LANGSTAFFS ON TOUR

RETURN TO SOUTHERN AFRICA - south africa, namibia and botswana 2008

sociable weavers nests

namaqualand daisies

our rented outfit

At last- a sale of Rogers properties in Natal and therefore a necessary trip to SA to finalise the monies and disposal of our belongings. Not to mention an excuse to safari off to Namibia and Botswana- a total of 8 weeks away from the UK. Wed both forgotten what a wonderful country SA is- the people, climate, culture and lifestyle all so welcoming and warming. It was indeed like coming home. For 4 weeks we indulged ourselves in friendship food and finance, in Joburg, Durban and Southbroom. The other 4 weeks were spent driving 10000kms in a hired Toyota pickup with camping equipment and a roof top tent- reliving our trip of 3 yrs earlier. Namibia and Botswana were the 2 southern African countries that wed not included in that trip- purely from practical distances than anything else.

SA is famous for its Namaqualand daises which flower most yrs in the spring, fortunately coinciding with our arrival. So that is where we headed off to- miles and miles of daisy type flowers, all blooming simultaneously in a usually dry arid barren desert. From the east coast it took us 2 long days to reach there. Sugar cane fields led to scrubland, game ranches, lush vineyards on the orange river, barren rocky land, quite unforgiving- no habitation or animals. Getting used to bush camping again, but a bit disorganised with no clean water, no loo paper, no lighter, no leatherman- all a bit discouraging at first. The milky way and camping under a new moon spurred us on. Left SA with minor border hassles (showed wrong passports!)

NAMIBIA

Travelling; No one warned us about a petrol strike- fuel was short in several places, but we got by with a little luck. Roads were mostly gravel, but all well maintained and it was the dry season. Some roads were wide enough for 6-8 cars abreast, yet there were no vehicles- the locals use horse and cart! Climbing up dry river rocky beds and ravines out of the Brandberg mountain range with salt springs oozing out in several places. All graded 4/4 in difficulty. Took all day to do 150kms. Lost our gear selector in the middle of nowhere (and i was driving too). A puncture( my driving again) repaired at a nearby lodge with a patch and an inflatable tube. Koakoland with its dangerous 4x4 trails alongside the Kunene river overlooking Angola. Took 2 days to get out of Kaokoland but well worth it. It took 10 days constantly on the move to travel the full south to north of Namibia. Not for the faint hearted. Stopping to blow from some bubble mixture that wed bought in Joburg with some locals. Local foodstuffs restricted to only meat (goats and cows), mealie meal and blood. No vegetables and little fruit. Having to buy supplies from the supermarkets rather than on the side of the road (there wasnt anything to buy). Tried to enter Angola but couldnt. At last we saw some agriculture driving south east to Etosha- mud fish farms bred in salty pans. Watched the local women tease them out of the mud into reed baskets. Not very appetising. Leaving Etosha for Caprivi through sandy fly ridden farming area. Lost all gears now but came across a Toyota garage who actually had the right spares and fixed it cheaply and quickly. Long tedius tarmaced road through the Caprivi strip to the Zambian border.

