Fudge
Race Dog
:happy1:
To the Lungs of the Earth
- Thread starter NiteOwl
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Goingnowherekwickly
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Looking forward to more 
Following with interest thank you! By the way,are those not Roan antelope :
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O0 :thumleft:
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ETS said:Following with interest thank you! By the way,are those not Roan antelope :
No definitely Sable, just young animals.
GeenSand
Race Dog
Die is 'n swart-witpens..
Sent from my SM-A605F using Tapatalk
Sent from my SM-A605F using Tapatalk
ButtSlider
Race Dog
:thumleft:Sub :sip:
Brink
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:sip:
NiteOwl
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skydiver said:Subscribed
I see quite a few WDs were awake at around 02:00 this morning
I must refer you to my avatar....
On a different note, it looks like most subscribers here ride singles.
Regarding the swartwitpens, the facial markings differ quite bit from those of the roan antelope. I'm not familiar with the Richelieu model that was posted, but will keep my eyes open for one.
NiteOwl
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We are up with the traffic the next morning (difficult not to) to find everything wet from last night’s light rain. We drag over a table from one of the chalets nearby to unpack and sort our stuff (this process took a few repetitions before we finally got the packing part sorted). Everything that should be here appears to be present and correct. Good!
Nothing has come loose or fallen off the bikes, but mrs Owl’s GPS stopped working near Modimolle (Nylstroom) when the Zumo’s battery ran out and the USB cable I bought there made no difference. On her bike I installed the standard Garmin power cable with filter and inline fuse, so presumably that’s where the problem lies. A quick check with the continuity indicator confirms this diagnosis. Unfortunately I did not pack any 1A fuses, so a 10A one will have to do.
My GPS now exhibits the same problem as the Zumo on mrs Owl’s bike. As soon as I turn the bike’s USB power socket on, the display says “SAVING TRACKS…” and at 4% it dies. I did not pick this up before we left, because I had cleared the tracks before the trip (so there was nothing to save). Clearly, it’s a cable problem and the GPS is trying to write data to a non-existent recipient on the bike. Fortunately, there’s WiFi and an hour or so later it’s clear what the problem is and how the GPS can be “told” that there is no computer to write all that data to.
While the regular USB connector has four contacts (+5V, Return and Data +/-), the mini USB has five contacts and the extra one is used to distinguish between regular charging connections and data comms. The likelihood of sourcing a 17.3 KΩ resistor out here in the gramadoelas is zero and likewise the probability of finding any soldering tools required to make the required link. But…we have some aluminium tape and after trimming a thin sliver of this and carefully prising it into the USB mini connector with a tweezer, I eventually manage to push the connector onto the GPS with the tape still in place and the GPS is happy at last.
It’s noon by the time we finally get going towards the Makgadikgadi pans. At Palapye we are able to draw some Pula whilst refuelling. It looks like Uber Eats has also taken root in Botswana.
Annoyingly, I find that that Tracks4Africa is nearly 250m out with the turnoff in Serowe, and its detail further north also left a lot to be desired. With the late departure there’s only time to show my wife the entrance of the Khama Rhino Sanctuary before moving on. It must be one of the very few reserves with a 100% anti-poaching record; the remote location must surely be a factor.
Unsurprisingly with the bit of rain we had, the countryside looks more verdant than I have ever seen this part of Botswana. After an hour or so we stop for a “fuel break” and snacks. It’s about 240km from Palapye to Lethlakane, so we filled up one jerry can apiece as there are no pumps after Serowe.
Traffic is almost non-existent and even the usual hordes of donkeys appear to have found greener pastures elsewhere.
We stock up on water and fuel at Lethlakane and start looking for a camping spot along the road in the twilight. There’s a detour around the Orapa mine where a service road splits off the tar. A few hundred meters in we are almost undetectable from the main road, so we pitch the tent next to the track.
It turns out to be great spot and we enjoy a lappiestort from the water bag we filled up in Lethlakane with some rather oily looking water. We have a great night’s sleep at last as we start to get into the groove of life on the road and finally manage to get going at a more decent time. We see no soul until eight the next morning, when a TLB rumbles past, the driver waving a friendly greeting. By now we have also found a handy use for our tripod:
An easy stretch along the southern edge of the Makgadikgadi Pans awaits on our route for the day to Maun. It’s the usual washed-out sandy pan scenery through Mopipi , Rakops and Motopi….
…interspersed with villages where rural life goes along as it has done for centuries. In fact, the next 1500 km to the Angolan border are all as flat as a pancake at an elevation of around 3000 ft.
It’s become noticeably hotter, vaaler and dryer since this morning and there is no water on either side of the bridge across the Thamalakane river in Maun as we head northwards out of town. Fortunately, the Motsana Arts café is still in business and we sink into the plump couches to enjoy a great cappuccino. A proper oasis!
