At this stage it is important to mention a few decisions that we made. We would not camp in our own tents. We would visit Witsand on the way. We would stay at Red Sands on our return.
Then came the modification. Bostick Prestick was applied to our Engel fridge temperature control. Excellent decision - we never had a hot fridge or frozen/burst cool drink/champagne bottles.
We decided to use our Cobb which we have had for years. We had only used it once or twice before. The Cobb used between six and eight brickettes for every meal. This reduced the fuel and stove packing space considerably. We will be taking the Cobb again - we have lots of attachments and are looking forward to experimenting with them. The toasted cheese, onion and tomato sandwiches are hard to beat and the roast chicken is something special.
The drive to Witsand from Gauteng is a long one and it takes most of the day to get there. We had booked to stay in the less expensive huts and the accommodation was comfortable. We spent two nights there which gave us a chance to partially explore the area again. We saw a few springbok and enjoyed the laid out nature walk.
We left Witsand quite early and called in at a wine cellar on the way to Upington. Thereafter we drove through to Twee Rivieren where we spent two nights again. While we were there we drove the Leeudril 4x4 route where we could see how dry the land was. There was little game to be seen on the trail but we were lucky to see a few whistling rats, gemsbok, klipspringers, cheetah and a heron hunting for one of the few remaining rodents. However there were many carcases lying around - mainly of Eland and the few Eland we saw there were in very poor condition. They were literally falling over from hunger as there was very little grazing.
On the route north we stayed at Nossob and on the way saw fat lions and many vultures and jackals.
Grootkolk was a camp that we had not stayed at before and on arrival we were told to go back a few hundred yards where we would see a pair of lions. They were trying to find a scrap of shade in the heat of the day. That night the waterhole, which is floodlit, was a place of great activity and we even saw a leopard coming and going. This is a lovely camp which consists of four separate huts.
After two nights there we went on to Gharagab via the 4x4 route which we had looked forward to. The huts at Gharagab are built above ground with a space underneath and on the first night we saw our first barking geko from the balcony above.
The waterhole here attracted a male Eland which Sylvia named "Eli". This can be an awful mistake as names confer attraction and survival here could not be guaranteed. Anyway he kept appearing while we were there and was there when we left. On the way back to Nossob we saw a lovely yellow cobra but Sylvia interfered with my snake charming and as a result my pictures are very iffey.
The pool at Nossob had been cleaned as a few days before it was in a truly awful state. The dip was lovely. We found the owls in the trees and walked the nature trail. It was hot.
The gate to Bitterpan is unlocked at 9 (unless you are let out earlier so that your female companions can relieve themselves and leave toilet paper all over in advance). When we arrived at the camp it was scorching hot and I spent time under a wet towel.
The next day we planned to return to Nossob and only leave late so we would arrive back in the cooler part of the day. We left late and quite close to the camp saw another vehicle (land rover) approaching at speed.. Cruisers can be driven faster. That night a male lion visited the camp and I would have sworn there were no animals apart from gekos and two gemsbok which we had seen on the pan.
Then we went on to the Kalahari Tented Camp. We had visited this camp in February 2006 and the difference was marked. It has become run down like all the tented camps. However it is still a lovely camp site.
Urikaroos was next and the most memorable part of the stay was when the two playful hyaenas came to visit. They romped around and bit the tyres on the grader and then the plastic bits on a colt. When they started to try and gnaw on my winch strap I told them to Voetsak but obviously they had been told this before and took little notice of my waving arms and shaky voice.
Kilekrankie was fully booked and we have never been there.
To end the trip we spent two days at Twee Rivieren from where we did the Leeudril 4x4 route again.
On the last full day we travelled up to the upper dune road and it was hot and dry. We noticed quite a few snakes and even saw tortoises. It appears on reflection that perhaps they knew there would be flooding and were heading for higher ground.
On the way back to Twee Rivieren there was a storm. The dunes were white with hail. The Golf in front of us had water coming in through the doors (verified later) and I was scared he would get stuck and we would have to assist in the wet.
The overall conditions of the roads was much better than in 2006 and the regular grading has certainly helped.
Sylvia drove in the park while I held my camera in a pillow case - never daring to change lenses - fervently hoping I could keep the dust out. Although it was dry there was much less dust than we had even experienced in May 2007 when we did Mabuasehube and the 4x4 trail from Nossob to Twee Rivieren.
On the way out it was wet and we passed a number of people having a meeting probably deciding where to drive and we were one of the first cars to make it out.
The road from Askham to Upington had been worked on and there were lots of loose stones and tar. Heaven knows where they find these road builders. Fortunately we passed through with no oncoming traffic or the windscreen would have been under threat.
Our last stop was Red Sands near Kuruman which is one of my favourite stopover places. We got permission to drive on their property and the drive was lovely but there was little game to be seen.
