The Unforgiven Trail - and the legends that tamed it

[m0lt3n]

I been meaning to update but its a crazy day at work.

Yes, Robert's subconscious or him mulling over the pic he took noticed another unknown little black box deeper inside the tower saying 'UP' but not being up.
As soon as he showed me I also clicked, all suddenly made sense. I did not even want to take the bike off the bakkie or bend the bracket back in place before testing but tilted the bike there on the bakkie to 45degrees and started it...and it did not die!

Turns out either from the crash or our manhandling of tower had bend the bracket the tilt sensor sits on. It was awesome having my bike back.

Other than wooden front brakes, she did not give me any headaches for the rest of the trip. Rather impressive in my opinion, taking that hit and (what was left of it) still finishing the trip.

 

[hartebees]

Within the first few kilometers after entering the Crowther trail we passed a handful of Wilderness Safaris game viewers, loaded with some European guests. No doubt they were a bit taken aback by the big group of bikes passing through.

The plan was to meet up km 160 and again at 210. The riders with smaller fuel tanks refuelled at the 160km lunch spot. The landscape changed every couple of kilometers – everything from sandy riverbed to moon landscapes filled with nothing but rocks and welwitchias.

When we met the riders at km 210, Hardy went ahead again as this 35km stretch to the main road is essential a lion camp where the conservancy feeds the lions with the goal of having them around for the foreign guests. Fortunately we had no lion encounters. This section was extremely rocky and combined with all the riding from before, some riders had to fight the rocks with fatigue and sore arms as handicap. One or two remarked that this was the toughest riding day they ever had.

From the main road it was 15km to get to camp – everyone was glad to be on a smooth road again. At Palmwag the stew was almost done by the time we arrived and after a good meal everyone went to bed early.

 

[hartebees]

 

[hartebees]

Some desert scenes.

 

[Puls0nic]

@Hardy de Kock You need another driver, cook, pretty boy for your team? (Half serious) This is surreal.

 

[hartebees]

Rather impressive in my opinion, taking that hit and (what was left of it) still finishing the trip.

Your 990 most definitely has a place in the hall of fame.

 

[Hardy de Kock]

Your 990 most definitely has a place in the hall of fame.

For sure - That 990 wanted to finish that trip, come hell or high water

 

[Hardy de Kock]

Later that day I received this message from Emsie (Wilderness Safaris) (She got the day/date mixed up in her message)
I previously mentioned my dislike for Wilderness Safaris here and hinted to the fact that they really do not want anyone else riding in the areas that they market as exclusive playground for their customers.

Note that we encountered these two Wilderness Safari guest vehicles at around 2km and 8km respectively after we climbed out of the Hoanib river and that we found absolutely no other people in the river.

The two guides of the W/S vehicles did take pictures of my Cruiser and some of the bikes as we drove past them though.
Now you can ask any of the riders in this group if any of the above is true.
I believe Emsie and her two guides have made sure I dislike Wilderness Safaris even more.

 

[Skaiidawg]

View attachment 835888

Later that day I received this message from Emsie (Wilderness Safaris) (She got the day/date mixed up in her message)
I previously mentioned my dislike for Wilderness Safaris here and hinted to the fact that they really do not want anyone else riding in the areas that they market as exclusive playground for their customers.

Note that we encountered these two Wilderness Safari guest vehicles at around 2km and 8km respectively after we climbed out of the Hoanib river and that we found absolutely no other people in the river.

The two guides of the W/S vehicles did take pictures of my Cruiser and some of the bikes as we drove past them though.
Now you can ask any of the riders in this group if any of the above is true.
I believe Emsie and her two guides have made sure I dislike Wilderness Safaris even more.

Gee haar nommer vir my en ek stuur haar in haar moer namens jou.

 

[dirtWarp]

Watse 3 leeus?
Dis @BoskakBruce en sy tjommies wat die Leeuloop gedoen het.

