Adventure Big Five ABF2401
Everybody made it to Cape Town, the group is complete and finally all luggage has arrived (some got it a little bit late!). Our motorcycles were also delivered today and, of course, we all gathered in the afternoon for the usual welcome briefing, before going out for dinner. We are all ready to ride and looking forward to it! Tomorrow we stard heading northwards, follow us!
As we head out of Capetown the sun is shining but it is cool - only about 13 degrees. But it is great to be heading out of town as the other side of the road is decidedly busier. We make our first stop at Bloubergstrand for a stunning view across the bay towards table mountain - it's awesome! Then we continue gradually easing ourself out of the suburbs and making our way to Paarl, where we stop for a coffee break at the Afrikaans Language monument. There is also a great view from up here and we can still see table mountain in the distance. From Paarl we head directly over the Bainskloof Pass which is truly wonderful. We make a quick photo stop at the top and then it's on to Ceres where we stop for a late lunch. The good news is the Middelberg pass is open, so we head in that direction, stopping first for a quick photo opportunity at the Gydo pass- it's also an amazing view from up here. We have to wait for some roadworks but for us it's definitely worth it, and eventually we hit the gravel leading us up to the Middelberg Pass - just to tire us out at the end of the day. We roll into Citrusdal and our hotel, having some refreshments until the luggage arrives. Then it's dinner, reminiscence's of the first day and already time for bed........
It's another chilly but sunny morning as we leave Citrusdal - today about 10 degrees, but everyone is super eager to get going. A few km out of town we hit the gravel again and make our way towards Clanwilliam along the bank of the Oliphant river. The recent rains are evident here - the road surface is damp and compact, there are repairs going to along the riverbank, and the next river crossing we come to is totally submerged still. But it's a lovely ride along the river and through the orange groves and in Clanwilliam we stop for a quick coffee. Afterwards we are back on tarmac and it's a quick blast to the coast at Lamberts Bay to take in some sea air before we head back inland again. We are back on the gravel again but now it is dry and the roads just stretch endlessly in front of us until we reach Vredendal and then it's tarmac again until we stop for lunch at Vanrhynsdorp at a very picuresque restaurant. After lunch we gas up and then it's a highway slog to take us to Garies where we have a quick break and gas up again. We head off again but now are more or less driving directly into the sun which makes it tricky, especially with the transition into the shadows every now and again. But it's only and hour or so and we reach the daisy Country lodge our stop for the night. It's dusk and the weaver birds are everywhere and busy making their nests in the trees. Today was a long day - time for dinner and a good nights sleep.......
It's another chilly morning but it doesn't bother the weaver birds who are busy at work with their nests while making a cacophony of sounds. We head out from Springbok directly north along the highway and around an hour later we reach the border. Leaving South Africa is relatively painless but entering Namibia is another story - there is one employee per booth and they are not in a hurry! Eventually we all meet at the gas station over the border, but some have been there a long time, so the group splits up and heads out in dribs and drabs. Here in the vicinity of the Orange river it is green and there is plenty of agriculture - mainly growing grapes. A few km away and then it's an arid, desert type landscape with rocky formations along the side of the highway and the road just disappears into the horizon. However, as soon as you are anywhere in the vicinity of the river there are settlements and agriculture again. We hit the gravel and there are huge plumes of dust so we have to spread out else you see nothing and end up choking. But the road is in good condition and the bike just "swim" a little every now and again. We reach Ai-Ais where we stop for a quick break and a peek into the southern end of fish river canyon, but then we head out and it's a quick ride to the Canyon Village. We arrive just in time to take a sunset walk up one of the rock formations and then they surprise us with a hidden bar, so we watch over the desert with the sun setting while sipping a cold beer. An awesome end to and awesome day......
