Cape Town and Home

Thursday, July 7 – Cape Town, South Africa

Dolphin Beach view of Cape Town and Table Mountain

 After a fairly cold night of camping we packed up and headed for Cape Town.  Yet another fairly long drive in our favorite bus.  However, everyone seemed to be cooperating on trying to make this last long transfer as comfortable as possible for everyone.  Along the way we stopped at Dolphin Beach for lunch with a great view of Cape Town with Table Mountain as the back drop. 

After some serious navigation, the bus with trailer in city traffic made it to our downtown guest house.  We quickly suited up in cycling gear and headed out for quick tour of the central city.  Cape Town has a long history because of it’s location at the southern tip of Africa with trading ships, slavery and rich farming communities surrounding it.  Touring in afternoon traffic was

Colorful houses in Cape Town bike tour

pretty exciting, especially after the last two and ½ weeks on dirt roads.  We saw the original fort, city hall, South Africa’s parliament building, the old slave trading area, colorful houses where the black workers lived pre-Apartheid and the steps of the church where Nelson Mandela made his first speech as president. 

South Africa is interesting in that it has 3 seats of government.  The Executive branch is headed by the president and is located in Pretoria near Johannesburg while the Parliament in 850 miles away in Cape Town and the Constitutional Court is in Johannesburg.  Maybe we should move the US Congress to St. Louis.  It couldn’t make it any more dysfunctional than it is now.

 

After our cycling tour of Cape Town, we returned to our guest house and found a HUGE surprise.  We were given a room with not only a real bed and shower, but a sitting area, kitchen, dining room table, and a loft with 3 more beds.  The guest house is a converted private home and this looks to have been a studio apartment at one time.  So much for tent camping!!

Friday, July 8, 2016 -Cape Town, South Africa

This is our last rull day in Africa!   Today we loaded the bus for a 2 hour transfer to Table Mountain National Park.  Our first stop was at the Boulders Penguin Colony.  A thriving colony of African Penguins live here.  From just two breeding pairs in 1982, the penguin colony has grown to about 2,200.  These penguins are also known as “jackass” penguins because of the hee-haw” sound they make.  Then on to Cape of Good Hope, the southern tip of Africa for a quick photo-op with a constant stream of tour busses joining us.

Our transfer continued on up the mountain to the lighthouses which are still in use operational and warn ships of the dangerous rocks around the cape.  After lunch, we mounted the bikes for one last ride out of Table Mountain National Park.  Shortly after the start of the ride an ostrich decided to cross right the road right in front of us.  It seems pretty amazing to see both penguins and ostriches in the same day, in the same park.   Although unseen, we were informed that 4 mountain zebras also call this area home.  Our ride took us on part of the route taken in the Cape Argus cycle race and up and over Chapmans Pass Drive which follows the rocky western coastline for 9k (6 miles).  This was a great ride with 114 bends that revealed breathtaking views in both directions.  Our tour ended at the bottom Chapmans pass with a group photo on the beach.

View from Chapman Pass Road

Then it was back in the bus for another hour ride back to the guest house.  When we arrived, we hauled the tandem up to our room to start on the packing process.  We skipped dinner with the group and ate at a gourmet burger place a couple of blocks from the room.  They were exceptionally good and definitely reminded us of home.  By 11PM we had the bike disassembled and back in the cases.

Saturday, July 9 – Heading home

After breakfast at the guest house we said our good byes, finished up our packing and were transported to the Cape Town International Airport by the tour company on the bus… one last lovely ride on our transport for the last 3 weeks.  We arrived early enough to avoid any significant lines at the airline, security or immigration and now have 2 very long flights to get back to the US, Cape Town to Dubai (10 hours), then Dubai to Seattle (14.5 hours).

Saturday, July 10, 2016- Home again!

Our cycling group on the beach at the end of the trip

We are the only tandem to ever attempt this cycling trip.

It took 38 hours, but we are home!  The flights were not only very long but very full so no room to stretch out.   It feels good to be home.  This was quite the trip with the first two weeks being over the top in terms of service, accommodations, safari trips, and food followed by the three weeks of roughing it with some riding in some pretty tough conditions.  Overall, it was a great adventure as we got to see a large portion of central to southern Africa.  Just the chance to see where Barbara is living, meet some of the local people, seeing all the animals and landscape was well worth it.  

Just to give you an idea of how vast the biking portion of the trip was, here is a map that shows the sections that we actually cycled relative to the total trip.  The short lines are the cycling sections and the big gaps in between are the “in the bus” sections.  Per the Garmin GPS we rode 550 mile over the 3 weeks.  This was less than we had anticipated, but given our mechanical issues with the rubbing brake, lost axle and flat, we probably missed out on 75 miles of riding.  

Map of  our cycling starting in Livingstone Zambia (upper right) and ending in Cape Town, SA (lower left)

Emerging from the wilderness (Namibia and northwest South Africa)

It has been 9 days since our last post as we traversed the remote desert of Namibia and northern South Africa. It has been quite the adventure with a major bike problem, 9 straight days of camping, sandy, gravel roads to ride and long bus transfers.  Here is our story....

Monday, June 27, 2016  - Windhoek, Namibian to somewhere in the boonies

Top of Gamsberg Pass

Today was the first day of riding in Namibia and the first day off of the pavement and onto dirt roads.  We transported to where the tarmac ended, stopped for lunch and then unloaded the bikes.  After a very short uphill we reached Gamsberg Pass and were treated to a fabulous descent.  Then we continued onto the campsite.  The bad luck with flats continued with one on a bike and then one of the rear wheels on the support truck.   In the end, all made it to the campsite where we were treated to chicken and carrot stir-fry with rice.  The dinners have been excellent and make up for the breakfast and lunch, which are mediocre at best.  I think we already stated that breakfast is cereal and yogurt with fruit on the rare day.   Lunch has been sandwich makings, the meat of unknown content; some type of processed sandwich meat. This is definitely a budget tour.

