NAMIBIA uber alles - by POPFUNPLOT

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michnus said:
Must agree with Kamanya, there's nothing that beats a well written report, even if the riding couldn't make up for it, and this report got all the makings of a great one.

It's like listening to U2 or Pink Floyd, food for the soul.

:drif: Let's have it.   :thumleft:

Michnus, nou pra jy... Pienk Vlooie rules!! ;D
 
I won't be surprised if you set a distance record for bike to bike towing.

Respect.

:notworthy:


 
Adventurer said:
Kamanya said:
OK, seeing as we have to wait for the next episode, bets on what the KTM issue was?
I recon after the fall you damaged the side stand or clutch switch.



I really want to go back there. Great report!

I know, I know......but I'm not saying..... ;D ;D
Tip, I was relieved when I found out.... ;D

Pooratech se Moer!  :ricky:
 
Metaljockey said:
I won't be surprised if you set a distance record for bike to bike towing.

Respect.

:notworthy:

hehe - you probably right

It's been my best fuel consumption yet ;D

The next installment will be up tonight
Although I've done many ride reports before, it really takes time and effort to put something hopefully decent together, and ALL my respect to those that do the effort - it takes hours

I trust your patience will be rewarded
 
No more wharawhara.......POST THE FARKING NEXT DAY ALREADY!!!!!! ;D
Everyone's waiting to hear about the broken Katoom........Especially the prop jobs..... ;D :pot:
 
Day 7 â?? 5th June 2008 : Municipal Chalets to Sesriem
Route: (Funacide & Poppipants) Swakopmund, B2, Walvis Baai, C14, Solitaire, C19, C19/D826 split, D826, Sesriem
Route: (Plothond â?? bike) Windhoek, B1, Rehoboth, C24, C24/C14 split, C14, Solitaire, C19, C19/D826 split, D826, Sesriem
Distance: (Funacide & Poppipants) 377 km
Distance: (Plothond) Bus trip 375km, Bike 340km
Fuel: (Funacide & Poppipants)WalvisBay, Solitaire
Fuel: (Plothond) Windhoek, Rehoboth
Accomodation costs: R 300.00 for site, 150.00 per person, Firewood R 25.00 per bag

Funacide & Poppipants:

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Plothond:

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Funacide:The Bus that would collect Plottie and take him to Windhoek would be arriving soon and we arose with much with much concern about the possible loss of one of the members of the trip. After a quick stop at the Wimpy for some much needed coffee (yes, Mr Jameson came to visit the previous evening with some friends from Windhoek Breweries) and the regular police roadblock just outside Swakopmund, we headed off to see Dune 7 near Walvisbay. The pictures do not do it justice and this is the seventh biggest.......

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Back into Walvis to fill up the bikes, fuel bladders and to make a call to check on Plotties progress. Walvis stinks bad of old fish and it was good to leave the place. The morning air along the coast was freezing cold, but within 20 km's of leaving Walvis, temperatures were getting close to 30 degrees.

We travelled along the straight road until a large rock outcrop appeared on the horizon, a stunning place with a big permit required sign at the entrance. The discussions along the way frequently move to the topic of whether we would see Plottie again before the end of the trip.

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The lonely tree along the side of the road begged to be stopped at and it was with great disappointment that we saw all the litter that humanity had left behind.

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Strangely, but thankfully we had cell-phone reception and chatting to Plottie, he delivered the good news that he will be leaving Windhoek shortly, we make a plan to meet later that day in Solitaire. The spirits were high after that news and the pace seemed to pick up on our way to Solitaire.

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Kuiseb Pass is stunning and the pics just don't do it justice.

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The classic pic of the Tropic of Capricorn was duly taken and along the way again our thoughts wandered to Plottie, where was he and was he going to meet us tonight...

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The scenery changed to grassy plains with mountains all around, the contrasts from the morning in the dessert is amazing and we wanted to stop every 10 minutes to take pics but we pushed on to Solitaire. Earlier that morning we had wondered what size the town of Solitaire would be and what shops it would have. Well, we were answered very quickly with a petrol stop, general dealer (yes they sell beer), a lodge and a campsite.

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A few beers were consumed, meat was procured for the eveningâ??s braai and a phone call to Plottie determined that we would only meet at Sesriem camp site later that night.

We arrived at the campsite and were shocked at the price, N$300 for the campsite (with broken braai-grid) and N$150 per person for the camping, they then wanted to charge a further N$190 for the privilege of going to view the nature reserve. We contemplated going to stay at the campsite down the road but remembered just in time that we were meeting Plottie later that night.

The German hitchhikers that we had met at reception and the biker from New Zealand (who is traveling from Cape Town to London on his own on a Honda CTX 200) decided to go and camp down the road near the riverbed.

Our advice: AVOID SESRIEM. It is downright robbery and the facilities are nowhere near the standard of the others we experienced. Rather plan to stay at Solitaire in the North or Bettaâ??s in the South


Plothond:The cellphone alarm woke me at 5:30 am and I got my kit together and took it up to the main gate in two trips. Funacide accompanied me and he spent the next 45 minutes reminiscing about his military days in Namibia. The time passed quickly and just as he left to go back to the bungalow, the shuttle arrived.
The driver invited me to sit next to him which was a good idea as Iâ??m sure the smell of a three day old T-shirt was not too good amongst the other passengers. He was very chatty but by Usakos I wanted time to myself and purchased a newspaper. The rest of the trip to Windhoek passed quickly and by 12:00 I was dropped off in front of the KTM dealer.

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My bike had arrived about an hour earlier and was already stripped down by the time I had entered the workshop.
Mike, the owner found the problem soon enough.

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Some will recall that about two weeks previously I had removed the crashbars to fit those â??famousâ? highway pegs. I had not supervised their re-fitment and when one of my welders had refitted the bars, he had inadvertently pinched the wires than run down the frame to the rear lamda sensor. The fall on that road 2 days earlier had shifted the crashbars and shorted the wires against the frame.

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I was angry, but also relieved. I had faith in the bike again as this was entirely â??user errorâ? and my adventure could proceed.

The 80km tar road to Rehoboth passed in a flash and 260km of dirt lay ahead to Sesriem. I had done 140km whilst urging myself on, almost dangerously, when eventually the last remnants of daylight disappeared.

I stopped, got off the bike, cleaned my visor and had a drink of water and checked the map one final time. I was on a pass in unfamiliar territory and had roughly 120km to go on the famous Namibian dirt.

I noticed a new SMS had come through earlier but ignored it. Maybe it was just as well as it was from Funacide and went along the following lines: Do not come to Sesriem, the road has loose sand and will be dangerous at night  :eek:

I would be lying if I said the trip to Sesriem was easy. I maintained a speed of 80 to 85km/hour, any faster was downright dangerous given the type of roads and even with the visibility afforded by the HID globes. It was cold and by the time I got into camp it was close on 8pm.

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There was still a bit of fun to be had and Poppipants got out his glow sticks  ;D ;D ;D

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I was happy to be with my friends again  :)



 
Plothond said:
There was still a bit of fun to be had and Poppipants got out his glow sticks  ;D ;D ;D

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Amazing! Nam!  :cool:

A bit better than last time Popi!  :mrgreen:

Seems you have started a tradition with your light show!
 
Just another pic of Dune 7 with Poppi on the dune, gives you an idea of the dune size...
 

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funacide said:
Just another pic of Dune 7 with Poppi on the dune, gives you an idea of the dune size...

And a pic of you on the Katoom on the dune?
 
Actually we discussed it, but decided being a day behind we didn't have time to pack off all the luggage and go play around...

Next time
 
Lovely report - well done Plottie and crew :D

The details are great for later reference - this trip offers the rider some great variety!!

When we going and who's in ;D

 
Wow!!

What a trip.  But not home yet ...er  I assume there's more??  :deal:
 
Day 8 â?? 6th June 2008 : Sesriem to Naute Campsite (near Keetmanshoop)
Route: Sesriem, C27, Bettaâ??s, D826, Duwisib Castle, D826/D831 split, D831, C14, Helmeringhausen, Bethanie, C14/B4 split, B4, Turnoff to Naute Dam (S26 47 06.2 E17 55 30.8), Naute Campsite
Distance: 482km
Fuel: Bettaâ??s, Bethanie, Goageb (topup)
Accomodation cost: R 30.00 per person, Firewood R 20.00 per bag, Limited power, NO showers (yet)

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Thatâ??s it !!! â?? I was officially â??de MOER INâ?. My bloody mattress was flat again. I had tried everything, dunked it in a pool in Botswana to find the leak, patched some suspect areaâ??s in Omaruru and glued some edges at Twyfelfontein. Poppi and Fun found this amusing â?? julle moere man. Right then I hated their smug and â??I told you soâ? grins.

I made it up with coffee in bed, a small consolation.

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We had campsite number 18 (avoid it - it's the one with the broken braai grid

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Although the setting was great .......

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..we were glad to leave this place, the whole attitude at the reception and the exorbitant costs just left a sour taste in our mouths.


The run up to Bettaâ??s was exhilarating to say the least. This road was busier than we had experienced the whole week and a number of vehicles  traveled in either direction. When I say a number â?? I mean about 6 or 7

Imagine our  surprise when we say this place â?? a real oasis in the desert

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Now the roads became straighter and flatter and even though we traveled a few hundred meters apart, the same thing went through all our minds â?? faster, faster, faster. Itâ??s actually amazing how after 8 days together how in tune we were with each other and by the time Bettaâ??s red canopy came into view, the blood was pulsing in our veins and the thrill of the ride etched in a big grin on our faces.

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Betta's has fuel and the camping is $N 60.00 per per person - a far cry from the rip-off up the road  :(

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Duwisib castle came into view and admittedly we expected this almost architectural anomaly to be on a flat barren plain. Instead it was set in the hills, overlooking the plains around.

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Much has been written about this Castle and itâ??s Master â?? Hansheinrich von Wolf and his exploits. I bought the book on sale in the kiosk: â??Duwisib, a German castle in Namibiaâ? by Harald N. Nestroy.
Get it if you can. Itâ??s a good story of a flamboyant soldier and entrepreneur who succeeded against all odds and the German masters of the time, and who eventually died fighting for the country of his birth during the First World War in Europe.

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No stop is complete without a Zamelek and before we knew it, round number 2 was done. Luckily we were strong and ended it there otherwise who knows ........  ;D

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Bradtwurst, salad and sandwiches were on the menu in Helmeringhausen, and only one ale. Damn, this self control we were exercising was disturbing.

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Fill-up in Gaogab

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We saw this tame dassie on the wall and upon enquiring to the petrol attendant if we could touch it, his reply was quite funny "Naaaay" he said "dis die boer s'n, hy sal my moer".   :) ;D   Some things will never change  :)

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Seeheim WAS our destination for the evening. Now we all thought this was a village or small town. Imagine our disappointment when we rounded the corner to find a really old and semi decrepit looking stone building. Granted, we never went inside, but when we were pointed to a disgusting patch of dirt behind the hotel, littered with two old rusted braaiâ??s and an empty birdbath, that was supposed to be the campsite, we took one look at each other and buggered off.

We had had a long day and the sun was setting. Where to now? I had found a few campsites in Keetmanshoop about 50km away on the GPS, but Poppipants and Funacide were having nothing of it â?? We were NOT going to sleep in a big town. Tracks 4 Africa saved the day once again and Funacide shot off in search of Naute Dam with us curiously following in his wake.

Again, the spirit of adventure saved the day and we found another perfect stop over place.

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Dinner was onions sauteâ??d in a pan with some large garlic cloves chopped in. The mince was browned and the onion mix folded in together with peppers and tomatoe puree and simmered for about 30 minutes. Chinese rice complemented the tasty meal.

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A litlle furry friend came to visit

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Soon the Jameson flowing into itâ??s 5th double round and Michael Brown was singing â??So many men, so little timeâ? over the iPod speakers. Involuntarily we found our feet tapping the dusty ground, each time creating another little puff of dust. Looking to my right, the two KTMâ??s, on their centre stands, with noses into the air were leading our three tents in silent guard, uniform in their erection â?? ready for the night.

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All the while, the big fat 1150 was sulking in the shadows, still remembering the humiliation of having a KTM strapped to itâ??s rear end for 160km two days earlier.  

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I'm sure both Journeyman and Michnus remember the late night calls, hehehe - lets just say, we were having a good time. Thanks for being such sports..........

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I'm glad you could make it back to the other two Plottie, and as you know we were having a lot of chuckles at your cost! But the important part is you continued with the adventure.

Now the rest!
 
1X said:
Plottie ek sien nie die foto's nie ??? Het al tien keer ge F5 sien wel Funacide sin?

Dieselfde probleem. Ook met my eie report.

Tog het dit na 'n ruk reggekom.  ???
 

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