Ilene and I left for another little adventure this past month. As I had mentioned earlier, we set off south and west for a few weeks. The first stop was Livingstone, which is always a pleasure. We have a great little backpacker’s lodge to stay at. Great camping on their lawn and all kinds of ammenities…plus it is a very pretty setting.
Then across the river to Botswana. This was really interesting. A pretty funky ferry, but what really got our attention was the landing from the Botswana side to Zambia. These guys came from everywhere, in dugout canoes, and started unloading all kinds of stuff (tv’s, cases of beer, stereos, tires, etc) off of the ferry and into their canoes. I asked a local what was going on. He just said “smugglers”, in a nonchalant tone. With the immigration office within a distance I could throw a rock, from the ”scene of the crime”, this just didn’t seem possible. I guess I was a little slow to catch on to the larger picture (AND QUITE A BIT OF BACK SCRATCHIN’) that was going on.
- bootleggers…but aren’t they supposed to work under the cover of darkness??
A woman likes her colors!!
And then on to Chobe Park. What a plethora of animals. We camped outside of the park one night and then went on an overnight on a safari. It was a real treat.
first sign as you enter the park region
water buffalo
Kudu
Red Sable
African sunset in Chobe National Park
hey Ilene….seen any LIONS!!!!
intensity
croc stalking lizard
elephant eye
...and my favorite "Elephant Love". It really is quite touching
From Chobe, we headed south right through the Kalahari Desert, to a city called Maun. It is a stopping place to visit the Okavango Delta. Unfortunately, where we wanted to go was washed out and they said that we would have to go on a safari to see the park, as our car could not make it. It would be very expensive, so we had to pass and proceed on to Windhoeck, the capital city. This is a very interesting city….very hilly. It seems like every home has a view and pleasant architecture. But this is not where we were interested in spending our time, so it was on to the Dunes area. The largest sand dunes in the world. We woke at 4:30 one morning, so that we could be at the park gate when it opened at 5 AM, and at one of the dunes to climb, before it got light. The intention was to watch the sunrise from the top of the dune, which we were able to do. It was a very beautiful, enchanting morning.
Sunrise in the Namib Desert
the view from our campsite
And from the dunes region, we travelled by a GREAT bakery, in the middle of nowhere and on to Swakopmund. This had the most barren stretch of desert that I can imagine. In the picture below, this scene went on for HOURS!
Where's the road?
and finally, the Atlantic Ocean. First up...fish and chips!
This area was in the midst of more rain than they had seen in a long time….perhaps since EVER recorded! In one region we heard that they had had more rain in the past three months than they had had in the past FIFTEEN YEARS COMBINED. And we did get dumped on one evening/morning/afternoon. Must say that our REI tent didn’t leak a drop through it all too. From here we went inland a bit (as the coast is just sand to ocean and not all that interesting) and headed north. We saw ancient rock art at the White Lady site and drove on up to an area called Palmwag. It was interesting, but a lot of dirt road driving. It was here that we also started paying the price of trying to make our tires go a bit further than they were ready to offer. After three “incidents” (a flat, a puncture and a blow out), we finally bought a set of new tires all the way around, when we got to an area with a tire store. We eventually made it to Etosha National Park. Camped outside the park in a hell of a thunder and lightning storm and the next morning drove in to the park. It was a real let down. There has been so much rain that the animals are nowhere near the “reliable” water hole sighting areas. They can get water anywhere at present. We were going to camp in the park (outrageous fees), but decided to bag it, as the day was not going all that well. At lunch time, we decided to drive all the way through to the east entrance. Well, what a difference a half of a day makes. The east end was LOADED with wildlife. We had a wonderful time. With Ilene driving, we decided to be “pirates” and go through a blocked off (closed) area. We knew the reason some roads were closed was because of the muddy conditions, but we decided to go as far as we could. It ended up being a great decision…but close to catastrophic, as Ilene had to negotiate a substantial mudhole at the very far end of the road. It was an enchanting afternoon/evening.
Ostrich
Big Bruiser
Kudu
setting sun on a giraffe
a day that started off rough, but ended in..... glory
From here, we got so entranced with the adventure, that we really had no plans for where we were going to stay that night. We left the park way after dark and there was nowhere to camp. Not a great situation, but we just started driving and eventually found a place to crash for the night. One of the two nights that we didn’t spend in the tent for the three week period.
