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
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| 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
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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.
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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
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| 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.
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| 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.
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| 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
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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!
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| 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)
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| 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.
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| 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)
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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 4th 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.
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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.
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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.
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| 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.
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