BACK TO WHERE IT ALL BEGAN…..

We left Swakopmund behind and headed into the heart of the Namib Desert,,,,which surprisingly was really quite cold!!! We arrived in the Namib Naukluft national park and were in bed super early as the next day saw us start the truck at 4.14am so we could reach dune 45 in time for the peeps to negotiate their way to the top for sunrise. I know I’ve probably said this a million times but these dunes NEVER fail to take my breath away. The drive from the main gate to dune 45 coincidently is exactly 45 km’s and with the sun just beginning to peep the dunes are stunning eerie black silhouettes! It was an uncomfortable 7 degrees at that time n the morning so breakfast at the bottom of the dune was an eclectic mix of socks and flip flops and pj bottoms tucked into socks!!

Leaving the sand dunes behind we started our 2 day drive to Fish River Canyon where we stayed at a new camp called Canyon Road House……so ive mentioned this place as it would be a shame for the showers o go un-noticed……my word they’re amazing. We walked along the bleak edge of the second largest canyon in the world with the river bed at the bottom waiting patiently thirsty for the torrent that should arrive in a few months after what promises to be a rainy season to rival that of last year (where half of Namibia washed away……seriously!) The weather was incredible and we had a full shot of the pink sunset over the canyon without 1 single cloud in the sky!

Next day we were South Africa bound and once the boarder was crossed we inched our way on the bumpy mountain pass to our camp on the Orange River for what was the hottest day on tour with our geeky temperature telling apparatus showing temperatures of 52 degC!!!!!

The atmosphere was still pumped as though it was the first day of tour when we arrived at our last camp Highlanders and it was heightened even more by Spark’ys legendary wine tasting. And then…..it was time……..for CAPE TOWN. It was a standard early morning and the peeps coupled by hangovers made their final journey in our beasty truck to one of the most beautiful cities in the world. We stop at Blouberg Strand, which offers amazing views of the city perched precariously below Table Mountain, and the weather was divine! We’d had reports that the Cape had been particularly miserable but as we made our descent to sea level and caught our first glimpse of the mountain we saw that the sun would be shining all day. The guys hopped out of the truck and into a mini bus for their township tour then were returned to us for the last time at Green Point.

Goodbyes were said and promises to keep in touch were made. As I write from our hostel, the truck stands empty and clean (as clean as you’ll ever get an overland truck lol) outside waiting to get to the office and workshop tomorrow for some well-deserved rest. All paperwork is finished and finalised and bags are packed. In 18 days time we will be starting all over again, darting around the continent and taking new adventures. Until then though hope you all have a Merry Christmas and fantastic New Years!!!!

YES IT RAINS IN THE DESERT,,,

I must start with saying that yes it is a very common misconception that the desert sees no rain at all….while I must say that for most of the year this is very true and the Namib is no different, for many months it is exactly what you would think it to be,,,dry arid and dusty (I’ve not put hot on here as in winter it’s ice cold, but that’s a different blog post entirely). However, for a few months every year the clouds role in and the pressure builds and then it comes,,,,,,the rain and believe it or not it’s a welcome relief from the harassing heat that comes a couple of months before the rain arrives.

As we arrived in Etosha National park the sky was black and the anticipation of deafening thunder and blinding lightening was tangible. We drove the 18km’s from the main gate to our camp site hoping to beat the downpour and racing the clouds we just manage it. Having set up camp we headed out for a short afternoon game drive where we spotted elephants, Zebra, Giraffe and Brown Hyena….my first!! The rain eventually came and hammered down but thankfully had decided to vanish as quickly as it came so when we arrived back at camp, although everything was a tad soggy we were able to chill out outside next to the fire without the threat of getting soaked ourselves. The next morning was early and promised sunshine as we headed out for a day of game driving. We were lucky enough to spot 2 white rhino’s giraffes, zebra, blue cranes (another first for me) and heaps of different gazelle. As the sun burned high and hot the animals disappeared deeper into the shade of the bush we headed back to camp to spend the late afternoon chilling out by the swimming pool.

From Etosha we headed deeper into Namibia and spent the night at Spitzkoppe where the pointy heads were climbed and for sunset and slept on under the full moon. Then it was time to hit Swakopmund for 2 whole nights in complete comfort. While some people opted for hurling out of planes (parachute attached ;) ) while others decided to speed down the sand dunes reaching up to 75km’s an hour, whatever the activities it’s safe to say everyone has come away with a huge adrenaline filled smile.