The next day we headed for the Caprivi Strip, and again, were turned away, due to our intended destination being flooded out. This became a common theme as we were in northern Namibia. Whoda’ thunk???? And then on to the border crossing in to Zambia and over to Livingstone again. We decided to go out to the falls, to see the water at high level. Basically all you see is a cloud of, well, water….but it is impressive.
at the top of the falls
And then back to Lusaka the next day.
It was an interesting trip, glad we did it, but would be hesitant to do that much driving again. Please let me know if all of these pictures make it combersome to view the blog. I took the time to make them all smaller files, but I’m not sure if it is enough.
Happy Spring to all of you in the Northern Hemisphere!
Wow Jerry, what a fantastic blog. The pictures are unbelievable! CFI
I love the way you name the animals: Big Bruiser
You crack me up!!!!
Lovely, lovely photos. I will need to check out Ilene’s facebook soon to see if more of them are there. Love, Blessings, and Peace to you both. robin
Pictures and naratives were great Jerry. How goes the metal shop at the school??
It’s been a cold, dry spring. Still burning fires at home and in the shop!!
Hi Barry: The guys are still doing pretty well. While I was gone, they decided to install some doors that I knew they would not know how to do and told them not to. We now have to do a bunch of rework while they are hanging, rather in our comfortable shop on a shop table. But as you know, this is truly the best way to learn these things. They are finishing up 30 curtain rods for two houses, 20 benches for the common room (with an order for 20 more). In the near future they have an order for 48 beds/w study area underneath and I think a pretty substantial banister for a nearby lodge (over 50 meters). And a bunch more other potential. So, they’re busy! and getting better and better at what they are doing. I just wish YOU were here to give them some “quality” instruction – but we bet by
Jerry- fabulous pictures and stories, thanks so much! Wow, what will it be like for you to come back to the little Methow Valley?
-snoozie
I have been asking myself that question as of late and don’t have an answer. I think mostly I will just adjust to the new flow of life there. Of course, there will be experiences here that will taint how I look at some things when I get back. One huge one is how people take care of one another here. People (in general) don’t have much money, but when they get ANY, they share it with an extended family. They seem to do it without any thought of saving more for themselves. It’s somewhat hard for me to fathom, STILL. It is heartwarming that they do this, but I wonder how it stunts development. In other words, what is the incentive to work, if others see that you are struggling and will provide? Blah, blah, blah…
Jerry
Chris sends me all of your Emails and photos. This was a great trip and I appreciate getting to share it with you. Always have to have an African Map at my side to view all your sites and towns. Wishing you safe days always.
You do a wonderful job !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great pics Jerry. Sounds like non stop adventures. I bet you’re loving it.
One question: Can you just camp anywhere you want? I would have thought there was wildlife danger. That seems to be what I remember from Kenya and Tanzania.
Love your blog postings! Keep em coming..
TD
Yes, good question…and in the game parks you definitely can NOT camp anywhere. But there are a very few places that you can camp and really exensive. Outside of the parks, there are chances to just put your tent down. Though there are virtually no roads that just go off in to the wilderness. We had to camp in a dried up stream bed and HOPE it didn’t rain. The car was prepared for a quick getaway to high ground. It was amazingly beautiful to do, and I wish we would have done more of it.
Wow. What a beautiful world.
once again a great Knucklehead adventure. Loved the pictures and narrative. Amazing the car is holding up under these conditions. Sounds like for the most part, things went fairly smoothly, in comparison to some of the earlier adventures. This is a great new Chapter to add to your book –”The Adventures of Knucklehead”. We sure miss the both of you! Same old Same old here–rain, cold, work. Afraid to plant the garden because of the weather. No big plans for the summer. will be taking 8 students for a week to orlando,fl for a national business competition/conference. Kelsey will be here in a couple of weeks for a visit. Again, thanks for sharing the wonderful experiences.
Hi Ilene and Jerry,
We feel as if we’ve been on safari with you with all the details, pictures and personal tales of your intrigues. Thanks for that. Now that you have such a short time left, I’ll bet that you’re trying to see all the sights you can. We read with relish your blog about almost making it home and were disappointed for you. That must have been a mission of mercy though. Lots of rain in the valley here, too, with it being the greenest we’ve ever seen. The frogs are wearing swim fins, but the lush wildflowers and high grasses are exquisite. Miss you both. All our best to you two world travelers. Keep safe and enjoy each experience.