Tuesday, June 28, 2016 – The boonies of Namibia to Sesriem Canyon/Dune 45

Photo-op at the Tropic of  Capricorn - and the last time
we had a front brake for the rest of the trip.

Disaster struck!!  After a very nice but quick paced 50km up, down, through the canyon and then to the Tropic of Capricorn, we loaded the bikes again!   The schedule and distance of this tour has amounted to a lot of loading and unloading of bikes for transport.  Because we brought the tandem, that is Ted’s responsibility.  So while the guides are loading everyone else’s bikes (all singles) we have been loading our own on a bike rack hanging off of the hitch on the back of trailer loaded with bikes pulled by our truck.  This involves removing the front wheel which is held to the fork with a very special removable axle which is very unique to our front shock.   We’ve been putting the axle back on the fork but this time because we were the last to arrive, we were hurried in loading.  We transported about 50K to lunch and then another 40K (a total of about 55 miles) to where we going to unload the bikes and ride again.

As Ted was unloading the biking there was a loud “Oh Sh*t”… No Axle!!   This is a specialized piece designed specifically for the fork, and of course, it is a spare part we did not bring… Ted has one on his mountain bike and seriously thought about bringing it.  And remember we are now in the middle of the Namibia desert well over a 100 hundred miles of dirt road from Winhoek where we saw the only serious bike shop in the last 3 countries.  So we had to put the bike up on the rack, riding in the van following the other riders, and figure out a plan b, plan c, plan d, e and f. 

Ted's make-shift repair to the tandem front axle...
It is truly an African bike now.

After finally arriving at the campsite, we ransacked our spare parts in the hope that Ted had packed the axle from his mountain bike at home (plan b).  No luck.   Plan c was to take the fork off of the spare rental bike but this did not work as the steer tubes were different sizes and shapes.  A gas station (or as the Brits call it Garage) was at the campsite so plan d was the hope of finding a bolt that would be long enough to fit.   Nope, so onto plan e – the man at the gas station mentioned that the campsite had a mechanic.  As Ted and our guide came through the security gate, they asked if he was around.  He was off duty, but lived at the camp.  A phone call brought him to our campsite.  Ted took the fork and wheel and they headed off to his workshop to see if anything could be done.  We were now out of daylight and getting worried.  Beth decided to work on plan f  - How the h—ll do we get out of here if we can’t get this fixed!!  Luckily Ted and the mechanic found an old rusty 3-foot-long piece of threaded ½” rod with 2 with nuts.  We lubed it up and cut it to the right length.  Amazingly, it worked… probably ruined the fork, but we have 9 more days of cycling to go and at least we have a hope of riding them. 

Wednesday, June 29, 2016 – Seriem Canyon/Dune 45, Namibian Desert

Dune 45 just after sunrise

The ride for the day was a 4 AM wake-up call with a 4:30 departure to Dune 45.   A rusk (thick biscuit similar to a teething biscuit to dunk into coffee), bananas, and hot drinks were our start to this day.  The road was paved, the only pavement in this part of Namibia.  With nearly a pitch black start using head lights we cycled 45k to the dune (thus Dune 45).  Our makeshift front wheel worked perfectly.  Walking to the top at sunrise was spectacular with the sun hitting the red sand.  Another 15k took us to the end of the tarmac.  Here you could walk into the dunes and end up at a dried lake bed (Hidden Vlei).  Upon return, we had a brunch of bacon and scrambled eggs before transferring back to the campsite.   Although a nap was in order, the temperatures were in the mid-80’s in the shade and our tents were hot, so we spent the time in the bar (beer and Coke light) catching up on the blog and photos.   

A lonely, but rideable bike near Hidden Vlei

4:15 PM found us back on the bus, traveling to Sesriem Canyon (about a 10 min. ride).  This short hike was pretty spectacular as we climbed down into the canyon.  Parts of it resemble slot canyons, while other parts are more like a very deep arroyo.  This in the middle of the desert where there is little to no rain.   At some point in time there must have been some very heavy flooding to create a canyon.

Beth in Sesrium Canyon

Thursday, June 30, 2016              Betta Campground, Namibia (still in the boonies)

Today we continued our journey across the Namibia desert.  After a 30k transfer to avoid some deep sand, we were to bike 110k to our next campground.  The road at this point is sand, gravel and as rough as a washboard, so riding is quite difficult.   The front wheel fix is thankfully holding.   If we didn’t know better, we would think we were in NM.  The landscape is very similar – high desert.  It’s hard to believe we traveled halfway around the world to visit a place so similar to where we live.

After about 80k our front tire flatted.  Since this is the wheel with the makeshift bolt for an axle, we decided it was better to ride in the truck for a while.  The tire has a sealant in the inner tube and we hoped if we pumped it up it would seal.  When we stopped with 10k to go to the camp, it was flat again.   One more time of pumping and spinning the wheel hoping it would seal.  Ted really doesn’t want to take the wheel off if he doesn’t have to since it working so well with the make-shift repair.  When we got to the campsite it was still holding air, so hopefully we will be set to go first thing in the morning. 