I can’t believe it’s only 6 days until we get to Cape Town and 3 ½ months is nearly up but before we get there we’re headed deeper into this amazing country and tomorrow we’re hitting the Namib Desert where the people will be getting involved in a Namib Desert walk and climbing the most photographed dune sand dune in the world Dune 45.

Until nest time folks J

CROSS DRESSING AT KANDE

From Chitimba we headed to Kande Beach but not without stopping in the town of Mzuzu first. Mzuzu is the fancy dress capital of Malawi. The night before, we each picked names out of a hat to chose our ‘victims’ and the next day with MK500 to spend on an outfit we were let loose in the market. Now as soon as you pull up to this market the guys there know exactly what you’ve come for and come running over with bags full of sequins, leopard print and “onesies”. That night we exchanged outfits and partied the night away…TJ looked particularly fetching in a neon pink dress.

One more night was spent at Kande relaxing and chilling out by the lake before heading to our final stop in Malawi: Senga Bay.

The next day we crossed into Zambia via a stop in Malawi’s capital Lillongwe and started our 2 day drive to Livingstone where I find my self writing from now. We have been here for 3 days in which time everyone (some under a little duress) has gone rafting, gone flying in helicopters, ridden elephants and walked along side Lions.

We have said goodbye to some passengers and said hello to some new ones and tomorrow having had 4days to recharge here in Livingstone we’re back on the road and headed to Botswana to check out the wildlife Chobe National Park.

Back to Zanzibar,,,,,,im certainly NOT complaining!!!

I find my self writing to you once more from the shores of Lake Malawi, we arrived yesterday and as always at Chitimba Beach Camp your made to feel super welcome and after a loooonnng days drive a beer from the awesome bar is what’s on everyone’s minds! But let me tell you about our last few days in Tanzania…
…After one final night in Arusha we started our 2 day journey to Dar Es Salaam. We stopped for one night on the way along the Pangani Rive. Surrounded by the Osonbarra Mountains and sisal fields it is a peaceful evening which is what everyone was looking for after a few too many beverages the night before. We arrive at Pangani River camp and instead of a greeting from the friendly staff, we were greeted instead by a crocodile sat in the middle of our camp site..he soon plopped himself back into the river once he realised a standoff with our truck would have been a bad plan and I suggested that we camp as far away from the water as possible. He never made a second appearance but he was heard thrashing around in the water later that evening.
The next day was an early start as we wanted to hit ‘Dar’ before the afternoon rush hour, luckily we did. The truck dropped me off just outside the city as I needed to go and fetch the Zanzibar ferry tickets whilst everyone else went straight to the camp site. I however did not brave the city streets alone, I was accompanied by a 3 strong hand picked security team, naturally a simple journey turned into a covert mission but thankfully The Business (Scott), Black Hawk (Paddy) and (wait for it…..) Sex Appeal (Neil) returned me (Red Fox) to the campsite unscathed complete with Ferry tickets. Phew!!
The next few days were spent negotiating Stone Town’s ally ways and hitting the beach….HARD!! We arrived in Stone Town by 8.45am (record time thanks to the brand new ferry…..so new it doesn’t even smell like sea sickness yet!!). We were just in time for Stone Towns morning rain fall which transformed the streets into storming rivers! Waves and everything!! 2 hours later, boiling hot and no clouds in the sky (only in Africa hey?!) the peeps headed off on their spice tour – a must do activity whilst on the Island, made even more fun by the eccentric guide Allie T who has been working with tourists for so long his accent is a mesh of Tanzanian, Australian and Cockney rhyming slang……Next day we were beach bound for 2 nights, the weather was faultless and everyone returned back to Dar Es Salaam for one more night looing tanned and relaxed.
Another 2 days of long drives, 1 boarder crossing and here we are…Malawi, for 5 nights we will be camping alongside Africa’s third largest fresh water lake. Tomorrow we’re headed to Kande beach where we have a fancy dress and punch night planned which should give me plenty to write about next time!
Before I forget I must mention the sterling efforts from the boys for ‘Movember’ and big congratulations to Scott (The Business) for lasting the longest without shaving….even if it does make you look like Dewy from the Scream films ;)
Until next time folks J

GAME PARKS!!!

Wow – What an amazing few days we’ve had since I last wrote….After collecting a truck full of new people we headed to our first stop: The Masai Mara and what lucky pax we must have! Our first afternoon game drive proved a big success with elephants, lions, buffalo and 2 black rhinos! At sunset we made our way back to camp – this is probably the poshest camp we ever stay at!! Big permanent tents, each with their own toilet and shower, proper beds with pillows and duvets, told you it was posh!

