We survive our first weekend in the caravan.    Prior to this It has been a week of stressing, faffing and fussing to get everything ready for a month long trip away in the Kgalagadi.  Isn’t it amazing what people will do for fun?  Here we were in a large home with everything that opens and shuts, electricity, hot and cold running water, air-con – the list goes on – and what do we do?  We swap it for a tiny hut on wheels.   I think this is going to be so much fun! But I think my darling husband anticipates every hiccup and tries to squash our familiar life-style into this small abode.   Not gonna happen honey – we have to be prepared for the odd discomfort – and don’t panic – I will survive!

Sunday 8 and Monday 9 March

We are wide away just before 4 am on Sunday morning – the noise of the Sishon Saldana iron ore train being our alarm clock!   There is no point going back to sleep for 15 minutes so we rise and get ready to leave.  The biggest hassle is getting the roof folded down – there must be a knack that we haven’t mastered yet – but with only a minimum of grumpiness and a few giggles we finally did it.   By 5:00 am were are on the road in beautiful weather and only a few stop goes to negotiate.

It is a 950 km journey to our overnight stop Mopolo.  I love driving through the Karoo. It has a stark beauty all of its own but the roads can be long and straight with little change in the scenery. But I just love the muted green-grey and orange-khaki colours, the low scrub and mauve, flat-topped mountains and koppies that resemble crusty loaves of bread or Christmas cakes.

We stop at Vanrynsdorp to refuel and take-away toasted sandwiches and coffee.   I am impressed with the pristine state of the loos and the quality of the coffee!  The staff are gentle and friendly too.

We arrive at Molopo Lodge at 3:30 and decide to check into a chalet as there are no campers in the camp site.   Also it’s been a long, hot drive and we don’t feel like battling to set up the caravan for just one night.  What bliss to get a chalet with a plunge pool right in front.   We spend a couple of hours in the pool and watch the many birds flitting about in the tropical garden.  This place is like an oasis in the middle of the dessert. In the evening we go to the restaurant.  The service is shocking – the waitress doesn’t know what Dry White wine is and brings a sickly sweet glass of something awful.  We send it back and order a bottle of Durbanville Hills sauvignon blanc.  I have a couple of glasses and take the rest with me. However, the Gemsbok steaks are really good and are accompanied by beautifully prepared vegetables and chips.

Monday 9 March

The hot water doesn’t work in the chalet but as it is very hot we are not too fussed about it.   We are up at 6:00 and ready to leave by 6:45, pay our bill and ask for the ice bricks we asked them to freeze for us.  But they are not frozen.  Clearly they were put in the fridge and did not see the inside of a freezer at all!  Oh well!

We arrive at Twee Rivieren at 8:30, check in and pay the balances we owe and then check in at the Botswana side too.  Maureen has already paid for us here but the receptionist insists we fill in the register too. We decide to breakfast at the restaurant – our last bit of luxury for the next three weeks.

We have over 100km to travel and the first 15 takes 3 hours as we tend to stop for all the birds and little things too!

Before taking the Mata Mata Road we detour to Samevloeiing Waterhole which is very rewarding.

En route we find a lanner falcon in a tree

Soon after leaving the picnic site we find a car with its occupant staring into the bush.  I look into the tree and say – He’s looking at a leopard’s kill

And then we see him – on the ground but well hidden.  Imagine our first cat of the trip – a leopard!

We see a whole pool of secretary birds at Montrose waterhole. Here is one of them.

The main diet of the predators is springbok and there are plenty of them

We arrive at Mata Mata at 16:00, check in at reception and are told we have to find the campsite as none are allocated in advance.  We find Jim and Maureen easily – fortunately they are not out! In  no time we set up the caravan – Jim lends a hand and gives some good advice.   Maureen kindly offers to cook the meal for all of us this evening and I will repay the favour tomorrow.  Her chili con carne is to die for!