Friday, July 1, 2016         Kanaan (Wild Campsite), Namibia

Not sure why you would need this sign... we have seen
nothing but sand for hundreds of miles in any direction

The sealant in the front wheel seems to have worked and the tire was still full this morning.  Today was another full day of riding for a distance of 75k to a bush camp (one flush toilet and the hottest shower yet although with 14 people and only a small water reserve you had to be very conservative).  The road was again a mix of sand, gravel and rough riding.  The last 18k were quite the slough through fairly deep sand.  It took at least an hour to go the last 8k (5 miles) to the lunch spot.   We took a tumble off the bike into the sand at about 70 k but luckily were not hurt.  Another member of our group fell in the same place and has a nasty gash up the back of his ankle.  

There are some very hardy souls out here.  We will ride all day and see maybe one or two farmhouses accessible only by these very poor dirt roads.  But they appear to be totally self-sustainable with water catchment systems, solar power and farm animals.  They are like a little oasis in the desert.  The one we passed today had been established in 1942 (per the sign on the fence) and was surrounded by trees and a cactus garden.  Very pretty!

Overview of the "wild" campsite... nothing for  miles

A special comment from Beth – I am getting quite tired of the camping – there seems to be so many definitions of camping.  We knew the Tanzania section would be luxurious and pricier but then we did end up in one safari camp without electricity.  I was under the impression that most of the bike trip would also be in safari type campsites not as luxurious but in the tents with cots.  When checking out the campsites on the internet before coming we saw swimming pools, bars, rooms and raised tents.  We are staying at these campsites but in the campground areas often away from the nicer immunities.  We have slept on the ground except for the one night we upgraded to a cottage and the one night in the guesthouse at Windhoek.  The campsites really vary in facilities, including some with bars, restaurants, as well as, varying degrees of clean toilets and showers.    Water is precious out here and often the shower is no more than a drizzle, with having to cup your hands to get enough to splash on your body.  At many of the campsites there has not been hot water, maybe due to the number of people trying to shower.  Then there is the problem of gettting back to the tent with your shoes are full of sand and your feet are filthy. Then there was the night of “bush” camping which meant no showers or toilets.  Our campsite tonight is defined as a “wild” campsite but it has a flushing toilet and a shower. We are 8k away from the reception area.  Every time we think we are in a remote location, it seems the next location is even more remote.   Not that any of our campsite have been less than remote.  It will be a pleasure to get to the guesthouse in Cape Town where we have been informed we will have an in suite bathroom.

Saturday, July 2, 2016    Hobas Campground, Ai-Ais National Park, Namibia (Fish Canyon Northern End)

A typical Namibian road of washboarded sandy gravel

Today was a long transfer by bus to our next campsite.  Given the distance across Namibia and the lack of paved roads, the only way to complete our journey is with these transfers but they are not pleasant with the people in the back seats cold and those in the front wanting windows open because of the heat and smells.  We are carrying food, sweaty cycling gear and shoes and people who have not showered at times due to lack of water.  It creates a great deal of conflict within the group.  The compromise has been to have one window cracked but no matter which side the window is cracked on the other side is cold.  The other difficulty is that the guides do not want to stop along the way for lunch so everyone is hungry and cranky.  Today we ate breakfast at 7 and did not get to camp for lunch until 2:30.

Fish River Canyon - not the best picture, but the sun had set

At 4 in the afternoon, we saddled up on the bike and rode to the overlook of the Fish River Canyon, the 2^nd largest canyon in the world.  You can probably guess the largest and if you can’t, it is in northern Arizona.  It was only a 10k ride (6.2 miles) and we were to arrive before sunset.  But it was mostly up hill on a severe washboard gravel road and it took us the better part of an hour to get there and we arrived just after the sun had set.  Again, no clear description of the ride from our guide that would indicate that we should have left earlier.

Sunday, July 3 – Hobas Campground to Ai Ais Campground (Fish River Canyon Southern End)

One of our companians (Martina) at the back of the pack
with us.

Today was a 6:15 wakeup to some of the coldest temps we have seen so far.  It was probably in the low 40s.  We were to ride from our camp at Hobas to Ai-Ais at the other end of Fish River Canyon.  We knew the first 4k were a really washed out gravel road, so we stayed on the bus for that part and then started our 65k ride to the next camp.  As our guide had indicated, it would have all of the things we had come to know about Namibian back roads with long back-breaking climbs, descents, smooth hardpack, deep sand and teeth jarring washboard.  He was correct and the weather threw in a tremendous cross wind descent on sandy washboard road into the campground.  The wind was so strong one of our group was blown over by the wind in the soft sand. 

The Ai-Ais campground is the nicest that we have stayed in with natural hot springs, restaurant, bar and a spa frequented by mostly South African tourists.  Beth took the opportunity to have a very hot shower and a foot massage at the spa.  Every campground we have stayed in has been extremely sandy, usually with limited or no hot water, so when you take a shower and walk back to the tent your feet are covered in sand. 

Monday, July 4, 2016     Orange River, Namibia

Happy 4^th of July!! The other American in our group decided we should celebrate by throwing our version of the “tea party”.  With our cooperation we took all the tea off the hot drink table last night.  We thought the joke was quite good, but I’m not sure our English counterparts thought it was very funny.

The pool and restaurant at our campsite with the Orange
River and South Africa in the background

We transferred the 11k up out of the canyon and then it was on the bikes for 40K before loading everything up again to complete the transfer to our new campsite at Orange River, approximately 70k from Ai-Ais campground.  This was our last ride in Namibia and the roads continued to provide the challenge of sand, gravel and washboard conditions.    The original notes called for us to transfer all the way but the consensus of the group was to try and ride a portion of the trip.  

