mother
Race Dog
- Joined
- Aug 3, 2009
- Messages
- 3,234
- Reaction score
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- Location
- Cape Town
- Bike
- Harley Davidson (all models)
Namibia and back July 2009-08-12
Me, skati and my new heavy mother decided to do a trip to northern Namibia. The route..Pretoria/ Gaborone then Maun and up to Caprivi left to Rundu as I had never been there...all the way to the Kunene then south to Opuwa/ Sesfontein/ Palmwag turn to the coast and then down skeleton coast to Henties/ Swakopmund and on to Sossusvlei then south to Helmeringshausen and home to Gauteng...we had two weeks and around 5000km to do....no issues just the two of us and my new faithful Adventure...so first stop was to put a new tyre on my beast as she only had 3000km on current tyre
Pretoria to Gabs 400km day one pretty boring
We left Gabs Saturday 11th July to Maun via Serowe and Orapa plus minus 800km
In Maun we stayed at the Island Safari camp...interesting sand for about a kay to reception.. we had supper at the restaurant with lots of jack and ginger and then it was time for bed after long days ride...only skati didn’t get much sleep as we had a champion snorer in tent next to us
The next day we left Maun to go to Shakawe around 450km so no rush we had stayed at Drodskys before so we looked fwd to the place…. cold drink and warm good tasting food… and trust me no disappointment
The next day it was on to Rundu.i had never been this way so it was a nice stretch of road although long and straight
In Rundu we decided 2 days of camping was enough for us so we went in search of a lodge and found a fairly inexpensive one on the river…off to Shoprite to get braai goodies and a few bottles of wine for the evening….it was great chilling by the braai
The next day was a long one around 600 kays mostly dirt and sand roads barring the last bit of tar to Ruakana then on to Kunene river lodge…I had never done Rundu to Ondangwa so this section was interesting loads of sand and dust flying down the roads with goats and locals and old bakkies lets just leave it at that interesting
Must say Oshakati looked way different from when I last saw it in the army and then 2001 my last bike trip to this area…very very bizzi and they are worse drivers than Botswana
We pushed on to Ruakana and I stopped briefly to fill my bike and show Leonie where Ruakana falls are…or in this case Ruakana rocks….
from here to Kunene river lodge the last 60 kays we did in late afternoon …the road was shocking compared to how I remember it so we took it easy being just the two of us and I wasn’t looking for trouble with a breakdown or a fall….
Kunene river lodge sucks…we arrived just past 6pm and the very unhelpful bunch at reception told us that there would be no supper as the chef only catered for folks booked in chalets…no we couldn’t even get a sarmie…F@#$ I couldn’t believe how they just turned their backs on us….we had planned to stay here a few days but with that reception I doubt if they will see us again…I had stayed here in 2001 but then we had back up and food etc…..so the lesson learnt
We had a few drinks and skati and I hit the sack
After coffee the next morning(our own) we left for Opuwa nice and hungry as we had last had food the previous day lunch time…and if u know me I like to eat…anyway the road now was all gravel or rocks or sand whatever and in some places river beds where the detour was.
We finally got to Opuwa and hit the local OK franchise for kits food from their deli…we felt a lot better and lesson learnt we carried a few tins of
sardines and curry veg for incase…if u notice we not the booking before kind and prefer to wing our trips its more of an adventure that way
We stopped at Sesfontien to show Leonie the old fort .I had been here…and to fill up…
Moer expensive if u want to stay in the lodge $780 buck per person so we continued on to Palmwag for the night..it was early any case
Palmwag was a nice oasis we camped and it was fairly cheap we had supper at the bar and lots of drinks to rid the dust…the next day a hearty breakfast in the reastuarant…man how different from Kunene river lodge…
At breakfast an ol toppie told us that we couldn’t bike into the skeleton coast as they turn back bikes by the nature reserve gate…no bikes only 4x4s that really sucked…another guy overheard the conversation and advised us an alternative route via the Brandberg/Uis and double back around the Brandberg to come in to the skeleton coast near Mile 108 which was what we did…the road was in bad condition and very very sandy…interesting and fun to ride….lets put it this way we did lots of standing and skati did lots of holding on till I got gat vol and sat through most of the thick stuff eventually the road ended and we joined the coast salt road
Hows this …there is absolutely nothing at mile 108 a pokey little office camping$ 90 bucks a person and if you want to shower $5bucks each extra
That night we camped on the beach it was awesome.. always wanted to do that we ate sardines and backon kips and tin curry veg washed down with bottle of ol brown sherry we got from the guy in the office …non the less it was a highlight of the trip
Next day we headed south to our Swakopmund destination via cape cross and Henties bay we stopped to check out the seals at cape cross and have a hearty breakfast at the cape cross lodge ..was very leka
We stopped at henties for a cold pint as there was an east wind blowing across the desert 38degree and as we left to Swakopmund we saw our first other biker in Namibia taking a pic of his GS just outside of Henties we waved as we passed…
The next 3 days we just chilled at Swakopmund…visiting the local pubs and eating out….we even bought a book each and read that….this was a great way to relax…it started to feel like a holiday
By the time Monday came we where ready to roll and I was looking forward to riding again…destination Sossusvlei or so I thort
If you didn’t know July is tourist season in Namibia…the road from Walvis to Solitaire was busy like ive never seen it…and ive been riding Namibia for years…especially this section…overland trucks/buses/cars/4x4 rentals it was unbelievable
We got to Solitaire through all the dust and had some famous apple pie..they have changed this place big time over the years and its becoming very touristy now…pity I liked the old tin shack version…but then the guys got a business to run
We headed on to Sossusvlei and got an even bigger shock from.. when I last was biking in this area in 2006….no bikes allowed to do the 40 or so kays to where the vlei is.