Scenery; endless deserted savannah in the south, no vegetation or agriculture. FISH RIVER CANYON-breaking its way thru the southern parts of the country., supposedly only 2nd in size to the grand canyon. We stayed under a rocky overhang to marvel at the dawn rising and bringing out beautiful colours over the canyon. Baboons, ground squirrels and an endless supply of warm clean shower water. SESRIEM AND SOUSSVELIE- several days north are famous for their dunes- the most photographed in the world. Again dawn and sunset bring out the best colours meaning that an overnight stay in the official campsite was forced on us. Still, hot showers to remove dust and grime , and washing clothes didnt go amiss. This area is really a 4x4 play area- but even our experience didnt help- we got stuck in sand easily. WALVIS BAY-on the west atlantic south of the famed skeleton coast. Wild, windy and violent, such a contrast to the interior. Sand dunes spread right up to the waters edge; salt pans tinged pink by the brine shrimp that attract flamingos, avocets and pelicans. Anglers love it. Shipwrecks galore. WELWITCHIA-an ancient cactus type plant only found in a few spots of Namibia. Each has only 2 main leaves which shred in the wind, making it seem prolific. Some were 500 yrs old. KAOKOLAND- home to the herero and himba tribes. The former are overdressed in old fashioned high necked, full length volumous frocks; the latter semi naked, their skins protected by smearing red ochred mud into it. Photos were taken in exchange for food and a little bit of money. We also bartered with pens and bubble mixture. Very remote with access only in 4x4s. EPUPA FALLS- the river Kunene cascaded here over multiple cataracts, releasing welcoming mist into the dry atmosphere. Lush green vegetation- such a contrast to the rest of Namibia. ETOSHA- brilliant game park to see loads of animals close up at water holes. MAHINGO- a much smaller (and cheaper) reserve, but here we saw red lechwe for the first time- these are water antelope. KWANDU- a river n the caprivi strip. Swampy, prolific wildlife. KATIMA MALINI- border town with Zambia. Stocked up then indulged in Sunday lunch at a posh hotel on the banks of the Zambezi.

Climate; Extremely hot(35-40C), very dry with no humidity. Temperatures dropped to a more bearable level only at sunset around 6pm( there were only 4 nights when we felt chilly). No rain at all

Camping highlights; A dry river bed 3 hrs north of Sesriem. Watched lovebirds, eagles, dassies and a gemsbock play in the rocks until sunset. Made a fire, cooking the last of our SA boereworst. Night time sounds of jackals, hyenas, elephants, lions and leopards- others unidentifiable and consequently a bit concerning. Pigs and warthogs grunting under the truck looking for our supper leftovers. Birdlife especially the quila who roost noisily in their thousands, similairly croaking frogs. trying to erect the roof top tent on the beach at Walvis bay. Gave up as tent nearly ripped to shreds in the gales. Had to drive to sleep outside the salt factory using their wall as a windbreak. Messam crater; getting lost on 4x4 tracks trying to reach the Brandberg mountain range. Tucking ourselves into a limestone cave for protection from animals. Waking up to find ourselves covered in dense coastal fog. A natural phenomenon that provides animals and plants with moisture. Quite magical for the short time it lasted until the sun burnt thru. Camping in an official site (Abu Huab)in a dry river bed renowned for visits by friendly desert elephants. Indeed we awoke to find 2 large bulls close to our vehicle. Travelling on a very rocky 4x4 only track quite difficult to access - a community owned camp with warm natural spring water that pours from high above into a clear pool. Swam evening and again in the morning. Watching large red sunsets once wed set up camps. Being day visitors at camp sites to use their facilities to clean up ourselves and clothing. Camping alongside the Kunene river watching the sun go down over Angola, crocs sleeping in the marshes, then dawn appearing soon after. Tethered donkeys, watching baboons rock hopping into Angola- no passports for them. Guards let us stay inside the Etosha reserve entrance gate for the night. Seranaded by jackels, hyenas and zebra. Sleeping in Etosha walked to a lit waterhole at night to watch a rhino with 2 babies, an elephant, night jars and hyenas. Wild camping near a fish farm surrounded by elephant dung and mossys. Sound of hippo snorting like pigs. Camping on a termestrial island after a long 4x4 only track alongside the Kwandu river towards Botswana. Hippos splashing just under our tent. Left Namibia with a really good feel factor. People very kind and friendly and unspoilt. Not bothered by tourism despite its income from diamonds.

Wildlife; mountain zebra, desert elephants, foraging hungry jackals at the seal colony at cape cross, springbok, ostriches, caracal. Hornbills grey louries, snake eagle. Turtles, tortoise, huge crocodiles in the Kunene river, very frightened of humans, presumably after being hunted for food by the Angolans. Baboons and their bahoo cry- rock jumping across the river into Angola. In Etosha; lions, giraffe, large herds of elephant, the beautiful gemsbock, leopard, plenty of natural spring water making the animals seem content and placid. Roan antelope and red lechwe. Kudu, impala, klipspringer, meekats, ground squirrels. Powder blue waxbills, squacco heron and hammerkops. Fish eagle. Monitor lizard

BOTSWANA

This huge country is a massive sandpit. Straggled by a couple of large towns and a few tarmaced roads, the remainder is just scrubland and deep deep sand. We spent 9 days here in the remoter parts of the country. Again, the people were friendly with no signs of hostility, again having only imported food (with the exception of beef.)