Tuesday, July 5, 2016     Out of Namibia and into South Africa

No one was looking forward to this day – A full day in the truck.   We got up about 6:30 and after breakfast loaded up for the long transfer.  Just a few kilometers from camp we exited Namibia and entered South Africa.  Except for the hassle of immigration (out one and in the other) the ride started fairly smoothly.   We stopped for lunch and then again for refueling.   Then the truck and trailer had to go through a weigh station.   The vehicle was overweight which caused an hour or more delay while the officials tried to decide if they needed to make us lose weight or simply pay a fine.  In the end they let us proceed but fined the company for the extra weight. 

Overlook of our campsite in Cederberg Wilderness
And yes, we rode up the 8k long, 532m climb to get here
(thats 5 miles and 1750' of climbing on muddy gravel)

As we headed into the Cederberg Wilderness area, the site of our campground for the next two nights, it started to rain.  We put up tents in the rain and dark, the guides cooked in the rain and we ate supper in the rain.   The tents we are well used and no longer truly waterproof.  Many developed leaks.  For those of you not familiar with canvas tents, when it rains you are not supposed to touch the sides of the tent with anything.  Ted and I were cramped together along with our three suitcases in the middle of the tent.  Let’s say it was very cozy sleeping, what little we got.  The wind blowing through the trees was quite ferocious. 

As we head further south our daylight hours are shortening.   Sunrise is now about 7 am and sunset around 5:30 pm.   We are in our third time zone.  Tanzania is 9 hours ahead of Albuquerque, Namibia is 7 hours ahead and South Africa is 8 hours ahead. 

Wednesday, July 6, 2016              Cederberg Wilderness, South Africa

We woke up this morning to a wet and very cold start.  But the campground is beautiful.  We are down in a valley next to the river.  From the front of our tent, a waterfall is visible.  As the morning and breakfast progressed the sun came out and we were able to move forward with the planned riding.

Today’s plan called for a 40k ride to the beginning of a 6k single-track mountain bike trail called Lot’s Wife.  For those without experience on single track, an alternate route was available.  The first 8k (5 miles) of the ride was a very steep climb out of the mountain valley gaining 532 meters (1750’) of elevation.   We were then to all meet up and hike to the Maltese Cross, return and finish up with a winetasting at a local winery.  However due to the amount of rain the previous night, the guide was unable to get the permits to hike.  So we rode to the winery and participated in the wine tasting.  The local wine was fine, but Ted found some craft beer (India pale ale and blonde ale) which was a nice change from the usual lagers available here.  Interestingly enough, you could not buy just one bottle of beer, they were sold as a pair.  The lady at the counter tried to explain the story.  Something about a husband and wife in a red car, so the two had to always go together, but it really didn’t make much sense. 

At the Cederberg Winery

Tonight is our last night of camping!  Tomorrow we will be in Cape Town and are staying at a guest house for the last two nights.   The group has decided that first thing in the morning we will transfer to Cape Town and do a city cycle tour there instead of a very cold ride out of our camp site in the dark.

A Quick Safaria in the Botswana Delta

This will be our last post for a while as we head into the Namibian desert for 9 days...

Thursday, June 23, 2016 – Maun, Botswana - Moremi Game Reserve

A special start to the day, with scrambled eggs, bacon, mushrooms and grilled tomatoes instead of the usual cereal and yogurt.  Then we were off to Moremi Game Reserve in the "Delta" region of Botswana.  This is a very unique region since the "delta" is very large inland wetlands that has been set aside as a game preserve.

Crossing a wooden bridge in the Morimi game reserve

We switched guides for this part of the journey into the Okavango Delta.  Supposedly the Moremi contains lions, elephants, rhino, buffalo, cheetah and leopards but our luck was not very good on this safari trip.  We did see elephants, giraffe, zebras and several types of antelopes but in small numbers.   We were in a bush camp, in our tents but without any restrooms.  For dinner we had a fabulous braai (Botswanan Bar-b-que) with the mandatory “pap”; previously described as ugali or nshima.  The big build-up to coming out to Moremi was that we would be camping in the bush and hear the animals at night.  In fact, most likely we would have some animals walk through our camp.  Other than seeing buffalo dung, we did not hear or see anything… the quietest night of camping we have had since the start of the bike trip.  At dawn there was a small group of zebra feeding a short distance away from the camp.

Friday, June 24, 2016 – Return to Audi camp – Maun, Botswana.

Baby elephant suckling 

Another early morning start (5:30) wakeup.   I’m not sure if we are on holiday or not as we are up and moving as early as we would be back home when working.  After a morning safari in search of predators, we returned to Audi camp in Maun around 1:30 pm.  All we found were footprints – none of the big five.  We did hear of a “wild dog” sighting but were unsuccessful in finding them.  This trip seems over scheduled with an attempt to get in quantity instead of quality.  It is very difficult to think you can find elusive animals with a quick morning safari, knowing it’s over a three-hour drive to get back to camp in time for the remaining scheduled activities for the day.   After having been on the safari’s in Tanzania, this trip was a huge disappointment.  Our guide was very quick to explain that if we had more time (another day), he was sure he could have found the lions. 

Some of our group then signed up for a bush plane trip over the Delta but since we had flown over much of Tanzania we decided it was not worth the additional expense.  We did make a quick shopping trip into Maun buying a power adapter (unique to southern Africa), snacks, and CHOCOLATE!  Dinner was again at the camp restaurant which was very good.

At dinner we learned that one of our fellow travelers had lost their passport on the bush plane ride, so there was somewhat of a panic in hopes that it could be recovered in the morning.  The passports have been in and out of our backpacks multiple times with boarder crossings, buffalo fence crossings, multiple hotels, etc.  So it is always a concern that you haven't lost the darn thing.

