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Overlanding Through Africa
  • Happy Days Travel
  • Mark Wade
  • Happy Days Travel
  • Mark Wade

Overlanding Through Africa

This is the big one - the trip we have been planning since before the pandemic! We will be overlanding from South Africa 🇿🇦 to Kenya 🇰🇪 passing through 9 other countries and taking four months. Les mer
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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Arriving in Swakopmund

    1. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    On arrival in Swakopmund, Patrick drove us around the town so that Laban could explain to us where everything is. He dropped us off at an activity centre so we could all choose what we wanted to do for the next couple of days. We booked a dolphin and seal cruise for tomorrow. While the others were still deciding, we went to the supermarket across the road to buy breakfast supplies and some pasta and mince to have for dinner this evening.

    At the campsite, Henry had already prepared chicken stew and rice for lunch, which we ate whilst sitting in the sunshine outside the crew’s chalet. There was another Intrepid truck parked across the road. It was on its way south and will leave for Cape Town in the morning. We had a chat with their leader, Nash, who had led the trip Kristina took from Zanzibar down to Cape Town. He remembered her very well! 😊

    After lunch, we got our keys for the chalets. We are sharing with Trisha and John. There was some argument when people realised who they were sharing with!

    While the arguing continued, the rest of us emptied the truck of all our stuff and got settled in. The first job was to sort out our laundry! Mark took ours to the place down the street. We can pick it up at 4pm on Monday. Trisha and John went out to explore the town and find somewhere to have dinner. We stayed in. There is no wi-fi here, but I started to update my notes, and Mark took his photos off the camera. There is a TV in the chalet, so we were able to see a bit of world news and catch up with some sport. Later, we had pasta for dinner and took advantage of having our own bathroom to have showers and wash the desert out of our hair!. When Trisha and John came back, we chatted for a while before going to bed.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Dolphin and seal cruise

    2. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    We were up at 7am this morning to have breakfast before being picked up for our tours at 8 (Trisha and John were doing the Living Desert Tour, an exploration of all the small creatures that make their homes in the sand). We were joined on our tour by Heidi and Kris.

    Our pick up was on time. After collecting more guests from other hotels around town, we set off for Wavis Bay, 20 kilometres away. It was very foggy, so we could see little as we drove along. When we got there, we had to wait a short time for our boat to arrive. There were lots of people going out on different boats. Ours was a catamaran called Mlandra owned and skippered by South African Eduard du Toit. As we waited to board, there was a pelican on a post, which caused us all to stop and take photos despite the foggy conditions.

    On board the boat, we had a quick briefing from Eduard before setting off. One of the crew was throwing fish from the back of the boat, so we were joined on board by Peekaboo, a young male seal who regularly rides on the Mlandra. There is some controversy about the ethics of feeding the seals, but all I can say is that they don’t seem to suffer because of it, and there is strictly no touching of the animals allowed.

    As we headed out to sea to visit the seal colony on the sandbank, the crew served us a cup of South African sherry each! It certainly got rid of the morning chill! There was also a cooler on board where we could help ourselves to water, soft drinks, or beer. We heard the seals in the colony before we could see them through the fog! There were hundreds, both on the sand bank and playing in the water. I’m not sure how good the photos will be.

    Eduard explained to us all about the oyster farms we could see and about fishing in the area. We were joined on the boat at different times by pelicans and seagulls. As we motored around the area, the fog lifted, and the sun shone. We were searching for dolphins, but despite Eduard’s best efforts, we didn’t find any. He was in touch with all the other boats in the bay, and nobody saw dolphins this morning. That’s just the way it goes!

    Inside the boat, I watched as one of the crew shucked a whole tray of oysters and prepared our buffet lunch. We had this with a South African sparkling wine, which was really good. Sherry, beer, and fizz – all before 11 o’clock in the morning! Not everybody wanted oysters, so Mark had half a dozen with a splash of Tabasco and a drop of lemon juice. He thoroughly enjoyed them.