There some valley fog at 7am in the morning, but by the time we leave it has burned off and it a sunny cloudless blue sky as we head out of Canyon Village. A short ride takes us to Fish River Canyon and the photos cannot do it justice - it's a majestic sight and everyone is in awe of it. We take some time here and visit different viewing points, but eventually we have to head on so we are back on the gravel roads again. Another short ride takes us to our lunch stop at the Canyon Road House which is a real fun place with the wrecks of many old cars outside plus some better kept ones on the inside. We have a relaxed lunch and then head off again into the desert. After an hour or so we start to see some greenery, then a palm tree plantation and some grape farms which can only mean we are approaching the Naute dam. Just before the dam we stop off at the Naute distillery, but just for coffee and cake! The dam spillway is just a trickle really and doesnt cause us any problems and we head up to take some photos from above. Then we make the last few km to Keetmanshoop, but still have time to drop into the Quiver Tree forest rest camp and see the cheetahs feeding time before heading to the hotel. A few drinks out by a roasting log fire and then its dinnertime.....
We awake to a balmy 4 degrees - surely it's supposed to be getting warmer the further north we travel?!?!?! We head out retracing our steps and make our first stop at the Giants Playground. The rock formations here are really impressive and what's more they stretch as far as the eye can see! We head back to the Quiver tree camp for coffee but it's cut short due to the lack of customer focus/social skills from the hosts side!! After that it's a 220kmslog up the highway through the desert like landscape until we reach Mariental where we stop for gas and to have a quick lunch break. After lunch most of the group heads to the lodge, but a couple want to visit the Hardap Dam, so we head out there. It's not so far but the entry procedure is akin to the border crossing! We ride past the dam wall and can then ride down to the lake - the surface is pretty loose and rocky and driving anywhere off the path is a bit of a no-no. We ride up to the lodge to take some photos and although it looks deserted there are actually a few people staying up here. We head back towards the lodge and manage the 3km sand stretch with no mishaps, arriving in time for a few sundowner beers. Perfect :-)
It's a gorgeous morning again as the sun comes up at the Anib Kalahari Lodge. After a relaxed breakfast we set off along the 3km sand stretch to the main road without any issues this time! We ride back to Mariental and then have another long blast through the rolling countryside - but there is nothing here. No people, no houses, no livestock, just the occasional car passing in the other direction and the road disappearing into the distance. As we approach Maltahohe it gets a little greener, there's some livestock and a few dwellings. We stop for lunch here, but it's still early and some people are eager to continue so the group splits and heads off at different times. From Maltahohe its gravel but the conditions are pretty good , but approaching Sesreim and the other side it's loose gravel with a lot of corrugation, which makes the going tricky. The last group makes it to the lodge by about 6pm completely exhausted, but there's still time for sundowners on the deck and as it's a bit warmer here was can take our dinner sitting outside under the stars :-)
Today is a rest day and we get a lie in and later breakfast, which everybody appreciates. We head out of the lodge shortly before 9am and head back down the road we rode up yesterday afternoon towards Sesriem - the corrugations in the road actually feels worse in the jeeps than it did on the bikes. We enter into the Namib Naukluft national park and make a few photo stops as we make our way towards Sossusvlei. We can see the red sand dunes getting ever closer as we progress through the park and eventually we park up and make the short hike up towards the "Big Daddy" sand dune and the "Deadvlei" (a clay pan that was separated from the Tsauchab river some hundreds of years ago) where we can see the petrified remains of the trees that lived here with the sand dunes providing a fabulous backdrop - the scenery around here rally is amazing. "Big Daddy" is too much of a trek in this heat, so we stroll back down and take a picnic lunch before heading to Sossusvlei to see the dried up lake (there were no rains this year) where there is an Oryx taking some shade under the trees. We make our way back and stop off at the Sesriem Canyon - a 30m deep gorge gouged out of the sedimentary rock by the Tsauchab river. We stop at the gas station to refuel and take on refreshments, then head back to the lodge, where we can sit on the terrace again with some sundowners. We are waiting in anticipation for dinner, as tonight we get a traditional Braai.......
After a day of rest, it was time to leave the beautiful lodge in the Namib desert. After a few kilometers we arrived at Solitaire, a Roadhouse famous for its apple pie in the desert and a mandatory stop for all travelers passing through these parts. Here we could also refuel. Today we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn and then had a lot of fun on the ups and downs (and the curves) of the Gaub Pass and Kuiseb Pass. After crossing the mountains, the road became straighter and we reached quite quickly the coast at Walvis Bay, where we arrived more or less at lunchtime. After eating, we went to say hello to the many flamingos that crowd the lagoon and then we traveled the last thirty kilometers to Swakopmund squeezed between the ocean and the desert! Swakopmund was founded by the Germans and for this reason the center is characterized by German colonial architecture... and so tonight we had dinner in a "typical" German restaurant!