Tandem covered with disenfectant - bushman sitting on the
in the background

The buffalo fence crossings are unique to Botswana.  They have a hoof and mouth disease problem which is spread by the wild African buffalo to the beef cattle which is one of the countries major industries.  To try to prevent the spread of the disease, they have built long fences across major sections of the country.  When you come to one of the fences you have exit the vehicle with all of your shoes and dip them in a pad soaked with disenfectant and drive your vehicle through a pool of disenfectant as well.  At one stop they even made out driver spray all of the bicycle tires with disenfectant which left a white residue all over our bikes.

Saturday, June 25, 2016 – Maun to Ghanzi (han-zee), Botswana

With the lost passport to recover, we had a reprieve from the 5:30AM wakeup call and were allowed to sleep in until 6:30.  After breakfast the guide contacted the bush flight office and notified them of the lost passport.  On our way to the airport he got the call that they had found it on the plane, so everyone breathed a sigh of relief. 

We are frequently greeted by cheers, big waves, thumbs-up and
smiles as we ride down the road.  The tandem gets a lot
of double-takes

On the edge of Maun, we dropped the bicycles for a very flat 120k (75 mile) ride through the Kalahari Desert.  The vegetation is mostly low growing trees that are extremely drought tolerance with massive thorns like locust trees.  This area has a lot of cattle farming.  The cattle roam free along with donkeys and horses.  There are plenty of sharp things on the ground as well and there were 7 flats among the 12 bicycles, some with more than 1 flat. 

It was a very nice day for riding and we really enjoyed the mild temperatures.  After riding we packed into the truck for a 200k transfer to Ghanzi where we had the option to rent a small bungalow with its own bathroom including wood fired hot water for the shower (called donkey showers here – don’t know why) and real beds.  For the grand sum of $40, we sprang for the upgrade.  It is really nice to be able to make the trek to the bathroom in the middle of the night without having to find your shoes, get out of your tent and not worry about dragging sand back into the tent on the return trip.

Sunday, June 26, 2016 – Ghanzi, Botswana to Windhoek, Namibia

Two women from the bushman group

Our day started off at about 7AM with breakfast and then a walk with the local bushman.  These are the indigenous people who live nearby and are trying to preserve their way of life and culture.  It was a cold morning, probably in the low 40’s and they were clad in only a few animal skins.  They gave a tour of some of the local plants that they use for medicinal purposes and for dying pelts to make them water proof.  The group of 3 men and 2 women ranged from over 70 to 20 years of age.  We also had a guide/interpreter who spoke the local language who would translate for us.  They were quite entertaining and very hospitable.  It isn’t very clear that they will not be able to maintain their culture since they live in a settlement on land provided by the government similar to a reservation in the US.  They are no longer allowed to hunt the native animals as is their tradition, so they have to buy the meat and pelts essential to their way of life.

Bushman showing us how to make fire... no flint, no match

After saying goodbye to the bushman, we packed into the truck and started our nearly 500k trek to Windhoek, Namibia.  After about 175k we crossed the Botswana border with Namibia where we had to clear immigration on both sides of the boarder.  Then it was back in the truck to push on.  After a quick lunch stop for lunch in Gobabis, we continued on our way to Windhoek.  Again a night of relative luxury, staying in a guesthouse.  Then onto the infamous Joe’s Beer Garden for dinner.  Ted had a sampling of various native meats including crocodile, kudu and oryx. 

After tonight we are headed into the Namibian Desert and will not have access to wifi for nine days.  We will try to post again whenever we get the chance.

Riding into Botswana... well actually taking a ferry

Finally, a few minutes to organize a post with some spotty WIFI so we will try to catch up…

Sunday, June 19, 2016 - Livingston, Zambia

Our traveling van and companions at a rest stop

We transferred from our private bookings to the KE Adventure cycling tour.  After a leisurely (??) morning repacking and sorting luggage to accommodate the new trip, Waterbury lodge provided a driver to Waterfront Campground to meet up with the KE Adventure guides and greet all the riders.  We are 11 in all with riders from all over the world, including USA, UK, Austria and a New Zealander who is living in Japan.  Imagine our surprise when the other person from US, rode with Heidi on the all-female team that raced for World Bicycle Relief two years ago.  We were all amazed at that!

The rest of the day was spent putting the bike together followed by a quick 12 mile ride to the entrance of Victoria Falls and back.  Our accommodations have taken a drastic change.  We are now truly camping, think your basic dome test, sleeping bags on a thin foam mat and a shared campground bathroom.  At least they are flushing toilets and separated shower stalls.    A big step down from even Lake Manze Camp. 

Monday, June 20, 2016 - Into Botswana

 

An early start (wake-up at 5:15) and on the rode by 6:45 for our first 79 Kilometer ride (You do the math).  We rode to the “4 corners” area where Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia and Botswana meet in the middle of the Chobe river.  The river ferry was typical African chaos but with the help of our guide we had no trouble getting our passports stamped out of Zambia and into Botswana.   The trucks line up sometimes for days to make this crossing as it is the only route from Botswana to Zambia without going through Zimbabwe.  Then it was onto our truck for a very short transfer to our camp.  Lunch was at about 1 pm.  At 2pm we were back on the truck for a quick run into town to exchange dollars to pula (the local currency).  And yet another boat cruise where we saw many animals again.  It was the first sighting for many of our fellow travelers so it was exciting to see their reactions. 

