The Lost Goat of Machaila

[sawystertrance]

Elephants and killer whales!

 

If you've ever looked into the eyes of a killer whale, it's the same feeling. There's something there, some understanding, some kind of recognition.

 

I know we're not alone in the universe, we're just too dumb to see our fellow travelers.

 

 

Seen this?

 

[DJR]

Seen this?

.............

I think the mother was just teaching the little ones:

 

"Look kids, this extremely slow thing looks like an easy meal, but rather leave them alone. They are all bony with no lekker blubber and although they smell good, when you bite them, they suddenly taste like ****!"    

Edited December 6, 2019 by DJR

[sawystertrance]

Reminds me of this...

 

 

Haha. 

[DJR]

No matter where I go, somehow I'm always like a moth to the flame when I see a Baobab.....simply cannot resist. I must have a drawer full of pictures like this one. Maybe it is the Karoo boy in me that will forever stay in awe of trees like that?

[SwissVan]

No matter where I go, somehow I'm always like a moth to the flame when I see a Baobab.....simply cannot resist. I must have a drawer full of pictures like this one. Maybe it is the Karoo boy in me that will forever stay in awe of trees like that?

 

 

Man u baastid... living in Afrika sure has its advantages

[DJR]

Man u baastid... living in Afrika sure has its advantages

I have a Baobab seed that lives in the cubbyhole of the Landy........it used to live in the cubbyhole of the previous one......and the one before that one....... It is originally from Kruger, but I recon it has now traveled about a half million kilometres all over Southern Africa (most of it around Cape Town ). When I stop travelling, I plan to plant it where I make my last stand! At least it will be interesting to see if it will grow.

[DJR]

The Race to Masuma

 

After our adventure and total failure to locate the Invisible Lions of Hwange, we decided to call it a day, relax and have an early dinner at our “Kennedy 2“ camp. Des looked after the fire and the potjie simmering away, while I read up about lion and their amazing biology. Daniel shot at empty cans with his catapult and David listened to music through his headphones. I could hear bird calls from all around and was starting to doze a bit in the lazy afternoon sun, when the noise of vehicles unexpectedly intruded and convoy of shiny city slicker SUVs with brand new camping trailers pulled into the clearing in a cloud of dust and instantly broke the spell.

 

A dozen loud people poured out of the vehicles and a somewhat overweight man approached us. Des held out her hand in greeting, but he rudely refused it and without introducing himself started berating us for being in his camping spot! I managed to stay calm and confidently explained that we have booked and paid for it and have the paperwork to prove it, he must surely be mistaken. That got me nothing more than a lawyerly challenge to produce said paperwork forthwith or be hung out for the lions at dusk! Meanwhile the rest of his party was measuring out real estate and hammering in pegs.

 

No problem, I knew I was in the right and fetched my ZimParks reservations …….... I assertively stuck it under the nose of the rude man and pointed out that our booking was until the 5th and that today was indeed the 5th! He retaliated by pointing out that our booking ended on the 5th, meaning that we had to vacate the campsite on that date and that the 4th was our last night there!

 

An instant-pandemonium bomb exploded in my head! I read the very fine print swimming before my eyes ………. and found that he was indeed right and that we were in the wrong!

 

The wrong place and the wrong time!

Edited December 8, 2019 by DJR

[DJR]

The Race to Masuma - Part 2

 

What to do? What to do?

 

After a quick indaba with the Ds, it was decided to move to our correct camp at Masuma Dam immediately, come hell or high water! We struck camp with the efficiency that only comes from travelling Africa together as Team DJR and twenty minutes later we were ready to move, but with our tails between our legs and feeling very sorry for ourselves. However, we had 2 immediate problems to deal with…….

 

The first one was the hot black cast iron potjie with its half cooked dinner – I simply wrapped it in a thick blanket and tied it up securely with ratchet straps so that it could not come open and spill where it sat in one of the spare wheels on the roof rack. The second problem was that we had a good 100 kilometres to cover to get to Masuma, with only about two hours before dark and the gates closing! Anyone familiar with Hwange would know that “roads” is often not really the right term for what we had to traverse! Doing that distance in such a short time, was going to be near impossible at legal and realistic speeds! We decided to give it our best anyway and if we didn’t make it in time, then so be it! The road was partly tar, dating to colonial times, but horribly full of potholes that in some parts got the upper hand and made for a dirt road with a few tarry bumps. On other stretches the surface was so bad that most travellers drove next to the road rather than on it! I kid you not! Except that everyone got thrown around a lot and that I was convinced we were going to end up with dinner stew thrown all over the outside and everyones lunch all over the inside of the car, the trip was mostly trouble free. For the whole 100 kilometres we saw no other cars and we only broke the left wing mirror when we didn’t quite clear some overhanging branches at speed. I must admit that perhaps the rear shocks were not quite the same afterwards!

 

Oh, and we put out a veld fire along the way when we came across a small grass fire on the side of the road. It looked like some dry elephant dung had caught fire. (Perhaps it was a sign that the focus of our visit was switching to elephants?) We used the last- bit of precious drinking water carted all the way from Cape Town! A quick stop, a thorough scan of the surrounding lion-grass, loud hooting to chase away nasties, David keeping watch from the roof rack, water from the Landy tank and some energetic stomping (I was thinking of the red face of the rude guy who was the reason for our unplanned race) prevented a much bigger disaster. Soon enough we were again going full steam ahead. How the dung caught fire, we never quite managed to figure out.