 

[BuRP]

Day 8

A Rest Day, for those needing a pause... or a chance to re-design their bikes (read: Martin aka M0lt3n).
After watching (better not get involved here I thought....) all the concerted effort going in to rebuilding the damaged 990 I heard it start - and was genuinely relieved to hear that, music to my ears.... but then it died, and kept doing so: ****!
I also was thinking 'now what can cause this?'.... but my immobiliser suggestion proved wrong, that was rigged to work already. \
Ahh ****, dunno then...

Noone wanted to go ride the Dune in town, close to the beeroutlet nogals, I asked several potential victims in the nicest way possible - but no takers, bunch of lazy farts!
So Pierre & me serviced the bikes, new filters and some oil, nothing drastic.
Was a lazy day!



Day 9

Greg selflessly offered to carry a bike on this 'Mog's back bumper - which is not really possible, and the chance of damaging his pristine rig was almost inevitable.
I offered my towel to him for use as a bumper/stop, in the hope to limit the damage if not prevent it, and this was accepted.
Luister mooi hierso Hardy, ek glo nie ek sou so maklik dit gedoen het nie was dit my Unimog.... maar jy weet anyway ek kwyl oor die goed.
To my exceptional respect as well as surprise, the latter with zero contempt neither sarcasm, Robert saved the day with his attention to detail, like in "must this arrow & text "UP" not point upwards rather?
Turned out the Tilt-switch was askew due the fall and/or fiddling, and this saved the day in many ways!
Bakgat Boetie, mooi man, daar ry die bike weer, en die stukkende 650 kan op die bakkie gelaai word!
En, tog belangrik, ek kry my towel weer terug!

So off we went, a new trail and a new long day...

The Hoanib riverbed is definitely not a place where you want to go fast

Huh?
Jou grapkas, rerig?
And you're telling us only now????

It actually was a race, every single time we were let loose after Hardy up front gave the sign per 2way radio that it was safe to come though to them!
And was it NICE ek se!
Of course we're not the kinderagtige types, there was a very good reason for this, admittedly seemingly somewhat hooliganish, behaviour: dust, or rather the keeping out of it! The first has none of course, the second had none too if he took another line, the 3rd would try to avoid the first two.... but the rest had to make do with whatever dwarelled upwards
Plus, this being Lion country there is some comfort in racing with others, the combined howling/brulling/screaming of the engines surely will cause the big cats to **** in their pants .... or something like that, ahem.

No doubt they were a bit taken aback by the big group of bikes passing through.

"Vat zevoc ies thies?"
Plus signs of 'Be very quiet please, we promised to our valued guests to show some Archaeopteryx and you will spoil that chance I'm sure' were displayed when we really well-behaved (read: forewarned!) tootled by... oh well Frogs, you'll have to come back next year!
Better for the kitty too innit?

----

I'll also use Jaco's 'tbc' now because I hardly can't see my keyboard anymore

 

[Hardy de Kock]

Bart het Alan hulle toe jou jenewer vir jou gegee gister oggend?

 

[Adriaan.theron]

Bart het Alan hulle toe jou jenewer vir jou gegee gister oggend?

Ek vermoed dis hoekom hy nie meer sy keyboard kon sien nie...

I'll also use Jaco's 'tbc' now because I hardly can't see my keyboard anymore

 

[BuRP]

Bart het Alan hulle toe jou jenewer vir jou gegee gister oggend?

Ja maar dis terug Loxton toe, ek het dit dan vir Chantal & jou gegee by Arebbush.
By my gaan daai goeie goed net oppi bar staan, alli ander bottles geselskap hou, en Chantal het my gese dat julle dit wel sal drink!
So, julle sal maar moet party jong!

 

[ETS]

What an Epic trip it was- Hartebees' and all the other pics take me back instantly. Thank you!