You have to leave the bike at the reception area…Oh they got a shuttle service at $500bucks per person return and camping for the 2 of us was $300bucks for the spot and $150 per person….I was chatting to some European tourists and even they felt they where being ripped off…..so having seen Sossusvlei before many times I decided we aint gonna see it again… not at these prices and chances are I wont be back in my 4x4 cause I like biking more…
We headed south to Helmeringshausen stopping in at the Castle Spa to take a pic and find out how much they charge for curiosity $1960.00 per person…mmm u kidding me…
Any way we ended up camping on Aubers farm some 70km north of Helmeringshausen at $60bucks per person…I had stayed here with Shaun on a previous trip and we had the place to ourselves it was great….i was glad we didn’t stay at the tourist packed spot by Sossusvlei .Even the tins of sardines and curry veg tasted great
Next morning on to Helmeringshausen where we stopped at the hotel to have an amazing toasted sarmie and the hospitality was awesome…shame on Kunene river lodge….
At this point we decided to head for home via tar as my rear TKC was starting to look scary and we still had over a 1000km to go
The road home was via Keetmanshoop Upington
that night we stayed at a B&B in Upington and ate spare ribs at the Spur(I was fantasising about ribs after doing the sardine thing…im not big into fish,give me beef any day)
Last day Upington to Pretoria was just over 800km long boring road,im so gatvol of this ride and for me it kept on and on…this to me was the biggest vasbyt section finally we got home by 3pm that afternoon…back tyre moer toe
Total distance 5700km
13 days
Fuel I didn’t compute
Key lesson after yrs of biking…carry emergency food ration
Issues with bike …none…back tyre new at start finished by 5000km got home the last 700km on a blessing
Best thing I took with….my gas stove and coffee…oops my girl friend of course
Most useless thing I took with…winter gloves…it was very hot by the time we where riding in the morning and we never rode at night
Thing I was the happiest with….didnt know how each day was gonna turn out..the fact that I didn’t book./my bike and my girlfriend in no particular order
Me, skati and my new heavy mother decided to do a trip to northern Namibia. The route..Pretoria/ Gaborone then Maun and up to Caprivi left to Rundu as I had never been there...all the way to the Kunene then south to Opuwa/ Sesfontein/ Palmwag turn to the coast and then down skeleton coast to Henties/ Swakopmund and on to Sossusvlei then south to Helmeringshausen and home to Gauteng...we had two weeks and around 5000km to do....no issues just the two of us and my new faithful Adventure...so first stop was to put a new tyre on my beast as she only had 3000km on current tyre
Pretoria to Gabs 400km day one pretty boring
We left Gabs Saturday 11th July to Maun via Serowe and Orapa plus minus 800km
In Maun we stayed at the Island Safari camp...interesting sand for about a kay to reception.. we had supper at the restaurant with lots of jack and ginger and then it was time for bed after long days ride...only skati didn’t get much sleep as we had a champion snorer in tent next to us
The next day we left Maun to go to Shakawe around 450km so no rush we had stayed at Drodskys before so we looked fwd to the place…. cold drink and warm good tasting food… and trust me no disappointment
The next day it was on to Rundu.i had never been this way so it was a nice stretch of road although long and straight
In Rundu we decided 2 days of camping was enough for us so we went in search of a lodge and found a fairly inexpensive one on the river…off to Shoprite to get braai goodies and a few bottles of wine for the evening….it was great chilling by the braai
The next day was a long one around 600 kays mostly dirt and sand roads barring the last bit of tar to Ruakana then on to Kunene river lodge…I had never done Rundu to Ondangwa so this section was interesting loads of sand and dust flying down the roads with goats and locals and old bakkies lets just leave it at that interesting
Must say Oshakati looked way different from when I last saw it in the army and then 2001 my last bike trip to this area…very very bizzi and they are worse drivers than Botswana
We pushed on to Ruakana and I stopped briefly to fill my bike and show Leonie where Ruakana falls are…or in this case Ruakana rocks….
from here to Kunene river lodge the last 60 kays we did in late afternoon …the road was shocking compared to how I remember it so we took it easy being just the two of us and I wasn’t looking for trouble with a breakdown or a fall….