    After ‘lunch’, we returned to the harbour and got transported back to Swakopmund. At least this time we could see the scenery next to the road!    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    A walk along Swakopmund's seafront

    2. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    We went back to the chalet to change and pick up the laptop, the idea being that we would have a walk and then find somewhere to sit and use the wifi. We walked through town. Most places were closed because it was Sunday. We continued down to the seafront and walked along the pier and back again. We did a big loop via the aquarium and back into town without finding anywhere that had wifi. We found out later that we should have headed in the opposite direction where we would have found plenty of places! Oh well, there’s always tomorrow!

    Back in town, we bumped into Liz and chatted to her for a while. She had spent the morning having a surfing lesson. We managed to get wifi while standing outside the closed activity centre where we were yesterday. It was just enough to update emails and get some news from the UK. We then walked further and found a coffee shop which was open and was advertising free wifi. Unfortunately, my phone died, so I was unable to take advantage of this! Still, we sat and had a drink. Mark had a beer, and I had what was billed as a ‘German ice coffee’ – the strangest iced coffee I’ve ever had, but not completely terrible! 😂

    From the café, we went to draw some cash and then headed to Ocean Basket, a fish restaurant, for dinner. Mark had a seafood platter, and I had fish and chips. Both were good. We then headed back to the chalet and crossed paths with Trisha and John, who were just going out to eat. As we were chatting to them, Mark’s phone started bleeping. He was connected to the internet! All that palaver, and we could have just connected here at reception!!

    I chatted to Kim and Iona for a while, and when John and Trisha got back, we sat with them until gone 10.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa
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    A day around Swakopmund

    3. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    We didn’t get up until 9am this morning. It was nice to have a lie in!! It was another gorgeous sunny day. My priority was to get online and start doing some posts, so we headed to an internet café we had seen yesterday when it was closed. I got connected and sat in the garden doing updates while Mark came and went doing errands. He needed new laces for his walking shoes, and he went to the supermarket to get bits to make up a dinner for tonight. He tried to get a SIM for the rest of our time here in Namibia, but that proved to be a fruitless task. He picked up our laundry and then joined me again for a cheese toastie for lunch. I didn’t get caught up with everything, but I made a start, so that’s the main thing!

    I was at the café for most of the day. Between us, we had two coffees, a Coke Zero, a pint of draught lager, and two toasties with chips, plus free wi-fi, all for the grand total of 162 Namibian dollars (about £7.50)!

    When we left the cafe, we walked around town taking photos 📸 of the German architecture.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Indiana Jones in Namibia

    3. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Later, we went to see the new Indiana Jones movie at the town cinema. We went for the ‘flavour-your-own’ popcorn which we’d seen at the Labia Theatre in Cape Town. We chose salt and vinegar – very tasty! The film was great! We were joined by Kim and Iona, and we all agreed that it was a fitting end to the franchise that started so long ago. There were nods to the previous films and some familiar faces, but if, like Iona, you had never seen an Indiana Jones movie, you could still enjoy this one as a stand-alone story.

    After the film, we went to buy a few supplies and then returned to the chalet to cook and pack, ready to go back on the truck tomorrow.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    The wreck of the Zeila

    4. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Breakfast was at 8 this morning, so we had time to get our stuff on the truck and have an hour using the wifi before breakfast. I got a few more posts done, but I am still a few days behind. I’m not likely to catch up anytime soon as we are going off grid now! Henry had done pancakes with syrup and bananas for breakfast – not Mark’s thing! Luckily, we had some brown bread and cream cheese left from our time in the chalet!

