Bommelina
Pack Dog
- Joined
- Nov 10, 2013
- Messages
- 152
- Reaction score
- 0
- Bike
- AJS (all models)
A bit belated but - Yebo all, 'n Geseënde Paasfees en Gesonde Opelyf aan almal.
Something to read and look at while the coffee gets cold.
“Only Mad Dogs and Englishman go out in the midday Sun”
(26/12/2016 ; 07h00 – 31/12/2016 ; 19h30)
It was just before Christmas that the Prof phone me - "Hey Hardste, wat maak jy volgende week? Kom ons gaan fynkam die Molopo rivier van sy onstaan tot waar dit uitmond"
Needles to say, sucker for punishment I agreed to his suggestion. What can I say? It was sand to the power of four, corrugations to the power of six, then there was sand corrugations to the power of two, temperatures in the high thirties and low forties and, only one mud puddle.
Ever try to get pass a donkey cart in a twee spoor red Kalahari sand road between the dunes with a middle mannetjie (cart approaching from the front) on a hot summers day?
Ever got stuck in a Kalahari sandstorm in Botswana? For those who saw the movie "American Sniper", that is what it looks like. When the storm hit us I nearly got blown of the PitBike.
Witnessing a Kalahari thunder storm display from horison to horison, as in an Imax theater.
We were two GayTeeEms, a 690 and an old style 640. The corrugations were so shieet, I nearly lost my false teeth. I actually developed some painful shoulders and a stiff neck. Never in my life encounter so much “sinkplaat”, but thanks to the ‘White Power’ (White Power - am I allowed to use this expression or is it deemed a racist comment?) suspension the ‘PitBike’ handle it without complaining. The sand, was fine until the heat and my fitness level kicked in. Did a bit of geological surveying.
What helped was running 0,6bar up front and 1,5bar at the rear and that very expensive gold coloured piece of equipment located on the steering, set at tight. Just need to be on the lookout for stones and potholes. The “whoops”, yes, that was something else, driving a steady 60/70/80, and just as you cross the summit, a mother of sand pit with donga or two is waiting.
For those that tell me it is only BMW riders or the inexperienced that Meerkat has never tackled the Kalahari.
Big problem was the white road (white roads - apologies if this is deemed a racist expression) sections. Had to wear sun glasses and with that I lost definition on the road. Cannot distinguish the sandy patches from the gravel sections. Good for that ‘OFok’ moments.
We had a cloud cover only on day one, and for half a day on day two on our six day trip. Done just over two thousand kays.
Pretoria-Rooigrond-Mafekeng-Bray-TerraFirma-VanZylsRus-Askham-Noenieputs-Upington-Askham-Tsabong-Lobatsi-Mafikeng-Pretoria
We missed the rain and floods. Heard the warnings regarding serious floods and rain in the Northern Cape over the radio weather forecast.
Molopo River useless information:
• Origen – Molopo Oog near Rooigrond (Mafikeng).
• Mouth into the Orange (Garieb) River near Augrabies Falls. (Due to time constrain we did not reach this point)
• Last run the full length over a hundred or more years ago.
• River course currently blocked by a sand dune close to Noenieputs forming alarge pan.
• During the Great Depression (early thirties-previous century) it ran for a section and formed a big lake at the sand dune blockage. Here according to legend people were actually catching fish and went sailing.
• Also during the Great Depression, the homeless and workless were cultivating vegetable gardens in the river bed to survive.
The question is: Where has all the water gone?
Regards
hh
Here are a few photographs of the investigation:
Something to read and look at while the coffee gets cold.
“Only Mad Dogs and Englishman go out in the midday Sun”
(26/12/2016 ; 07h00 – 31/12/2016 ; 19h30)
It was just before Christmas that the Prof phone me - "Hey Hardste, wat maak jy volgende week? Kom ons gaan fynkam die Molopo rivier van sy onstaan tot waar dit uitmond"
Needles to say, sucker for punishment I agreed to his suggestion. What can I say? It was sand to the power of four, corrugations to the power of six, then there was sand corrugations to the power of two, temperatures in the high thirties and low forties and, only one mud puddle.
Ever try to get pass a donkey cart in a twee spoor red Kalahari sand road between the dunes with a middle mannetjie (cart approaching from the front) on a hot summers day?
Ever got stuck in a Kalahari sandstorm in Botswana? For those who saw the movie "American Sniper", that is what it looks like. When the storm hit us I nearly got blown of the PitBike.
Witnessing a Kalahari thunder storm display from horison to horison, as in an Imax theater.
We were two GayTeeEms, a 690 and an old style 640. The corrugations were so shieet, I nearly lost my false teeth. I actually developed some painful shoulders and a stiff neck. Never in my life encounter so much “sinkplaat”, but thanks to the ‘White Power’ (White Power - am I allowed to use this expression or is it deemed a racist comment?) suspension the ‘PitBike’ handle it without complaining. The sand, was fine until the heat and my fitness level kicked in. Did a bit of geological surveying.
What helped was running 0,6bar up front and 1,5bar at the rear and that very expensive gold coloured piece of equipment located on the steering, set at tight. Just need to be on the lookout for stones and potholes. The “whoops”, yes, that was something else, driving a steady 60/70/80, and just as you cross the summit, a mother of sand pit with donga or two is waiting.
For those that tell me it is only BMW riders or the inexperienced that Meerkat has never tackled the Kalahari.
Big problem was the white road (white roads - apologies if this is deemed a racist expression) sections. Had to wear sun glasses and with that I lost definition on the road. Cannot distinguish the sandy patches from the gravel sections. Good for that ‘OFok’ moments.
We had a cloud cover only on day one, and for half a day on day two on our six day trip. Done just over two thousand kays.
Pretoria-Rooigrond-Mafekeng-Bray-TerraFirma-VanZylsRus-Askham-Noenieputs-Upington-Askham-Tsabong-Lobatsi-Mafikeng-Pretoria
We missed the rain and floods. Heard the warnings regarding serious floods and rain in the Northern Cape over the radio weather forecast.
Molopo River useless information:
• Origen – Molopo Oog near Rooigrond (Mafikeng).
• Mouth into the Orange (Garieb) River near Augrabies Falls. (Due to time constrain we did not reach this point)
• Last run the full length over a hundred or more years ago.
• River course currently blocked by a sand dune close to Noenieputs forming alarge pan.
• During the Great Depression (early thirties-previous century) it ran for a section and formed a big lake at the sand dune blockage. Here according to legend people were actually catching fish and went sailing.
• Also during the Great Depression, the homeless and workless were cultivating vegetable gardens in the river bed to survive.
The question is: Where has all the water gone?
Regards
hh
Here are a few photographs of the investigation:
