Rieks
Race Dog
At last i have managed to get my pictures into Photo Bucket - thanks for the advice Adventurer! Photos were taken by Henry and Rika -
I have been many places around the world â?? but this one tops as the adventure of my life! Surely more will follow - we plan to travell to Malawi via Mozambique etc and a trip i'd love to do is via the South Coast to Cape Town.
Myself, Rika (Nelspruit) â?? BMW R1200GS / Anton (Maputu) â?? BMW R1200GS Adventure and Henry (Pretoria) â?? KTM 950 Adventure headed off on Friday, 25 May 2008 on a 2 week trip to Namibia. Henry returned home on day 9 from Swakopmund.
3 Months of planning and preparation of our motorcycles paid off and were definately worth it. No injuries, no breakdowns and not one flat tire after our 6200km journey. I weighed in at the Buitepos weigh-bridge, 360kg which included myself, the bike and luggage.
Day 1: Maputu, Nelspruit, Pretoria, Zeerust,
Day 2: Botswana - Skildpadsnek border, Lobatse, Kang, Ghanzi
Day 3: Buitepos, Gobabis, Windhoek, Okahandja, Karibib, Spitzkoppe Rest Camp
We stopped in Windhoek at my friend Elizma (Professional tennis coach) whom i havent seen for 18years - we played tennis together when i was still in the Air Force those days.
Day 4: Omaruru, Uis, Brandberg Nature Reserve, Doros Crater, Rhino Camp
[2200 km of gravel, rocky sections and sand which included approximate 25km of loose and dry riverbed sand, started on day 3 and continued, which seemed forever. After the Crater we travelled on great gravel roads up to day 10 at Maltahöhe. We deflated our tires on the better gravell conditions to not less than 1.2 bars.
We experienced extreme difficulty in the Doros Crater on day 4. It is marked as a 4x4 route on the map. These very sandy and rocky conditions took its toll when we completed this 75 km route in 8 hours and it took us 110km to complete because of the extreme conditions and also getting lost and we almost ran out of fuel! We did however run out of water and were fortunate to meet two guys in their 4x4 vehicle whom also got lost. They supplied us with ice and water and believe me â?? the taste still remains fresh in my mind. Between the three of us â?? I fell 7 times in the sand out of 15 total falls. I even managed to pick the bike up once when the 2 guys had kind of left me behind - the conditions were so terrible that i really wanted to spare them the effort to turn around. I stood next to the bike - put it in first and spinned the back wheel deeper into the sand which resulted the bike to stand up a bit - i then pushed from the side little by little and more sand dugg beneath it - which helped me to eventually get it up. Maybe the anger and adrenalin helped me to get strength which i perhaps didn't have!
b]Day 5:[/b] Doros Crater, Aba-Huab at Twyfelfontein
Day 6: Palmwag Lodge, Grootberg, Kamanjab
Day 7: Fransfontein, Khorixas, Uis, Hentiesbaai, Swakopmund
[
Day 8/9: Swakopmund
Day 10: Walvisbaai via Kuiseb Pass to Solitaire, Maltahöhe, Mariental, Hardap Dam
Day 11: Keetmanshoop, Seeheim, Goageb, Aus, Luderitz
Aus - Filling up ..
Luderitz â?? Kolmanskoppe Ghost Town: In 1908, Luderitz was plunged into diamond fever. People rushed into the Namib Desert hoping to make an easy fortune and within two years, a town, complete with a casino, school, hospital and exclusive residential buildings, had been established in the barren sandy desert. Over 1 000 kg of diamonds were extracted before World War I. However, the amount of gemstones greatly diminished after the war. Furthermore, considerably larger diamonds were found to the south near Oranjemund, causing Kolmanskoppe to become a ghost town.
Day 12: Luderitz
Day 13: Keetmanshoop, Karasburg, Ariamsvlei, Nakop Border, Upington
Day 14: Klerksdorp, Palmietfontein
We travelled via Palmietfontein, Klerksdorp to overnight at my sister's farm.
Day 15: Pretoria, Nelspruit
Highlights of my trip:The scenery and mountains we explored while riding really fascinated me, absolutely awesome and great photo opportunities! Spitzkoppe Camp. Porcupine tented Camp near Kamanjab and surroundings. You have to stay over at this camp and be treated by a German lady and her daughter. Swakopmund â?? Sand boarding and great food! Crossing the Tropic of Capricorn. Meeting with other bikers. Chatting with the locals and sharing our stories and getting advice on the routes.
Pros / Modifications and extras to our bikes:Garmin GPS. Conversions to our 12V chargers in order to charge GPS, Cell phones and iPods. I had a canvass custom made to cover my tent, sleeping bag and mattress from rain and dust. We used dual purpose tires and not TKCâ??s. Most gravel roads in Namibia are in good condition and 35% of the 6200km trip was gravel roads.
Front light cover, wide foot pegs. Throttle control (Rika) and speed control (Henry). The throttle control consists of a plastic gadget that fits on the throttle which controls it partly with oneâ??s wrist. It relieves a lot of stress on the right hand and wrist.
Cons:
Long life milk is a no-no! Do not travel on gravel during public holidays â?? lot of vehicles with caravans throwing up stones and dust. GPS - We should have downloaded Tracks for Africa â?? which would have probably helped us not to get lost in the Doros Crater. One needs yellow goggle lenses to see the road better â?? visors get dirty easy and obstruct ones view immensely.
I would like to thank Anton and Henry for all their support and a great trip. A special thanks to Vaughn at SJW motors for assisting with the preparation of our BMWâ??s.
I hope you all enjoyed the report - anyone is more than welcome to contact any of us re advice / tips on our route. i also have a detailed list of all the goodies we took along. Looking forward to your comments .....
I have been many places around the world â?? but this one tops as the adventure of my life! Surely more will follow - we plan to travell to Malawi via Mozambique etc and a trip i'd love to do is via the South Coast to Cape Town.
Myself, Rika (Nelspruit) â?? BMW R1200GS / Anton (Maputu) â?? BMW R1200GS Adventure and Henry (Pretoria) â?? KTM 950 Adventure headed off on Friday, 25 May 2008 on a 2 week trip to Namibia. Henry returned home on day 9 from Swakopmund.
3 Months of planning and preparation of our motorcycles paid off and were definately worth it. No injuries, no breakdowns and not one flat tire after our 6200km journey. I weighed in at the Buitepos weigh-bridge, 360kg which included myself, the bike and luggage.
Day 1: Maputu, Nelspruit, Pretoria, Zeerust,
Day 2: Botswana - Skildpadsnek border, Lobatse, Kang, Ghanzi
Day 3: Buitepos, Gobabis, Windhoek, Okahandja, Karibib, Spitzkoppe Rest Camp
We stopped in Windhoek at my friend Elizma (Professional tennis coach) whom i havent seen for 18years - we played tennis together when i was still in the Air Force those days.
Day 4: Omaruru, Uis, Brandberg Nature Reserve, Doros Crater, Rhino Camp
[2200 km of gravel, rocky sections and sand which included approximate 25km of loose and dry riverbed sand, started on day 3 and continued, which seemed forever. After the Crater we travelled on great gravel roads up to day 10 at Maltahöhe. We deflated our tires on the better gravell conditions to not less than 1.2 bars.
We experienced extreme difficulty in the Doros Crater on day 4. It is marked as a 4x4 route on the map. These very sandy and rocky conditions took its toll when we completed this 75 km route in 8 hours and it took us 110km to complete because of the extreme conditions and also getting lost and we almost ran out of fuel! We did however run out of water and were fortunate to meet two guys in their 4x4 vehicle whom also got lost. They supplied us with ice and water and believe me â?? the taste still remains fresh in my mind. Between the three of us â?? I fell 7 times in the sand out of 15 total falls. I even managed to pick the bike up once when the 2 guys had kind of left me behind - the conditions were so terrible that i really wanted to spare them the effort to turn around. I stood next to the bike - put it in first and spinned the back wheel deeper into the sand which resulted the bike to stand up a bit - i then pushed from the side little by little and more sand dugg beneath it - which helped me to eventually get it up. Maybe the anger and adrenalin helped me to get strength which i perhaps didn't have!
b]Day 5:[/b] Doros Crater, Aba-Huab at Twyfelfontein
Day 6: Palmwag Lodge, Grootberg, Kamanjab
Day 7: Fransfontein, Khorixas, Uis, Hentiesbaai, Swakopmund
[
Day 8/9: Swakopmund
Day 10: Walvisbaai via Kuiseb Pass to Solitaire, Maltahöhe, Mariental, Hardap Dam
Day 11: Keetmanshoop, Seeheim, Goageb, Aus, Luderitz
Aus - Filling up ..
Luderitz â?? Kolmanskoppe Ghost Town: In 1908, Luderitz was plunged into diamond fever. People rushed into the Namib Desert hoping to make an easy fortune and within two years, a town, complete with a casino, school, hospital and exclusive residential buildings, had been established in the barren sandy desert. Over 1 000 kg of diamonds were extracted before World War I. However, the amount of gemstones greatly diminished after the war. Furthermore, considerably larger diamonds were found to the south near Oranjemund, causing Kolmanskoppe to become a ghost town.
Day 12: Luderitz
Day 13: Keetmanshoop, Karasburg, Ariamsvlei, Nakop Border, Upington
Day 14: Klerksdorp, Palmietfontein
We travelled via Palmietfontein, Klerksdorp to overnight at my sister's farm.
Day 15: Pretoria, Nelspruit
Highlights of my trip:The scenery and mountains we explored while riding really fascinated me, absolutely awesome and great photo opportunities! Spitzkoppe Camp. Porcupine tented Camp near Kamanjab and surroundings. You have to stay over at this camp and be treated by a German lady and her daughter. Swakopmund â?? Sand boarding and great food! Crossing the Tropic of Capricorn. Meeting with other bikers. Chatting with the locals and sharing our stories and getting advice on the routes.
Pros / Modifications and extras to our bikes:Garmin GPS. Conversions to our 12V chargers in order to charge GPS, Cell phones and iPods. I had a canvass custom made to cover my tent, sleeping bag and mattress from rain and dust. We used dual purpose tires and not TKCâ??s. Most gravel roads in Namibia are in good condition and 35% of the 6200km trip was gravel roads.
Front light cover, wide foot pegs. Throttle control (Rika) and speed control (Henry). The throttle control consists of a plastic gadget that fits on the throttle which controls it partly with oneâ??s wrist. It relieves a lot of stress on the right hand and wrist.
Cons:
Long life milk is a no-no! Do not travel on gravel during public holidays â?? lot of vehicles with caravans throwing up stones and dust. GPS - We should have downloaded Tracks for Africa â?? which would have probably helped us not to get lost in the Doros Crater. One needs yellow goggle lenses to see the road better â?? visors get dirty easy and obstruct ones view immensely.
I would like to thank Anton and Henry for all their support and a great trip. A special thanks to Vaughn at SJW motors for assisting with the preparation of our BMWâ??s.
I hope you all enjoyed the report - anyone is more than welcome to contact any of us re advice / tips on our route. i also have a detailed list of all the goodies we took along. Looking forward to your comments .....
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