Synchronized drinking from the Chobe River

During our short shopping spree in the Kasane, population 6000, we found a queen size duvet in a Woolworths (of all things) to supplement our thin foam mattresses.  When we went to check out the very nice young lady asked Ted a question and he just couldn’t figure it out… Beth finally did.  “Do you have a Woolworths Rewards Card?”  We just had to laugh.  But boy, the duvet made sleeping on the thin foam pads much, much better.  We had asked before coming if we needed to bring a camping mattress and were told we didn’t because we would have a very nice foam pad.  That was a significant overstatement.

Food is very basic but filling.  Breakfast consists of cereal, fruit, yogurt, coffee, tea, and juice.  Lunch was sandwich makings.  Dinner was beef stew and spinach.  Restroom facilities were very basic and Beth shared her shower with a spider and a cat.

Riding is very different from any other tour we’ve been on.  Because we are riding through wildlife habitats the guide is very strict about staying close together.  This translates to the single riding with guide leading the group and our truck following the last rider.  We stop every 20 K to allow all riders to regroup and have a snack of fruit and “sweeties” (candy) and refill water bottles if needed.  No granola bars, nut bars or any “typical” snack mixes.  Also no sports drink mixes like Gateraid.  The faster riders must wait for the whole group to reunite and the truck with snacks to arrive before we proceed to the next 20 K stop.  Since we are “middle of the group riders” speed wise this is not a problem, but it prohibits taking a break when you need it.  And the riding is very scheduled with multiple activities scheduled in the same day so it is “let’s go.. let’s go” after every stop. 

Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Another rest stop for the bikes

Another early start with the expectation that we be on the road by 6:45. The goal was 107 km before 12:30 to beat the heat and make it to our next planned activity.  We rode through a game park but had little luck.  The animals were quite scarce, maybe because of all the 18 wheelers on the road heading to and from the ferry.  We rode 80 kilometers as the headwind and flat roads took their toll.  It was a lot like crossing Kansas both in landscape and wind.  After we stopped we found out we had been rubbing our rear brake all day.  No wonder the riding was so hard.  Lunch was a pasta salad with chunks of cheese, hotdogs, canned peas and cucumbers with a choice of local “salsa” for topping.  Then it was onto the van for 200 km to the Makgadikgadi Saltpans.  The goal was to make the Saltpans by sunset but we stopped just short of the lake bed.  I have to say, the saltpans did not live up to our expectations.  We expected something similar to Whitesands; but it was a dried lakebed maybe more like the Bonneville Salt Flats. 

Our camp for the night was Planet Baobab.  A large number of campers were at this site so we ended in the overflow camping with two large buses.  There were only two toilets and two showers; very nice but nowhere near enough for all the people.  We ended up with cold showers. 

Temperatures have been mid 40’s at night and mid 80’s during the day.  The days are very full with little down time other than the van transfers which aren’t too restful.

Typical Day

5:15 wake up call – pack suitcases, clear test, eat breakfast

6:45 – On the bikes

12:30 – 1PM -  Off the bikes, lunch and hurry off to somewhere else

Wednesday, June 22, 2016 – Planet Baobab to Maun, Botswana

We had the pleasure of sleeping in to 6AM this morning and off on the bikes at 7:30!  The second huge pleasure was a 10-20mph hour tailwind during our 60k ride on a dead flat road.  Much more enjoyable than our ride yesterday.  Then another 120k transfer to Maun and the Audi campground.  We were here  by 1PM and have had time to reorganize things for our safari trip into the bush tomorrow.  So we are off the bikes for a couple of days.  And WAY off the grid.

White water rafting and Victoria Falls

Not sure when we might have access to the internet again and had some down time before meeting our cycling tour, so thought we would take the opportunity for a quick post to the blog.

Saturday, June 18, 2016 – Livingstone, Zambia

Zambezi river gorge below Victora Falls

We are staying at the Waterberry Lodge, named after the Waterberry tree which grows in abundance on the Zambezi riverbank.  It’s a very beautiful lodge with 7 huts and luscious gardens. Again the staff is excellent and the food is quite good.  The lodge is located about 15 miles west of Livingstone on the riverbank with a clear view of the Zambezi National Park in Zimbabwe on the other side of the river. We took an evening river cruise when we arrived and saw more elephants, giraffes (3 of them drinking), baboons, crocs and hippos that were in the park.

Our day started with a whitewater raft trip below Victoria Falls.  Due to the high level of the river we were only able to take a half-day trip instead of the planned full day trip.  The hardest part of the trip was the walk from the top of the gorge to the bottom.  Most of the climb down was on tree limbs which had been nailed together to form a ladder type step.  Luckily for those of less sure footing, porters were available to help.  Once

Walking down the makeshift ladder to the river

at the bottom, we were instructed in basic rowing techniques.  Most of the rapids were a grade 2 or 3, with 1 being the lowest and 6 the highest grade.  We did master one grade 4 and made it through rapids 10 to 25 without flipping or anyone falling out.  Like on all good rafting trips each rapid has a descriptive name; Oblivion, the Three Sisters and their Mother (gotta respect the mother) and the Washing Machine.  At the end we took a cable car to the top.  The guides, porters (carrying all of the equipment) and a few of the guests chose to walk up the steep path.

After lunch the lodge had arranged for a driver to take us to Victoria Falls.  What an impressive sight and you can really only see a small part of it at any given time.  We walked over Knife Edge bridge, again getting wet.  The falls are so tall and the water hits the bottom so hard, it’s like it’s raining all the time as you walk across.  On the far side of the bridge there are spectacular views of the falls and of Victoria Bridge.  Once we had finished our trek, our driver took us to Victoria Bridge.  Walking across, we stepped across the border into Zimbabwe.  Then we watched the bungie jumpers fall from the bridge into the canyon. 