    By 8.30, we were back on the truck and heading up the coast road to Cape Cross to see a large colony of Cape Fur Seals. On the way, we passed the township where all the black workers from Swakopmund live. The houses are small shacks with communal ablution facilities. The Namibian government is in the process of building new units with private bathrooms for people to move in to. We also had a quick photo stop to see the wreck of Zeila, a cargo ship which ran aground in 2018. We don’t get to go far enough north on this trip to see the Skeleton Coast, where there are a huge number of shipwrecks, but we got the idea!

    We passed a number of production facilities where salt is extracted from sea water and made into table salt, an important industry for Namibia’s economy.

    The scenery around us was simply flat, arid desert as far as the eye could see. Occasionally, the flatness would be broken by small rocky hills. The colour remained the same.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Cape Cross

    4. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    At Cape Cross, we were staggered at the sight, sound, and smell of between 80,000 and 100,000 seals! It was extraordinary! We spent half an hour with them, taking loads of photos and videos. It was bizarre to think that some of these seals had swum 650 kilometres from Seal Island where we were a couple of weeks ago! On the way out of the park, we spotted a lone brown hyena. This was a rare sighting of a usually elusive creature.Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Lunch stop

    4. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    A short drive further on, we stopped in a layby for lunch of salads, sandwiches, and oranges with the inevitable ‘bushy bushy’ – except there were no bushes! 😂 There were large rock salt crystals for sale at the roadside – and very rusty honesty boxes to put the money in. I don’t know how many are actually sold!Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    The road to Spitzkoppe

    4. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    After lunch, we drove on through the desert to our camp for the night at Spitzkoppe. The landscape was very flat and dusty, but as we approached our destination, there were a number of hills and mountains, including Spitzkoppe itself, ‘the Matterhorn of Africa’.

    The Spitzkoppe (from the German for "pointed dome") is a group of bald granite peaks or inselbergs located between Usakos and Swakopmund in the Namib desert of Namibia. The granite is more than 120 million years old, and the highest outcrop rises about 1,728 metres (5,669 ft) above sea level. The peaks stand out dramatically from the flat surrounding plains. The highest peak is about 670 m (2,200 ft) above the floor of the desert below.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Sunset at Spitzkoppe Campsite

    4. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    After the walk, we went to a place called ‘the bridge’ to watch the sunset. Unfortunately, we were too late! Never mind – I’m sure there will be plenty more opportunities on this trip! We did see plenty of hyrax running around, though.

    Hyraxes, or dassies, are small, thickset, well-furred herbivorous mammals with short tails. Typically, they measure between 30 and 70 centimetres long and weigh between 2 and 5 kilograms. They are superficially similar to pikas and marmots, but are more closely related to elephants and sea cows. They have a life span of 9 to 14 years.

    Back in camp, Henry had made pumpkin and potato soup, followed by pork chops with fried potatoes, vegetables and/or coleslaw. It was all very good, as usual. After dinner, some of the Australians in the group entertained the rest of us with a dance routine to Nutbush City Limits by Tina Turner! I was shocked by how many of the younger members of the group had never heard the song before!

    Some of the group chose to sleep out under the stars tonight. They climbed a large rock to do so. We chose to stay in our tent!!    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Drive to Etosha National Park

    5. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    Mark didn’t sleep very well as the inflatable mattress he was using developed a puncture overnight! We won’t have time to look at it over the next few days, so we will have to use a sleeping mat off the truck.

    Breakfast this morning was French toast and baked beans. We were packed up and ready to go by 7.30am. We were heading for Etosha National Park for the start of the wildlife part of this tour.

    Etosha National Park is a national park in northwestern Namibia and one of the largest national parks in Africa. It was proclaimed a game reserve in March 1907 in Ordinance 88 by the Governor of German South West Africa, Friedrich von Lindequist, and was awarded the status of national park in 1967 by an act of parliament of the Republic of South Africa. It spans an area of 22,270 km2 and was named after the large Etosha pan, which is almost entirely within the park. With an area of 4,760 km2, the Etosha pan covers 23% of the total area of the national park. The area is home to hundreds of species of mammals, birds, and reptiles, including several threatened and endangered species such as the black rhinoceros. Sixty-one black rhinoceros were killed during poaching in Namibia during 2022, 46 of which were killed in Etosha.