This morning the sun has deserted us for the first time - there is a sea mist and it is dark, damp and decidedly cool outside. We head out of Swakopmund and everything looks surreal in the mist and damp, but eventually after about 40km we ride out into the sunshine and it gradually starts to warm up. This is mining country and there's also many trucks on this part of the Trans Kalahari highway heading towards Walvis Bay. Our first stop today is the Spitzkoppe, a granite peak of about 1700m in the desert, and we can already see it from far away. It's 20km gravel again to the Spitzkoppe and it provides us with another challenge as there are some tricky sections on the way. However, we eventually arrive at the base camp and stop for a quick coffee before heading off to look at a natural stone arch there and admire the peak at the same time. We head back to the coffee stop and the group splits up again and heads off in dribs and drabs to the next gas station to refuel and take another quick break. It has really warmed up by now and the gravel is hard work, but eventually we all regroup at the gas station, but then break up again and head off towards Windhoek. The desert has made way for Kalahari Shrubland and there's many trees and bushes as far as the eye can see. We stop for a quick coffee in Okahandja and then its highway for the next 50km into Windhoek our next stop for the night.
Wow! What a difference a day makes! Yesterday we left Windhoek with about 8 degrees and finished in Ghanzi with 28 degrees. This morning it's about 18 degrees when we leave - positively toasty compared with what we have experienced until now! Today is a reasonably short day - only ~280km all on tarmac. We head out in small groups and make our way through the same same landscape as yesterday - only today we have to be more careful. It seems that in Botswana they are more relaxed about livestock roaming freely and there are goats, cows, horses and donkeys all wandering either on the road or perilously close to it. Every now and again there the skeleton of a horse/cow on the side of the road to remind us. We make a few breaks along the way and eventually arrive at the lodge in Maun in time for lunch. But we can't relax just yet as there's some afternoon activities planned - a helicopter safari over the Okovango Delta. It's an amazing experience flying across the delta in a small 4 seater chopper with the doors off and just strapped in with a seatbelt - it has to be experienced to appreciate it. Afterwards EVERYBODY has that "WOW" factor as it was just an unbelievable experience. We arrive back at the lodge and go straight to dinner and then pretty much to bed - we have an early morning depart at 6am tomorrow going to the Moremi Game reserve for a safari drive.......
Today is the longest riding day of the tour - over 500km plus we also have to cross the border into Botswana! It's sunny but cool as we depart from Windhoek and head to the Trans Kalahari highway where we will spend most of our day today. There is not so much traffic on the roads but there's a steady stream of trucks coming towards us heading to Walvis Bay. We make a quick stop in Witvlei just to see what's there - but really there is nothing, so we head out again. It's only about 50km to Gobabis where we will stop for lunch and to refuel, but it's overcast now and some of us are feeling the chill. We stop for lunch and it's KFC or Wimpy - not such an inspiring choice! Afterwards we head towards the border. There is nothing to see here - it's just Kalahari Shrubland on both sides of the road, and that's since we left Windhoek - you can see 1- 2 metres into the brush but that's it. The border crossing goes surprisingly smoothly but still takes some time to get through. Then we are on a last 2 hour blast to get us to Ghanzi and again we plow through the Kalahari Shrubland. We arrive in Ghanzi but there's no fuel at the gas station - tomorrow they say! Everyone is grateful to have arrived at the hotel. We have dinner and then everybody turns in early - it's been a long day!