Kunene river lodge sucks…we arrived just past 6pm and the very unhelpful bunch at reception told us that there would be no supper as the chef only catered for folks booked in chalets…no we couldn’t even get a sarmie…F@#$ I couldn’t believe how they just turned their backs on us….we had planned to stay here a few days but with that reception I doubt if they will see us again…I had stayed here in 2001 but then we had back up and food etc…..so the lesson learnt
We had a few drinks and skati and I hit the sack
After coffee the next morning(our own) we left for Opuwa nice and hungry as we had last had food the previous day lunch time…and if u know me I like to eat…anyway the road now was all gravel or rocks or sand whatever and in some places river beds where the detour was.
We finally got to Opuwa and hit the local OK franchise for kits food from their deli…we felt a lot better and lesson learnt we carried a few tins of
sardines and curry veg for incase…if u notice we not the booking before kind and prefer to wing our trips its more of an adventure that way
We stopped at Sesfontien to show Leonie the old fort .I had been here…and to fill up…
Moer expensive if u want to stay in the lodge $780 buck per person so we continued on to Palmwag for the night..it was early any case
Palmwag was a nice oasis we camped and it was fairly cheap we had supper at the bar and lots of drinks to rid the dust…the next day a hearty breakfast in the reastuarant…man how different from Kunene river lodge…
At breakfast an ol toppie told us that we couldn’t bike into the skeleton coast as they turn back bikes by the nature reserve gate…no bikes only 4x4s that really sucked…another guy overheard the conversation and advised us an alternative route via the Brandberg/Uis and double back around the Brandberg to come in to the skeleton coast near Mile 108 which was what we did…the road was in bad condition and very very sandy…interesting and fun to ride….lets put it this way we did lots of standing and skati did lots of holding on till I got gat vol and sat through most of the thick stuff eventually the road ended and we joined the coast salt road
Hows this …there is absolutely nothing at mile 108 a pokey little office camping$ 90 bucks a person and if you want to shower $5bucks each extra
That night we camped on the beach it was awesome.. always wanted to do that we ate sardines and backon kips and tin curry veg washed down with bottle of ol brown sherry we got from the guy in the office …non the less it was a highlight of the trip
Next day we headed south to our Swakopmund destination via cape cross and Henties bay we stopped to check out the seals at cape cross and have a hearty breakfast at the cape cross lodge ..was very leka
We stopped at henties for a cold pint as there was an east wind blowing across the desert 38degree and as we left to Swakopmund we saw our first other biker in Namibia taking a pic of his GS just outside of Henties we waved as we passed…
The next 3 days we just chilled at Swakopmund…visiting the local pubs and eating out….we even bought a book each and read that….this was a great way to relax…it started to feel like a holiday
By the time Monday came we where ready to roll and I was looking forward to riding again…destination Sossusvlei or so I thort
If you didn’t know July is tourist season in Namibia…the road from Walvis to Solitaire was busy like ive never seen it…and ive been riding Namibia for years…especially this section…overland trucks/buses/cars/4x4 rentals it was unbelievable
We got to Solitaire through all the dust and had some famous apple pie..they have changed this place big time over the years and its becoming very touristy now…pity I liked the old tin shack version…but then the guys got a business to run
We headed on to Sossusvlei and got an even bigger shock from.. when I last was biking in this area in 2006….no bikes allowed to do the 40 or so kays to where the vlei is.
You have to leave the bike at the reception area…Oh they got a shuttle service at $500bucks per person return and camping for the 2 of us was $300bucks for the spot and $150 per person….I was chatting to some European tourists and even they felt they where being ripped off…..so having seen Sossusvlei before many times I decided we aint gonna see it again… not at these prices and chances are I wont be back in my 4x4 cause I like biking more…
We headed south to Helmeringshausen stopping in at the Castle Spa to take a pic and find out how much they charge for curiosity $1960.00 per person…mmm u kidding me…
Any way we ended up camping on Aubers farm some 70km north of Helmeringshausen at $60bucks per person…I had stayed here with Shaun on a previous trip and we had the place to ourselves it was great….i was glad we didn’t stay at the tourist packed spot by Sossusvlei .Even the tins of sardines and curry veg tasted great
Next morning on to Helmeringshausen where we stopped at the hotel to have an amazing toasted sarmie and the hospitality was awesome…shame on Kunene river lodge….
At this point we decided to head for home via tar as my rear TKC was starting to look scary and we still had over a 1000km to go
The road home was via Keetmanshoop Upington
that night we stayed at a B&B in Upington and ate spare ribs at the Spur(I was fantasising about ribs after doing the sardine thing…im not big into fish,give me beef any day)
Last day Upington to Pretoria was just over 800km long boring road,im so gatvol of this ride and for me it kept on and on…this to me was the biggest vasbyt section finally we got home by 3pm that afternoon…back tyre moer toe
Total distance 5700km
13 days
Fuel I didn’t compute
Key lesson after yrs of biking…carry emergency food ration
Issues with bike …none…back tyre new at start finished by 5000km got home the last 700km on a blessing
Best thing I took with….my gas stove and coffee…oops my girl friend of course
Most useless thing I took with…winter gloves…it was very hot by the time we where riding in the morning and we never rode at night
Thing I was the happiest with….didnt know how each day was gonna turn out..the fact that I didn’t book./my bike and my girlfriend in no particular order
