TOUR 2 NORTH WEST.
5 March 2007
Our planning once again done and it being the 5th March we are heading North West to the warm baths at Bela Bela. Our plan was to leave by 10h00 and by 9h40 we were able to leave home. At roughly 12h30 we had paid for our stay and identified a site. The negotiation of the van onto the site had to be done in a 3 point process. During the second point while reversing the caravan to line it up a pole got in the way of the Pajero and resulted a bent fender and bumper. Despite the misfortune the rest of the installation went well. We had some local assistance which was rather irritating as they did things differently to the way we were used to. Needless to say we will not be making use of locals in future.
With a pliers and a bit of wire the indicator light housing was pushed back into place.
We were told by the folk who had a month excursion that the weekends are very noisy disruptive with hooligans arriving. We are please that we are leaving on Friday morning. Have been for a couple of swims which was most enjoyable. We must admit that the heat is something else.
Dante is very happy being back to his old routine of camping and having our undivided attention at all times.
On Wednesday we were able to get one of the local aircon companies to top-up the gas on our aircon and now it freezes us in no time.
We went for a drive through Mabalingwe on Thursday. It was a very pleasant drive and we had a drink at the Kalahari Oasis Pub (it's a little bit overdone but pleasant). We actually sat on the veranda in the original chairs where the ad was taken.
When we got back from Mabalingwe we decided to go for a swim and on the way we bumped into a couple who we'd been to Israel with in 1999. They were just as surprised to see us as we were.
There was a group of coloured children from Bushbuck who obviously did not know the basic rules of a hot water spring e.g diving, jumping and screaming.
Friday morning after breakfast we packed up and were on the go again. Heading for the Weesgerus Resort in Nylstroom. After finding a site we were soon settled again and even Dante was happy to be free and naughty again.
The weather is good and we are having a great time.
On Saturday the highlight of the day was of course the Sharks beating the Cheetahs in Bloemfontein and we found ourselves to be the minority supporter group. However, once the Sharks started leading the rest were very quiet and we had a few stares from them.
We then sent a message to Tertius and Anita asking what they thought about our team as they are my biggest chirper, only to find out that they were camping down the road from us with Ziets and Lelani, Jason and Collette. Plans were therefore changed and we headed to them for morning visit and moved Nylsvley to Monday.
It was so nice to see them and catch up on gossip and the good news was that Ziets has decided not to go back to Iraq where he has been operating for a year.
Monday morning we set off for Nylsvley. When we started Shorty (the Pajero) there was a clear sign that the battery needed attention. We got to the garage and checked the water levels which needed slight top-up however, when we tried to start the vehicle there was nothing. Fortunately Super Quick was just across the road and a few Rand later we set of with the new battery.
When we got to Nylsvley we found that the vlei was no longer a vlei but a dry bed with two small puddles. Very little bird life was to be seen even though we have been advised that it is a world renowned birding spot. Having done our drive we headed home and enjoyed a Wimpy Burger before getting to our site.
On Tuesday 13th March we plan to head for Thabazimbi and the Marakele National Park.
13th MARCH
We had an uneventful trip and arrived at Marakele at about 14h00. This used to be a private reserve and has been taken over by the Parks Board. Some nice improvements on the roads as well as new ablutions. The caravan park overlook a waterhole and we therefore have a prize viewing position and were able to see a lot of animals and birds around the waterhole twice a day. This cuts out the need to driving to waterholes so we sit in our pajamas coffee mug in hand and view the comings and goings. Our two prizes so far have been the Swallow Tailed Bee Eater and the Mayor's Parrot which flew around our camp site wanting to talk to Dante. Both birds allowed us a good look at them to make sure that they were properly identified. The area is extremely hot (35 degrees) and the aircon in Shorty as well as the caravan are very necessary. We met some folk who slept over last night on their way to Zimbabwe. Both males were paraplegic and it was fascinating to see how they move and assisted in setting up camp. The one lady received good news with the birth of a great grandchild and could not wait to share it with us this morning before they left. Our reception was not the best so we had to go into town and sat at the local Wimpy having something cold while we caught up with e-mails and a bit of banking. On Friday, 16th March 2007 morning we set off back to the Warmbaths area in search of water and some coolness.
We planned to go to Klein Kariba however, being a weekend we were given the good news and told to go and try Marula Mountain Resort which is basically just across the road from them. What a lovely campsite with such friendly folk. We immediately felt at home, especially the "Kamp Kommendant" Henning van Wyk. Most importantly we enquired about television and were told that we do not have a problem as it was again Super 14 weekend. As a Sharks supporter it was very good news as Reuben's team won 6 games in a row and are on top of the log.
On Saturday night whilst watching the game we were offered a free supper as the folk of the function did not finish all the food. We also booked to have lunch in the restaurant on Sunday and had a lovely lunch at R30 per person.
Tuesday 20th March we packed up and keyed in home on the Garmin GPS and followed the instructions all the way home.
Our next trip will start in the middle of April as we have some time down at the coast before then.
