins and I then had to chase him away :!: :!: :!:

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We all have our duties when camping…..Kiara’s favourite :o:

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IMO really worth staying here 2/3 nights :wave: :wave: :wave:

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We noticed that the elephants in Namibia are not as destructive as the elephants found in Botswana and RSA. This one was very curious though. It was an fairly old Bull. Everywhere in the campsite, there are sign boards advising visitors to pack away all food and interesting things, as these elephants do wander into your campsite and would like to see all that you have. Most of the elephants that we came accross, would only look at us and walk straight past.

When we were in the “Brandberg Mountain area”, we spoke to the resort owners at the “White Lady”, who advised that their elephants regularly demolish their campsite and garden. But it is the elphants domain and as they had made their resort in the middle of the elephant territory, they live with it. :thumbup: They have made their peace with the elephants

In and around Puros, there is plenty of game to be viewed.

From Puros we headed South through Puros Canyon , Hoanib Canyon and then to Sesfontein where we would refuel. The scenary changes here from km to km once out of the canyon’s!

IMO this would have been one of the highlites of the trip :thumbup:

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Lots of river crossings in this canyon all year around!

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At the end of the Canyon there is a lodge being built, we took a left there and headed for the Hoanib Canyon!

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GPS said ‘Thick sand’ and it was!!!

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Beginning of Hoanib Canyon :!: :wink:

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Lunch.

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At the end of the Canyon the GPS says ‘extreme dust’, trust me like powder :!: Here is a good time to keep your windows ‘closed’ :o: :o: :o:

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At Sesfontein, there is a garage…..however luckily we both required diesel, as there was no petrol available :o:

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From there we headed to the ‘WARM QUELLE’

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New Year’s eve :thumbup:

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From Warm Quelle, some 800m South back into the Hoanib riverbed :thumbup:

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GPS se weer ‘extreme dust’ gou,gou is die vensters toe :thumbup:

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Breakkie :!:

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GPS Warnings: Caution Flooding, one can see why!!!

These banks are 10m+ high :!:

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Well getting of the end of our trip (nearly)…..there was some awsome river bed driving done for the day :thumbup:

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Place called Little Serengeti…..I soon found out why! Shocked bu the change in scenery, one again :!: :wink:

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Across the field and back into the riverbed, till we got to the Vetenary control point. The sand here was extremely thick….many a time in 4×4 low 1 gear :thumbup:

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Heading for Xhorixas South of Etosha we came :thumbup: across this little fella crossing the road and Kiara had to help it out of danger

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Off towards Outjo! Nice little town and Otjiwarango

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Luch stop in Ojiwarango just on the way out of town

This one is for Warthog – Hennie, tx for your trip report you did last year. It certainly inspired us to go on this trip also :thumbup:

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On the way to Gobabis we ran into some heavy rain!

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At Gobabis we stayed over next to the dam

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Supper at the Lodge, which used to be a prison. Nice atmosphere :thumbup: …..Actually I felt quite at home, not sure about the others :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

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The next morning we headed for the border post and towards Kang, where we would sleep over.

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And then home! The END 😉

4x4assist Blog

Mark Schuberts, Aka (OOOOMS) Trip Reports

Monthly Archives: October 2012

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