 

Not much further on, near Dateema, when nobody was searching for them, we came across a pride of lions in the long grass near the road………much less invisible than the Kennedy pride that eluded us for days! Another few minutes spent watching them made our chances of getting to Masuma in time just that little bit slimmer, but how can you ignore these magnificent beasts that are getting all too scarce in the wild!?

 

With one eye on the rapidly descending sun, we raced on!

Edited December 8, 2019 by DJR

[DJR]

The Race to Masuma - Part "last"

 

Just before dark, with mere minutes to spare, we pulled into the Masuma Dam campsite that was rightfully ours, and only ours, for the next few days! We explained that we could not report at Sinematella, which we were supposed to do first, but the single friendly camp attendant welcomed us with a huge smile and lit a camp fire for us before he disappeared to leave us in peace. The official admin would have to wait for morning.

 

The potjie was found all safe and had not spilled a drop! I think the rough drive just tenderized the venison. It went straight from the roof of the Landy onto the gas stove to speed up dinner. With David stirring the stew, Daniel and I quickly pitched camp. Sundowners were served by Des in the Masuma hide just as night closed in all around us! As a brilliant red sun disappeared over the dusty western horizon, a bright yellow full moon rose in the east. We decided to set up dinner in the hide and just stay there.......... the fast food kudu potjie finally reached its final destination!

 

There were maybe 30 elephant around the water hole........and then more arrived......and more...... By 9pm we counted at least 200 elephant! Yes, 200! The closest ones almost at touching distance. They were so close in fact, that you could feel their tummies rumble, not just hear it! It was brilliant to see how little groups arrived and how the matriarchs were clearly in charge, how they protected the young ones and how everyone gave the grumpy old bulls a little extra space! The noise and the hustle and bustle was something right out of a spectacular National Geographic documentary.....and we were literally in the middle of it! We enjoyed our well-travelled dinner to the symphony of elephant and a glass of red. No restaurant on earth, not in the best hotel on earth, could have matched the view and the ambiance of Masuma Dam that night. The elephant kept on coming until long after we turned in, exhausted after a very long day. Finally, at about midnight, the water hole got quieter, but all around us I could still hear elephant grazing and breaking branches, sometimes close enough to make for light sleep!

 

The next morning over breakfast, with not a single elephant in sight, we talked about the previous day and David said he was so glad that the rude man chased us away from Kennedy because he did us a massive favour! Without him we would have missed the highlight of Hwange!

 

So, thank you, unknown ill-mannered man, although you certainly didn’t mean to, your gift to us was priceless! Masuma Dam will forever be the "place of the elephant" for us.

Edited December 8, 2019 by DJR

[Kranswurm]

.

[Kranswurm]

I have a Baobab seed that lives in the cubbyhole of the Landy........it used to live in the cubbyhole of the previous one......and the one before that one....... It is originally from Kruger, but I recon it has now traveled about a half million kilometres all over Southern Africa (most of it around Cape Town ). When I stop travelling, I plan to plant it where I make my last stand! At least it will be interesting to see if it will grow.

If you visit my friends indigenous nursery in Mokolodi outside Gabs you can buy one of Chapmans children

[Kranswurm]

.

[hboli4]

Hi Everyone,

 

Everything on here is awesome! I hope you don't mind but I think this might be as good a place as any to ask for advice on a route from BFN to Tulbagh this month.

 

I don't want to do the straight N1 bash and I'm thinking of going via Victoria West (overnight on Friday - I can only leave work at midday and we have to go via Smithfield as well) and from there onto Loxton-Fraserburg-Sutherland.

 

Google then advises me to go to the N1 until just after Touws River and then onto Ceres, the other alternative is via the Tankwa but I have read some bad 'reviews' and advisories against taking this road?

 

Any suggestions/comments on the road conditions etc?

 

Driving a 'normal' 2.8 Hilux.

 

Thank you.

[Hairy]

Hi Everyone,

 

Everything on here is awesome! I hope you don't mind but I think this might be as good a place as any to ask for advice on a route from BFN to Tulbagh this month.

 

I don't want to do the straight N1 bash and I'm thinking of going via Victoria West (overnight on Friday - I can only leave work at midday and we have to go via Smithfield as well) and from there onto Loxton-Fraserburg-Sutherland.

 

Google then advises me to go to the N1 until just after Touws River and then onto Ceres, the other alternative is via the Tankwa but I have read some bad 'reviews' and advisories against taking this road?

 

Any suggestions/comments on the road conditions etc?

 

Driving a 'normal' 2.8 Hilux.

 

Thank you.

If you manage to extend that route to CT and have your bike with you I would happily take you for a spin on the Tygerberg trails

[hboli4]

If you manage to extend that route to CT and have your bike with you I would happily take you for a spin on the Tygerberg trails

 

Shotto, might just take you up on that offer as long as you do not try and kill me again - remember 'Die Vrystaat is plat'...

 

We are extending down to Klapmuts area for a couple of days after Tulbagh, will let you know how it goes...

[Hairy]

Shotto, might just take you up on that offer as long as you do not try and kill me again - remember 'Die Vrystaat is plat'...

 

We are extending down to Klapmuts area for a couple of days after Tulbagh, will let you know how it goes...

Pull in Tchjina ... some more trails on the same place we cycled last time.