Rafting one of the rapids

For dinner, we were treated to a traditional Zambian meal typically eaten with your hands.  Very similar to a traditional Tanzanian meal.  Cornmeal that has been ground very fine and then cooked to the consistency of playdough is used to soak up the other components of the meal and is used in place of utensils.  This is called Nshima here, Ugali in Tanzania.  This is a staple in the diet because it fills a person up, although seems to have little nutritional value.  We also had a variety of vegetables, all with tomatoes and onions, beans, chicken and beef stew.  A family might have one of the meats occasionally but typically only use what vegetables are grown in the garden or bought at the local shop.  We have not seen tomatoes growing but they must be plentiful and cheap. 

Sundday, June 19, 2016 – Livingstone, Zambia

Sunday, June 19, 2016 – Livingstone, Zambia

Today we had a relaxing morning, repacking for the bike trip portion of our trip.  We meet up with the bike tour group in Livingstone this afternoon.  It will probably take us between 2 and 3 hours to get the bike back together and checked out.  At least we had no problems with lost luggage in all of our travels so far and to be really honest, things couldn’t have gone any better with the whole trip so far.

Just a small section of Victoria Falls

Quick Update - On to Livingstone, Zambia

After a short night in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, we collected the biking equiqment from our hotel and flew to Livingstone, Zambia via Johannesburg, South Africa.  We spent some of the time on the plane sorting photos and have posted our "Best of the Best" from Tanzania in this photo web album.

A hint about using the web album.  Double click on a photo to enlarge it and click on the "i" in the upper right corner to get more information on the photo.  We have included descriptions of the photo with a number of shots.

On Safari in Tanzania

First, we must apologize for the length of time between postings.  We have not had any internet service at any of the safari camps and no electricity at one.  We will not be posting many pictures due to the lack of significant broadband.  We will post a small sampling of the more than 1000 pictures at some time and provide a link in this blog.  If you have the time we will have some fantastic pictures and, in this case, pictures are worth a thousand words.

Thursday, June 9, 2016 – Iringa, TZ

Elephants butting heads, not sure it was play or for real

After a traditional pork barbeque dinner with numerous peace corps volunteers and other visiting family and a night at Neema’s Hostel , we started the journey down the “endless road” to Ruaha National Park.   We were picked up by the driver at Neemas in a 4-wheel drive crew cab pickup.  He was expecting to take a party of 3 but we were a party of 5 (having added another Peace Corp volunteer and her boyfriend in Iringa).  Rather than wait for another vehicle we decided to get cozy for the 3 hour ride over bumpy dirt roads. 

Upon arrival at the camp we were greeted by the manager and staff.  If this is tent camping, Beth would camp every trip.  We are in a tent, but think a very nice hotel room in canvas with 5-star service.  All one has to do is asked and they will do their best to provide it.

First of 3 leopard sitings

After lunch, we headed out in the jeep for our first safari.   Amazingly we saw a large number of animals, including elephants, giraffes, impalas, water buffalo, baboons and numerous birds.  Made us wonder how they could top that! 

All meals at the Kwihala Camp were included and were excellent.  Amazing considering you are roughly 40 miles by rough dirt road from the nearest town of any size.  Dinner was served by the dry river bed each evening with all the guests of the 6 tent lodge sharing a table and experiences.  You are walked to and from dinner by a staff member with a “torch” (flashlight) to make sure the path is clear from elephants, baboons, monkeys, lions or whatever else may be in the bushes.

Friday, June 10, 2016 – Ruaha National Park, TZ

Giraffe and friend removing parasites

The morning started with a wakeup call and coffee delivery at 5:30 AM.   Then off to find the animals at 6:00.   The camp is at about 3000 feet in elevation and it is almost “winter” here, but Tanzania is just 8 degrees below the equator so the early mornings were in the mid-40’s.  Since we were riding in a modified Toyota Landcruiser with open seating where the bed would normally be, it can be pretty chilly with the air blowing by at 20-30 mph.  The camp provides blankets and hot water bottles for your comfort. 

Again we were treated to an amazing array of animals, adding zebras, hippos and MORAC (Misleading Object Resembling A Cat).  Just before heading back in for lunch, we saw three lioness sitting in the shade on the riverbank.  Then it was back to camp for lunch and a quick nap before tea at 4:00.  This was a British colony after all.   After tea, we were out to try to get a better look at the lions.  Of course, we were distracted by a leopard on the way.   He was simply laying under a tree by the roadside.  He was very relaxed and posed for pictures until a 2^nd and then 3^rd jeep arrived.  It is common courtesy to radio if a hard-to-find local animal is found, but we were still able to get about 20 minutes of time to photograph this fabulous animal before anyone else showed up.  It is impossible to describe the stark beauty of this place and the grace of the animals that inhabit it. 

Saturday, June 11, 2016 – Ruaha National Park, TZ

Another early start and we have added hyrax (small ground hog), hyenas, jackals, and warthogs to the list after a morning spent looking for leopards.  We found 1 leopard, but only a quick glimpse before he disappeared into the thick brush.  At lunch we were greeted by the resident elephant.  Then back out in the afternoon for a longer time extending into a night drive.  We spent some quality time with the elephants and giraffe not far from our camp. 

Sunday, June 12, 2016 – Ruaha National Park / Selous Game Reserve, TZ

Female lion on the move

We left this fabulous national park about 11:30, but there was plenty of time for one last roll through the park before heading on to our next locations.  It is also time to say farewell to our traveling companions. 