    It was a long drive. We stopped after a couple of hours for bushy bushy and immediately afterwards drove through a town with plenty of places to use the toilet! Sometimes, I don’t really understand the decision-making!

    We had another stop for Henry to buy groceries. This time, we could use the toilets, have a coffee, and even connect to wifi! It was all a bit rushed, though – just 20 minutes! An hour later, we had lunch by the road – salads and sandwiches – before driving on to Okaukuejo, our campsite within Etosha National Park.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Afternoon game drive through Etosha NP

    5. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Once we got there, we checked in, were allocated our pitch, and put up our tents. The campsite was very busy with lots of families on holiday. The southern Africans certainly know how to camp! They have very elaborate set ups. Having so many people around us was definitely going to make for a noisy night, though.

    Having set up, we left Henry to prepare our meal and went out on a game drive to a couple of nearby waterholes. They do have artificial waterholes in Etosha, but everything else is as nature intended. We had a successful late afternoon/evening and saw:

    • Springbok
    • Pied crow
    • Blue wildebeest
    • Zebra
    • Gemsbok (Oryx)
    • Kori Bustard (the heaviest flying bird in the world weighing up to 14 kilograms)
    • Giraffe
    • Ostrich
    • Plover
    • Black-backed jackal
    • Tsebe – red cox heart    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    An evening by the waterhole

    5. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Back on site, we had missed the sunset, but we still had time to go to the waterhole before dinner. There was a huge bull elephant and a couple of springbok by the water. We watched them as the last of the day’s light faded.

    For dinner, Henry had prepared chick pea and potato soup followed by savoury mince with peas which he served with rice and vegetables – not my favourite meal, but still good. After dinner, Mark was on washing up duty, so I went back to the waterhole with the camera. He joined me when he’d finished. The park put spotlights on so that visitors can watch the animals, but it is not light enough for good photography. We took some shots – I’ll see how they turn out when I get them on the laptop.

    The bull elephant was still by the waterhole after dinner. He was joined by a black rhino and then three more elephants. Later, a female black rhino and her baby appeared. We also saw a number of white rhino. It was fascinating to watch these animals as they drank and interacted by the water.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Early morning by the waterhole

    6. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ 🌙 10 °C

    We were up very early this morning as we were woken by Phil and Maddie’s alarm at 4.30am! I was in the shower by 4.45 and at the waterhole just after 5am! There was nothing down there, but we could hear lions roaring somewhere in the bush. It was really cold and all of our warm clothes were locked on the truck. We stood it as long as we could and then went in search of hot water to make coffee. That’s when we discovered that Henry was sleeping under the bench in the camp kitchen! We crept back out of there and had to wait a bit longer for our coffee!

    We wandered back to the waterhole and were rewarded with the appearance of a rhino and some springbok.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Namutoni Campsite, Etosha NP

    6. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    We arrived at Namutoni, our camp for the night after sunset. We put our tents up and went to have a look at the waterhole. There was nothing to see, so Mark and I had a quick walk up to the restaurant to use the wifi before dinner. We didn’t have many minutes, so didn’t get much done. I just had time to answer a few comments on my posts.

    Henry had cooked us oryx steaks for dinner. The meat was a bit chewy, but very tasty. We were on another busy campsite with a G Adventures truck nearby. We had another cold and noisy night!    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Leaving Etosha NP

    7. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    It was another early morning with tents down ready for a 7am breakfast of sausages and fried eggs. We were back on the road by 8am and had a slowish game drive as we exited the park. We didn’t see many animals, but we did see:

    • A few giraffe
    • Guinea fowl
    • Zebra
    • Springbok
    • White-backed vulture
    • Kori bustard
    • Pale chanting goshawk
    • Black-faced impala

    We were disappointed not to have seen lions in Etosha, especially as we had heard about lots of sightings in the days before we arrived in the park. I’m sure we’ll have other opportunities to see them on this trip!