The following day we were up early for a full day in the park – lions eating Zebra so close to our cruiser we could have reached out and taken a share of the feast (if you dare!!) , cheetah with 3 cubs so small they still resembles the honey badger (one of nature’s many fantastic ploys at protecting it’s young – the honey badger is possible the toughest creature of them all with no natural predators) chowing down on an impala, more elephants, buffalo, and small antelope, and the flooded Mara River filled with bloated wilder beast who unfortunately for them (fortunately for the crocs) hadn’t quite made the migration back to the Serengeti…..No leopard though but hoped for this aloof creature were pinned on the Serengeti! - Special thanks must go to Anne who runs Enklong camp where we stay,,,she never fails to amaze us with the way she runs her camp…faultless couple of nights!!!

1 more night was spent in Nairobi before crossing the border into Tanzania – the Serengeti was upon us and the anticipation was almost tangible. Our first afternoon game drive started slow with the animals finding comfort in the hidden shade against the daily battle with the blazing sun, but on our way back to camp we stopped via leopard territory and had our first glimpse of spots lounging on a branch in the distance BIG 5 mission accomplished. Hippos lazily yawned at us and the elephants trumpeted good evening just before we reached our camp.

Next morning we were up super early to get into the park at the best time of day , while we were having breakfast an elephant infiltrated our camp, almost like a lucky omen and the mornings game drive proved fruitful with cheetah, hyena and 3 leopards together playing right next to the road playing and climbing trees! Back to camp for lunch and to pack up then on our way to the Ngorongoro Crater rim where we spent one chilly night before our last game drive. With an altitude of roughly 2000m above sea level you can always count on the temperature being on the FREEZING side!

The following day as we made our way down into the ‘Crater’ the sun’s rays were shining like spotlights illuminating the animals’ stage. We were spoilt with lions, hyena and cheetah stalking some defenseless gazelles. Morning toilet break came as a huge relief as everyone was buurrrssting but just as we were getting out our cruiser a young male lion sauntered right in front of us and plonked himself down on the steps to the ladies….GREAT! After asking our driver to get us to the other set of toilets in the park and requesting very kindly to “drive it like you stole it” (we really were desperate) we got there with no accidents (just!!) and this time instead of lions we were joined by 6 3 days old warthogs’ (the cutest thing ever) and a rather brazen male baboon ……playing with……himself (use your imagination).

It was then back to camp for lunch then homeward bound to Arusha for one more night.

The next few days will see us journeying to Dar Es Salaam then onto Zanzibar for some serious beach time and relaxing YAY!

Until next time folks, keep groovy and get your flights over here booked!!!!

THE GORILLAS......AND A SERIOUS NOTE....