Hardy- backbone of the trip. Thank you- we always know you are there
Chantal- always smiling. never complaining. Making the most delicious food
Sharon- it is such a humbling experience to be waited on hand an foot- thank you
Alan- Mr do it all, fire coffee packing unpacking the silent backbone.
Greg- what a gentleman and kindred soul. It was an honour to meet you!

The Riders

Fred. What can i say? I stand in awe of your age and skill. Intelligent companion. Has been to 230 of the 220 countries!

Bart- I must unreservedly apologise for my behaviour to you at Purros. I was wrong. But being the ordentlike Dutchman you are- we put it behind us. Thank you.

Conrad aka Runner. Part of the trip's success. Always helping. I subsequently learnt that he is well aqainted with my sister.....

Steve. My age. half my weight on an 890, Huge balls! And a nice guy to boot as well.

Andrew - on a T7-- what an accomplished rider and trip companion

Pierre(Venter)- i stand in awe of your riding! And so humble about it. Specialises in cold coffee! Haha.

Martin- on a 990. Nothing ever gets you down! And we could chat for hours!

Gerry- Nice guy always making me drunk- waited on me to see if i was ok- every day. Dankie!

JacoNoteboom- what a good Dutchman. Well spoken and pulls no punches. Th blisters on his *** were huge.

Fanus. Anethetist. Intelligent and just doing his riding. Enjoyed your companionship

Jean- must be the most unlucky guy as his bike broke. Never complained. Took great photos. Intelligent conversationist

Pierre(his brother)- on his Honda 300- never missing a beat always helping. And he knows his farming stuff!

Werner- what a nice guy. The neatest dresser on the trip- And such a good rider!

Robert- well informed capitalist- with Werner always disappearing fast in front! Thanks for the riding tips.

Justin- well bespoke gentleman. Taker of all the best Lone Man pics. Smooth rider and such an interesting talker

Johan Liebenberg- you have more guts than all of us combined. Never give up. Butttt you called me obese! Ok ok, well deserved hehehehe

Last but not least- Jaco Hartebees. Jo he works hard, never complains. His ride report is awesome. Always there to fix my oopsies. Cannot thank you or praise you enough.

Thank you ladies and gentlemen..... It was an HONOUR. Looking forward to next year!

 

[hartebees]

Ai Bart, ons ken nou al jou sin vir humor maar ek dink jou kommentaar hier kan verkeerd interpreteer word.

Plekke soos daardie deel van die Hoanib is iets wat mens dalk, as jy gelukkig is, 'n handvol keer in jou lewe ervaar. Dis hoekom niemand daar gejaag het nie. Dit was lekker om hierdie dag saam met jou agter te ry. Ek geniet jou geselskap.

 

[Hardy de Kock]

What an Epic trip it was- Hartebees' and all the other pics take me back instantly. Thank you!


Hardy- backbone of the trip. Thank you- we always know you are there
Chantal- always smiling. never complaining. Making the most delicious food
Sharon- it is such a humbling experience to be waited on hand an foot- thank you
Alan- Mr do it all, fire coffee packing unpacking the silent backbone.
Greg- what a gentleman and kindred soul. It was an honour to meet you!

The Riders

Fred. What can i say? I stand in awe of your age and skill. Intelligent companion. Has been to 230 of the 220 countries!

Bart- I must unreservedly apologise for my behaviour to you at Purros. I was wrong. But being the ordentlike Dutchman you are- we put it behind us. Thank you.

Conrad aka Runner. Part of the trip's success. Always helping. I subsequently learnt that he is well aqainted with my sister.....

Steve. My age. half my weight on an 890, Huge balls! And a nice guy to boot as well.

Andrew - on a T7-- what an accomplished rider and trip companion

Pierre(Venter)- i stand in awe of your riding! And so humble about it. Specialises in cold coffee! Haha.

Martin- on a 990. Nothing ever gets you down! And we could chat for hours!

Gerry- Nice guy always making me drunk- waited on me to see if i was ok- every day. Dankie!