    I got really cold overnight and just couldn’t get warm this morning. By the time we got to the park gates, it was 25˚C and brilliant sunshine, but my hands were still frozen!!    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    Roy's place

    7. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    We stopped in Tsumeb, a charmless copper mining town, for a two-hour lunch break to give the crew time to shop for the coming days. There were not many options for lunch, so we bought some cheese and rolls from Pick ‘n’ Pay and ate them back on the truck. We did find a bedding shop, though, so we bought a new single fitted sheet as our bedding isn’t working now that we’re having to use a sleeping mat from the truck.

    From Tsumeb, it was a further 90-minute drive to Roy’s Place, our campsite for the next two nights. We arrived there at about 3pm and had the rest of the afternoon free. There was a possibility to upgrade to cabins, but after learning that it would cost us £65 a night, we decided to stick to our tent! Greg, Trisha and John, and Heidi and Kris went for the upgrades. The rest of us went to pitch our tents – on grass, for a change! Some of the group then went for a swim in the small, on-site pool (they said the water was very cold!) while some of us (including me) caught up with some handwashing and internet stuff. My plan then was to catch up with my writing and do some posts. Best laid plans and all that! The seats in the wifi area were already occupied, so I went to the bar to write. I was joined by one fellow traveller, and then several, who all wanted to chat, so I got nothing done! At 6.30pm, we went for dinner (traditional African stew and pap – not my favourite) and then sat up chatting with the group around the fire until 10pm.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa

    The San People Living Museum

    8. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    We were freezing cold overnight!! I was up and down like a yo-yo, adding layers each time. There was also a lot of noise from guinea fowl outside our tent. By 6am, I couldn’t stand it any longer, and got up, despite the fact that we didn’t have to be at breakfast until 8am! Like yesterday, I just couldn’t get warm!! At least we didn’t have to take our tents down this morning, which was a blessing. We found an electric kettle and boiled it so we could have a coffee. We even got a fire going from last night’s embers! Gradually, people got up and joined us. Everyone had been cold during the night – except the few who had upgraded, who complained they had been too warm!!

    We had scrambled egg for breakfast and then set off to drive the 75 kilometres to a living history village occupied the San people. These people have lost their traditional way of life in recent years, and some of them are working to preserve it. In 1990, they were moved off their land when diamonds were found. The Namibian government rehoused them some distance away in purpose-built concrete units rather than their straw homes. They forbade them from hunting for food as they had done since time immemorial. As a result of the move, the San population decreased from over 100,000 to between just two and three thousand today. Our guide said he preferred the traditional way of life, but it’s hard to see how it can survive now that the younger generation have mobile homes and are educated in Groofontein many miles away.

    At the village, we were taught some of the San language and shown how they used to make fire and fashion bows and arrows out of locally-sourced wood. We watched as women made beads out of seeds and ostrich egg shell, and then made them into jewellery and bags. As hunter gatherers, the men hunted while the women foraged for food and looked after the children. Our guide and some villagers took us on a walk through the forest and explained to us how certain plants were used to treat different conditions. They also showed us how they set traps to catch rabbits.    Les mer

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  • Overlanding Through Africa
    My bracelet collection from this trip so far!

    The end of our visit to the San people

    8. juli 2023, Namibia ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    Back in the village, the women sang and danced for us. They did a dance of welcome and were then joined by a couple of men. Together, they demonstrated a ritualistic dance of healing. They finished with a farewell dance. It was all fascinating. We were left wondering how long they and their traditional ways can survive in the modern world!

    We ended our visit with a browse through their open-air craft shop. Of course, I bought some things – a bracelet to go with the others I have bought on this trip and a necklace. I think almost everyone bought something to support the village.    Les mer

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