Monday, 3 April 2017
First night under canvas
Thursday 30th March
We had planned for our first night camping to be relaxed with time to learn how to put up the tents and enjoy cooking on a fire. But this is Africa so things take longer and you never know what will happen next. We found a lovely picnic spot just before the border and had lunch in the shade. We realised that the fridge on our car wasn't working and spent a bit of time trying new fuses and plugging the fridge into a different battery, but nothing worked so we decided to travel on and see if we could get it fixed in Gaborone.
The border crossing was unusually quick although bafflingly inefficient. We had to fill in forms and have our passports and vehicles registered on the South Africa side and then fill in more forms in Botswana and visit a couple of different desks to get forms stamped and pay fees. We had two identical vehicles with 4 people in each yet the visa charges were slightly different! Anyway the border post was quiet and all went well.
We stopped at the first town and found a mechanic who spent a few hours looking at the spare battery which powers the fridge and the lights. After checking everything it looks like the cable from the battery has corroded. There wasn't time to stay and get it fixed so we drove on and arrived at the nature reserve just as dusk was falling. A wrong turn meant that we drove further than we planned and saw our first wild animals, bush buck and impala.
We glimpsed our campsite in the last light and then began to set up camp in the dark. The tents go up easily but first time is more difficult. We got the tents up the fire lit and enjoyed steaks and sweet corn cooked on the open fire. The children were delighted that we all went to bed at the same time.
The embers of the fire gave a comforting glow, although when I woke in the middle of the night it was pitch dark. It was surprisingly noisy with an undercurrent of chirruping from insects interrupted by louder noises from other creatures. I woke as the sun came up.
We had a quick breakfast and got on our way. The roads were fast and unlike yesterday there were no roadworks to slow us down. We arrived at Khama Rhino sanctuary and have left the others to explore, and the doc and I have driven back to the nearest town to see if we can get the cables fixed.
I am writing this sat in the waiting area of a small mechanic shop. The large Toyota garage could identify the problem but didn't have the right wire so sent us to the roadside mechanic. They have found some wire and are now fitting it, we hope!
Wednesday 29th March
Back in Africa
I'd forgotten how public life is. Everything happens outside and it's all there to see.
We set off from Johannesburg and have driven up the N1 and turned before Pretoria onto the N4 to travel west to the Botswana border. There is so much going on and lots to see. People are walking alongside the busy roads and there's view into villages of tin shacks with washing strung between them. This morning there are people cutting the grass on the verges, with tractors and strimmers and there are neat bales further on.
The roads are good and mostly toll. There is dual carriageway in some places but mostly it is single lane with a hard shoulder that is also a crawler lane, although there is not quite enough space when cars on both sides pass vehicles in the crawler lane.
The road to Botswana is straight and it's easy navigation so hopefully we will get to our first campsite easily.
Back in Africa
I'd forgotten how public life is. Everything happens outside and it's all there to see.
We set off from Johannesburg and have driven up the N1 and turned before Pretoria onto the N4 to travel west to the Botswana border. There is so much going on and lots to see. People are walking alongside the busy roads and there's view into villages of tin shacks with washing strung between them. This morning there are people cutting the grass on the verges, with tractors and strimmers and there are neat bales further on.
The roads are good and mostly toll. There is dual carriageway in some places but mostly it is single lane with a hard shoulder that is also a crawler lane, although there is not quite enough space when cars on both sides pass vehicles in the crawler lane.
The road to Botswana is straight and it's easy navigation so hopefully we will get to our first campsite easily.
Tuesday, 28 March 2017
Sorry no photos yet as I have some technical issues with my blog!
Our adventure has begun. We had a very easy flight to Heathrow and a delayed flight on but all was well. Nobody slept very much but we were collected from the airport to get our vehicles. They are fantastic, great big hi-luxs with double cabs and lots of kit! We think that we are prepared for every eventuality with lots of water, two tanks of fuel and some gadgets - sat nav, walkie talkie so we can communicate between the cars, and a satellite phone. We've also go penknives, a sling shot and a flint and steel. We've stocked up with food for the next few days and managed a swim at the hotel in Johannesburg.
Our adventure has begun. We had a very easy flight to Heathrow and a delayed flight on but all was well. Nobody slept very much but we were collected from the airport to get our vehicles. They are fantastic, great big hi-luxs with double cabs and lots of kit! We think that we are prepared for every eventuality with lots of water, two tanks of fuel and some gadgets - sat nav, walkie talkie so we can communicate between the cars, and a satellite phone. We've also go penknives, a sling shot and a flint and steel. We've stocked up with food for the next few days and managed a swim at the hotel in Johannesburg.
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