January 2021
How did it start:
I have done extensive research on a trip north of our borders to Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya and Namibia. The emphasis is to visit Game Reserves, National Parks and areas of interest. I have an insatiable appetite for exploring wildlife areas with all the difficulties and discomfort that some of them will provide. It is a dream of mine that I have to succeed with. The trip has been divided up into sections and some parts of it I may be travelling alone. I thought that if this is the case I might as well get some practice.
It did not help that Covid has caused problems with timing and where I could travel. I have accepted this and have elected to use the opportunity to get sorted with my vehicle and all the equipment.
So where did Kgalagadi start? This will be my fifth visit to this wilderness area which is a relatively easy distance from Cape Town.
I clearly recall the first visit when John was about 9 months old. Yes, we started young! In those days the road from Upington to the park was gravel. Chantal being pregnant with Brian was a challenge for the drive with all the ups and downs that the road gave us. That all was about 29 years ago and things have changed since. Subsequent visits have been in the last five years and have been quite comfortable affairs staying in chalets. The last visit in October 2019 was a camping affair. I then realized how easy it actually was and decided that Kgalagadi would be my “go to” park for quick visits.
During December of last year, I got into the habit of checking the Sanparks website on a daily basis. I thought that if I could get a booking at the Nossob Camp in the premium sites I would take it. Every day produced the same result; fully booked. It is extremely unusual to get bookings at short notice for this park. One morning dawned in late December and my fingers automatically keyed in the Sanparks website and low and behold a week of premium campsite was available for mid to late Jan. Before I could help myself, the credit card flashed and the booking was done.
A few challenges remained. I had to ask permission from the boss for time off work. That discussion went well. Next up was the Covid explosion and the lockdown to level 3. No prevention on travel across provincial boundaries was promulgated so the trip was on. Another address by the President in January and I was expecting a barrier, but thankfully I could still travel.
As I would be alone for this trip, I decided to do things a bit differently. I would be away for nine nights so that was nine breakfasts, lunches and suppers. The first two are relatively easy as they are very casual affairs. For this trip, and using experience gained on the last camping trip to Kgalagadi, I pre-cooked all my dinners. They were portioned off and neatly put into zip-lock bags for freezing. My plan is to use those with some fresh veg and other additions. I am sure I will not starve. It also means that there is no cooking on fires as I am alone. Fires there may well be, but they will be for atmosphere.
Comments