We headed out a little later today (6:30 am) and less than 5 minutes from camp we find a lioness just strolling down the road.  Unbelievable! Even better she stayed in the open and we were able to follow her through the tall grass and up the game trail in our jeep.  The photographs are outstanding!  Then the call came that another guide had spotted wild dogs.  As hard as it was to leave our lioness, wild dogs are seldom seen in Ruaha, so off we went.  Unfortunately, they had left the riverbank by the time we got there and were nowhere to be found.  Plus, we were on a deadline to meet the plane that would carry us to our next stop.  Boarding the plane, we flew to Camp Lake Manza in the Selous (Se-loo) Game Preserve. 

Barbara stayed on the plane to continue to Dar es Salaam and onto Arusha to meet a friend coming in from Denmark.  They are planning to hike near Mount Kilimanjaro for the week.  While it was difficult to say goodbye, we leave knowing she is doing well in Tanzania.  Her Swahili is excellent and she has a network of friends, shopkeepers and cohorts supporting her.   As with all things, the Peace Corp has its positive and negative issues and she faces the challenge of being the only American in her very small village, but she seems to be thriving on the challenges.

Wildebeast in Selous Game Reserve
(guides say they are made of spare parts)

As mentioned earlier Selous is a game preserve, which means in addition to photo safaris, hunting is allowed.   The hunting is by permit only and very expensive AND kept in regions separate from the photo safaris.  We have already noticed, however, that the animals are viewed differently.  While quite nice, our accommodations are more rustic.  We are in a fairly permanent tent as before.  Our bathroom is adjoining but outside the tent surrounded by canvas sides and a partial roof.  We are also without electricity.  We have candles and kerosene lamps.  Selous is lower in elevations, so warmer and on a series of lakes therefor much more humid.  We will at Lake Manze Camp for two nights.   On the drive from the airport to the camp we added Wildebeest’s to our now long list of animals.

Monday, June 13, 2016                Selous Game Reserve/Lake Manze Camp

Hippos in Lake Manze

We started the morning with a 7:00AM hiking safari where we learned more than we ever wanted to know about dung.  The most fascinating part of the walk was watching the Ant Lions.  They are quite clever in how they catch the ants and then suck everything out leaving only the skeleton.  They are one of the “Small 5” here in Africa.  Then back to the lodge for breakfast and a jeep safari before lunch.   Finally saw a male lion; although quite young.  He was just getting a mane putting him around 3 years old.  In the evening we took a boat safari, which was a pleasant change from the rough roads the jeeps take.  Up close views of the crocodiles and hippos were quite interesting.  The hippos are much more impressive in the water than on land. 

Sunday, June 14, 2016                  Selous Game Reserve/Transfer to Selous Impala Camp

Croc diving into the lake... no swimming anywhere in Selous

This morning we packed up and took our suitcases on the morning safari.  As we reached the pride of lions seen yesterday the call came out – leopard kill spotted.  So off we raced!  A leopard had recently killed an impala and dragged it up a tree.  When we arrived, that’s just what we saw.  Hunting through the brush, a guide in another jeep spotted the leopard and we got a quick shot before he took off.  We have been told how unusual it is to spot a leopard and from the guides reactions to finding them, it must be true.  How lucky we have been to see three!

Arrival at Impala Camp returned us to professionalism and again a 5 star rating.  We are greeted by the manager and friendly, smiling staff, given a briefing about the camp, provided with lunch service and taken to our tent.  After a short rest, it’s back to jeep to continue hunting wildlife. 

Monday, June 15, 2016                Selous Impala Camp

Leopard reclaiming the full grown male impala he killed 2 days
 earlier and hung in this trees. 

Our morning started with a motor boat safari.   It was a very different way to view the wildlife.  We added Nile Monitor Lizard to our list but also saw many varieties of birds, hippos, crocodiles, elephants and giraffe.   We ended the trip with watching a giraffe get a drink out of the river.  This required a lot of patience since the giraffes are very leery of people and predators.  They usually watch for a long time before acting… never get in staring contest with a giraffe, you’ll lose.

Our evening drive finished a sunset viewing with champagne to celebrate the great time we have had in Tanzania.  Tonight was a loud night in the jungle with bushbabies (nocturnal tree monkeys) sounding alarms all night, giraffe wandering into the camp and the typical hippos leaving the river to graze and return on a path near our tent.  We are not positive but we may have even heard a hyena pack.

Tuesday, June 16, 2016                Selous Impala Camp/Transfer back to Dar

Nile Monitor lizard

What a morning!   We had barely left camp when we saw the elephants, a herd of about 20.  Then out to look for a mature male lion and wild dogs.  At this point that is about all we have not seen that we know of.  We have seen many animals we were not even aware we should be looking for.  While we found neither we found two lionesses and two young cubs nursing! And a leopard back at the tree to claim the impala he killed 2 days ago; this time in full view.  What a sight! 

After lunch, it was time to head to the airstrip.  On the way we saw two Nile Monitor Lizards fighting for territory followed by a bird catching a snake.  Lastly we saw Angolan Black and White Colobus monkeys.   Midday is when most of the big animals escape the heat and are very hard to see. 

Our flight back to Dar es Salaam was on a very small 6 passenger plane (including the pilot).  Our pilot, a lady from Kenya, did a very nice job and it was another great flight on these small planes.

 Typical Safari Day

5:30 or later       Wake up call with coffee, tea, juice and biscuits (shortbread cookies)

6:00-7:00            Out for a morning safari with a bush breakfast

1:00                     Lunch followed by a rest

4:00                     Afternoon tea

4:30                     Afternoon safari

7:30                     Sundowner (cocktails)

8:00                     Dinner

Giraffe drinking... after a long wait to see