We find our selves back in Nairobi preparing for another pre departure meeting which will begin to take us down south but lets start from where I left…which I believe was Jinja…
Having gotten over my Caterpillar incident and spent a lovely 3 days relaxing next to the Nile in Jinja it was time to move onwards to Kampala Uganda’s Capital. We had a few hours exploring parts of the city then headed to our camp for the evening where we picked up 2 brand new passengers who joined us for the Gorilla Trek! It was a relaxing evening as the next morning was an early one in preparation for the long drive to Lake Bunyonyi. Although it’s only around 420km’s in total the roads are particularly bad. Around 60 km’s out of Kampala we crossed back into the Southern Hemisphere however due to the early start everyone was still snoozing in the truck so we decided to stop on the way back to Kampala in a few days time instead of facing the wrath of tired punters!
We arrived in Kabale (the small town just outside Lake Bunyonyi) and the heavens opened…this had the potential to cause us some problems….LakeBunyonyi overland camp is quite a trek up and down muddy narrow mountain passes and the rain was heavy enough to make this impossible, so everyone agreed to forgo their shop stop at “The Royal Supermarket” (no less) and to get up and down the mountain pass before the rain could have too much of a impact…..and with TJ’s skillful driving we managed it!!
As the guys weren’t trekking until Sunday 31st and it was only Friday we had a few days to chill out, relax, and partake in many of the activities on offer, such as canoeing, visiting local tribes and bird watching (Bunyonyi after all means place of many little birds). Surrounded by nothing but jungle and one of Africa’s deepens lakes (it reaches a depth of 900m) everyone spent the 3 days here gearing up for one of Uganda’s most special highlights. The Gorillas!
Sunday 31st was soon upon us….we were all awake at 4 am as they were being picked up at 5 am…..All the tables were covered in food to be packed for breakfast and lunch as who knew what time they wouid all be back, if you’ve trekked before, I guess you know too well that you could be walking/climbing/crawling or even wading through streams, rivers and swamps for anything between 1 and 8 hours just to spy for 1 hour these magnificent beasts!
Tj and I were expecting a full day hanging around waiting for their return but 3 o’clock came, as did the first mini van of pax. As it turns out….after the 2 ½ hour morning drive into Bwindi Impenetrable National Park they spent 5 minutes trekking through a vegetable patch to the edge of the jungle and there they were in all their glory!! The others arrived back about an hour later having trekked through thick jungle and swamp land for a massive 40 minutes before reaching their gold. Everyone had an amazing day and spent the rest of the afternoon comparing stories and photos!!!
I must say no matter the length of the trek the end result is like no other game experience. I have had almost all the big game well within stroking distance from the window whilst game driving, heard lions roaring into the night coupled with hyena’s whooping and giggling, had our camp infiltrated by a curious male lion, been reared at by a green mamba and have been mock charged by elephants too many times to tell my parents without terrifying them, but it doesn’t matter how much you think you know or how much you have seen nothing can prepare you for spending that precious hour with these incredible and unfortunately diminishing species. There is nothing between you and them, you have delicately made your way into the thick of their environment, you’re in their territory now and you best respect it, and if you don’t they sure as hell will let you know about it. So huge and yet so graceful and gentle you can’t help but be amazed by the many traits they share with us. On a serious note it’s hard to believe that such strength and power can be so endangered and vulnerable all because of the species that shares between 92-98% of its DNA with them….US! All to quickly your hour is up, but you leave having experienced probably the best game experience there is to have. If you’ve never done it you should ask your self that old question: when was the last time you did anything for the first time, and get your self out here quickly before it’s too late and the only thing that’s left of these magnificent creatures are pictures in museums and articles written in the past tense.

THE CATERPILLAR ON THE NILE

So you may be wondering why the weird title..well the Nile part is pretty self explanatory as you read on but the caterpillar??? 

WELL let me tell you a story about a hairy caterpillar……now the hairy caterpillars you find over here are a little poisoness in that their hair has little bits of poison on them to deter predators…….whilst sat minding my own business a hairy caterpillar decided to make my hair his home…..i was non the wiser until I let me hair down and BAM!!!!!!!! I looked and felt like I rolled around in a nest of stinging nettles…..i have since learned my lesson…..if you brush you hair more frequently it wont look like a cozy home for little poisoness creatures!

Anyway since I last wrote, we have collected all the new expectant passengers and ventured out of Nairobi and headed to Nakuru National Park for our first day of adventure. First, we stopped 50km’s outside of the city to take in the phenomenal view over the Great Rift Valley. When we arrived in Nakuru there was just time for a quick road side lunch (ate in harmony with the growing number of monkey spectators) before heading off on our first game drive. 

Although the clouds were collecting above us in grey abundance promising rain, we had a fabulous drive…lioness’ right next to us on the side of the road too lazy to move out of the rain, and we were graced with 2 rhino sittings, along with zebra, buffalo and an enormous amount of different birds. The following day we headed to Eldoret to stay at Naiberri Riverside Camp. We got there early in order for everyone to watch the Rugby world Cup and after a day of celebrating (we have A LOT of Kiwi’s on board) we settled down for dinner (I proved 1 passenger wrong that you CAN bake lasagna without a stove)

The next day we crossed the boarder into Uganda and headed to the town of Jinja where we stay at the amazing Nile River explorers campsite, right next to the source of the longest river in the world. The River Nile. We stay here for 3 nights during which time there are heaps of activities to get involved with such as rafting the frothy Nile rapids, mountain biking or even horse riding!! Most of the peeps decided on a day of rafting but a few decided to stay behind, relax and take in the stunning view the campsite offers over the river. It also turns out that we bought some nice weather with us…Uganda has 2 seasons…the wet season and the not so wet season. It has apparently rained here every day for 3 weeks…..over the 3 days we have been here it has been beautiful sunshine!

Our last day at NRE in Jinja was spent volunteering for Soft Power….a charity that builds and maintains schools and focuses on educating local communities. Everyone returned covered in paint apart from 1 passenger……who as it turns out found him self in the class room teaching the children about the solar system!!!!

Tomorrow we head into Kampala Uganda’s capital where we spend one night and pick up 2 extra passengers before heading into this tropical country.