JacoNoteboom- what a good Dutchman. Well spoken and pulls no punches. Th blisters on his *** were huge.

Fanus. Anethetist. Intelligent and just doing his riding. Enjoyed your companionship

Jean- must be the most unlucky guy as his bike broke. Never complained. Took great photos. Intelligent conversationist

Pierre(his brother)- on his Honda 300- never missing a beat always helping. And he knows his farming stuff!

Werner- what a nice guy. The neatest dresser on the trip- And such a good rider!

Robert- well informed capitalist- with Werner always disappearing fast in front! Thanks for the riding tips.

Justin- well bespoke gentleman. Taker of all the best Lone Man pics. Smooth rider and such an interesting talker

Johan Liebenberg- you have more guts than all of us combined. Never give up. Butttt you called me obese! Ok ok, well deserved hehehehe

Last but not least- Jaco Hartebees. Jo he works hard, never complains. His ride report is awesome. Always there to fix my oopsies. Cannot thank you or praise you enough.

Thank you ladies and gentlemen..... It was an HONOUR. Looking forward to next year!

Jy het een persoon vergeet:

Daai ou wat altyd dankie kom sê na elke ete en elke dag se ry.
Daai ou wat altyd seker maak ons lag
Daai ou wat elke jaar eerste sy toergeld inbetaal nog lank voor ons vir hom ń faktuur gestuur het.
Daai ou wat altyd alles in sy vermoë doen om die toer vir ander mense lekkerder te maak.
@ETS - Dankie vir alles

 

[Fuzzy Muzzy]

What a fantastic tour.. I really enjoyed reading this thread

 

[hartebees]

Day 10 – Palmwag to Brandberg

Jimbo the elephant made his appearance in the camp that night and the next morning, walking right between the stretchers. Cool to see a massive beast like this up close.

At Palmwag we refuelled and headed south, turning off to go through Desolation Valley to the Huab river where the riders regrouped. As is the standard procedure, a few riders went ahead with radios and in 2km intervals they reported back. This time it was @dirtWarp, @darthvader and @Renrew. Quite soon after entering the Aba Huab river they alerted us to elephant on the right hand side. There were three, if I recall correctly.

We made our way down the riverbed to Twyfelfontein, where once again the riders refuelled and then met up at the Twyfelfontein Country Lodge – a beautiful establishment built to intertwine with the boulders above Twyfelfontein. The facilities, namely pool and bar, were made good use of.

Soon after passing the Burnt Mountain, Andrew had another front wheel puncture which we promptly fixed. By this point in the trip, the four of us – Hardy, Chantal, Andrew and I – worked in perfect harmony together when it came to fixing flats so it took less than 10 minutes to complete the job.

We rode the twisty Goantagab rivierbed with Brandberg looming ahead. Not far after exiting the river, we came across Conrad who had misjudged a rock ledge. It was a good time to re-energize with some extra jelly babies and wine gums from the Cruiser, as the sandy track leading to Brandberg was just up ahead. This sandy track is always super fun to ride. If you enjoy sand riding you can really open up and lean the bike over, using the sand to help you corner. And if you don't enjoy sand riding, I can almost guarantee you that you will at the end of the track as it will teach you how to ride it properly, simply because there is no other way to do it.

At the Brandberg White Lady bar and pool a few milkshakes and beers went down well – I assume because I saw a lot of empty glasses when I got there. Dinner that night was pizza at the restaurant.

Alan later told us that he, coming from Uis, intercepted Justin whom he saw riding in the middle of nowhere. Apparently he was on his way to Uis, having mistaken our campsite for Basil's establishment in town.

We didn't say it explicitly but the riders had in essence now completed the hard part of the tour. For me it was a relief that we got all the riders and bikes to here. On this trip we had considered so many plans – leaving bikes behind, strapping them to Unimogs, loading them inside a trailer... luckily none of them had to be executed. And despite the challenging routes, not a single rider had suffered a serious injury.

 

[hartebees]