It is still dark as we load into the open sided trucks that have come to take us to the game reserve. They provide us with blankets to keep us warm but at this hour it's chilly and with the wind chill factored pretty much everyone is freezing!!!! We arrive at the front gate about 9am by which time it has just about started to warm up and everyone tucks into the packed breakfasts that have been provided by the hotel. There is coffee and tea as well to defrost ourselves so by the time we have finished everyone has warmed up and eager to go. We drive into the park and almost immediately see a big group of vultures so we drive to investigate - a lion has killed a giraffe a few days ago and the vultures are making the most of it!! We drive deeper into the park and see all sorts of wildlife here - impala, kudu, zebra, giraffe, hyena, elephants and a multitude of birds. As we saw yesterday from the helicopter there really is a lot of game here and it's fantastic to see it up close in its native environs. We stop in the shade of a large tree and decamp to take our picnic lunch, which is delicious. After lunch everyone is fascinated as Domenico explains exactly what one must do should one come face to face with a lion in the park ;-) It's already 2pm by now so we start to make our way back to the south gate and are lucky to see a wildcat on the way out. It's a long warm bumpy drive to bring us back to the lodge in Maun but we make good time and arrive before dark, so we have time to freshen up before dinner. It has been a long but fantastic day in the game park and for sure will go down as one of the highlights of the trip for everyone.
Today was a real scorcher! We had a slightly later start time today and it was already warm as Domenico made the daily briefing. By the time we are on the main road out of Maun it was already around 30 degrees! As we head out it's a very dry, sandy and scrubby type landscape, although there are still plenty of goats, cattle and horses wandering around. Having said that due to the heat most of them are just lazing around in the shade of any trees they can find trying to keep cool. As we get further out of town though there is a distinct change and now we are starting to see wildlife - quite a few elephants, some zebra and some ostriches. Along the roadside there are concrete access points which have either been destroyed by the elephants or are just leaking, and all the wildlife are congregating around here to drink - or in the case of some of the elephants to have a bath! It's great to see the wildlife again after yesterdays safari. The road is fairly good but we have to keep a good eye open for potholes which appear now and again. We stop for a relaxed lunch in Planet Baobab - so relaxed it takes more than 30 minutes to get a coffee at the end of the meal! TIA! We eventually head out and make our way to Nata but the roads are sometimes a bit worse here which slows us down a bit. We get to the lodge and the majority of the group decides enough is enough but a few hardy souls decide to head out for a quick loop around the Nata Bird sanctuary - but it's more Wildebeest than birds at the moment. It's super dry here and dusty but the view over the salt pans is kind of surreal as they just stretch away as far as the eye can see - just empty salt pans of nothingness. We head back to the lodge and have the by now customary post ride refreshments before cleaning ourselves up for dinner. It's been another great day but a hint of sadness creeps in as everyone realises tomorrow is our last riding day.....
It's cool first thing in the morning, but it warms up really quickly and by the time we are on the road it's pushing into the high 20's. We are now into a brush grass savannah environment sometimes there's a lot of trees, other times we can see far across the flat countryside, but the further north we travel the more things open up. We try to take a coffee break at Elephant sands but the road is deep sand, so we have to switch to plan b, which is to ride directly to the Touch of Africa lodge, where we stop for lunch. Franz (the owner) provides us with a great buffet lunch and we chill out and relax for a while here. After lunch we continue towards Kasane and after a warm afternoon ride we arrive at the Chobe Marina Lodge. But now it's chaos - the boat safari time has changed and we have very little time to change before it leaves. After a frantic few minutes we eventually all make it onto the boat and then take a few hours relaxing and watching the wildlife here - it's another amazing experience. Afterwards we clean ourselves up and have a relaxed dinner sitting outside nearby the river. Tomorrow is another day though, and we are heading to our final destination - Victoria Falls......
After a relaxed breakfast in Kasane we board our minibuses that will take us to the Zimbabwe border. There are no queues today so we are out of Botswana and into Zimbabwe pretty quickly then have an hours drive to our hotel, where we arrive in time for a spot of lunch. The group reconvenes in the lobby at 3:30 and we head out for the falls, about a 15 minute walk away. We enter the park and walk together over to viewing point 1, where we take a group photo together. After that the group splits up a little and we all move around the different viewing points in our own time. It's lovely and cool here with the spray from the falls coming up out of the gorge and giving us a mini shower every now and again. The falls themselves are stunning and one can only wonder what it looks like when they are in full flow during the rainy season - it is truly an awesome way to end out African Adventure! We have our last supper together but unfortunately the bar here closes at 10pm so there's really only time for 1 quick nightcap before we disappear off to be. It has been a wonderful tour with some amazing guests and new friendship have been forged all around. We hope to see you again in the future at some point for some further adventures - Domenico, Lenro and William