Audi Camp is only a few hundred metres down the road and we check in to the campsite at 90 Pula per head (R120) after navigating the sandy access road.
The reception is very friendly although there’s visible decay in the bathrooms since our last visit. Aren’t these great smiles??
Mokoro trips into the Okavango are not possible as the delta is unseasonably dry. Along the edge of what little water is left, the camp’s boats lie waiting for the rains in Angola to make their way southwards.
Nothing has come loose or fallen off the bikes, but mrs Owl’s GPS stopped working near Modimolle (Nylstroom) when the Zumo’s battery ran out and the USB cable I bought there made no difference. On her bike I installed the standard Garmin power cable with filter and inline fuse, so presumably that’s where the problem lies. A quick check with the continuity indicator confirms this diagnosis. Unfortunately I did not pack any 1A fuses, so a 10A one will have to do.
My GPS now exhibits the same problem as the Zumo on mrs Owl’s bike. As soon as I turn the bike’s USB power socket on, the display says “SAVING TRACKS…” and at 4% it dies. I did not pick this up before we left, because I had cleared the tracks before the trip (so there was nothing to save). Clearly, it’s a cable problem and the GPS is trying to write data to a non-existent recipient on the bike. Fortunately, there’s WiFi and an hour or so later it’s clear what the problem is and how the GPS can be “told” that there is no computer to write all that data to.
While the regular USB connector has four contacts (+5V, Return and Data +/-), the mini USB has five contacts and the extra one is used to distinguish between regular charging connections and data comms. The likelihood of sourcing a 17.3 KΩ resistor out here in the gramadoelas is zero and likewise the probability of finding any soldering tools required to make the required link. But…we have some aluminium tape and after trimming a thin sliver of this and carefully prising it into the USB mini connector with a tweezer, I eventually manage to push the connector onto the GPS with the tape still in place and the GPS is happy at last.
It’s noon by the time we finally get going towards the Makgadikgadi pans. At Palapye we are able to draw some Pula whilst refuelling. It looks like Uber Eats has also taken root in Botswana.
Annoyingly, I find that that Tracks4Africa is nearly 250m out with the turnoff in Serowe, and its detail further north also left a lot to be desired. With the late departure there’s only time to show my wife the entrance of the Khama Rhino Sanctuary before moving on. It must be one of the very few reserves with a 100% anti-poaching record; the remote location must surely be a factor.
Unsurprisingly with the bit of rain we had, the countryside looks more verdant than I have ever seen this part of Botswana. After an hour or so we stop for a “fuel break” and snacks. It’s about 240km from Palapye to Lethlakane, so we filled up one jerry can apiece as there are no pumps after Serowe.
Traffic is almost non-existent and even the usual hordes of donkeys appear to have found greener pastures elsewhere.
We stock up on water and fuel at Lethlakane and start looking for a camping spot along the road in the twilight. There’s a detour around the Orapa mine where a service road splits off the tar. A few hundred meters in we are almost undetectable from the main road, so we pitch the tent next to the track.
It turns out to be great spot and we enjoy a lappiestort from the water bag we filled up in Lethlakane with some rather oily looking water. We have a great night’s sleep at last as we start to get into the groove of life on the road and finally manage to get going at a more decent time. We see no soul until eight the next morning, when a TLB rumbles past, the driver waving a friendly greeting. By now we have also found a handy use for our tripod:
An easy stretch along the southern edge of the Makgadikgadi Pans awaits on our route for the day to Maun. It’s the usual washed-out sandy pan scenery through Mopipi , Rakops and Motopi….
…interspersed with villages where rural life goes along as it has done for centuries. In fact, the next 1500 km to the Angolan border are all as flat as a pancake at an elevation of around 3000 ft.
It’s become noticeably hotter, vaaler and dryer since this morning and there is no water on either side of the bridge across the Thamalakane river in Maun as we head northwards out of town. Fortunately, the Motsana Arts café is still in business and we sink into the plump couches to enjoy a great cappuccino. A proper oasis!
Audi Camp is only a few hundred metres down the road and we check in to the campsite at 90 Pula per head (R120) after navigating the sandy access road.
The reception is very friendly although there’s visible decay in the bathrooms since our last visit. Aren’t these great smiles??
Mokoro trips into the Okavango are not possible as the delta is unseasonably dry. Along the edge of what little water is left, the camp’s boats lie waiting for the rains in Angola to make their way southwards.
Koet
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For some reason I can't see any of your latest post's photos. May just be our corporate firewall IT gods being dicks?
Clockwork Orange
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I cant see them neither
Koet said:
Yeah. saw the first post, but 2nd post's photos can't be seen