Highlights; definitely the bush camping. Noises at night were wild and closeby. Cocooned in our sleeping bags on top of the truck with not a care in the world. One night we took enough food , drink and reading material up with us for 24hrs just in case we got stuck up there surrounded by a pack of hungry lions! In the evenings we had to light fires and bang saucepan lids to keep animals at bay. Another night i had to run up the ladder to escape from a nearby growling noise- lion and hyena. Once by a river in the Mabebe depression (at the edge of a spreading delta) which we couldnt cross until daylight, we came across a lion just leaving our camping area. Bushman paintings in the Tsodilo hills and also in Chobe park. The birdlife on the edge of the Okovanga delta- especially at dusk when they flew in their thousands to roost. Trying to find our way thru the delta without paying to use the expensive game park routes and getting hopelessly lost even with our gps. After many hrs we became embedded in deep sand in the middle of nowhere- hadnt seen another vehicle or person all day. It took us 3 hrs under the scorching heat of the midday sun me using a frying pan and rog a spade to dig out the sand buried over the sump. Sand was too hot to even stand on- had to use our towels. At the same time we had to be vigilant for lion and leopard. I was very very frightened- sick with it- really felt we were going to die- either by dehydration or by being eaten alive. Our food and water would have lasted 5 days but without any shelter? Hmmmm . Lauran Van De Post loved the Tsodilo hills- the only rocky hills in Botswana. The cave paintings there are quite colourful and extensive,- spread over several miles and still to be dated. We slept there unofficially overnight, getting up at sunrise to be able to walk in the coolest part of the day when the colours are also at their best. We were quite impressed by the regular vetinary checks for foot and mouth disease and the eradication of tetse fly. Rangers managed them, dipping tyres and our shoes and spraying the underneath of the truck. The police were also having a road safety week and pulled us over several times to make us aware of tyre pressures etc. More surprising was the packet of free condoms they handed out at the same time! Cooling off in the shallows of the Okavango delta- rog floated about and washed his hair- me not so keen due to Bilharzia and the prospect of wild animals. Finding leopard prints in the area around the truck in the morning. Being woken by a crashing sound about 2 metres from us. In the moonlight we could see it was a large bull elephant tearing down a tree to eat. He proceeded to do just this for several hrs, crunching and chewing. So close was he that you could hear his stomach gurgle, fart and even poo as he left much later. We watched on and off, dozing in between- a bit too scared to move in case we disturbed him making him panic and possibly push the vehicle over. The rangers at the vetinary fences,especially when we nearly didnt make it. They lived in a compound and spoilt us with their safety and water, enabling us to clean up and feel secure. The boat ride we took in the Okovanga delta, hearing the barbal run- coming down from angola- and watching the fishing birds consume them. Camping in the midst of it all in an official campsite, reflecting on our close encounters.

The not so good moments; Rog with a spade and me with a frying pan lying under the sump trying to clear the axle of a huge amount of sand. (see above- also a highlight!)Rog had tried the jack but alas it wouldnt hold. So badly equipped- it was nearly a disaster. Not so long after we collected a large tree under the vehicle which acted as a scoop making us stuck once more. This time it was cooler and we got out in half and hr.Huge vast areas of nothing- especially in the Kalahari desert. Expensive game park entrance fees in Chobe- even when just using their tracks in transit. Apparently governmental policies want to keep visitors to a minimum, so will charge to excess to maintain an income. Atrocious deep sandy tracks. The heat- too hot and dry- 30C even at sunset with oumidity. Mosquitoes +++++++. No food in the shops except sardines, tea, sugar and mealie meal. To find a supermarket we had to route our paths through larger towns- not always what we fancied doing. Searching for Lake Ngawbi- we never did find it.