Page 16 - Cape-Camera-July-August-2021

July/August 2021 Cape Camera

next day and overnight there. We would re-enter South Africa at that time. It was potentially a good place to overnight, but be-
Ramatlabama near Mafekeng and continue to Kimberley for the ing a Saturday, the lockdown regulations also prohibited al-
last night and finally homeward. cohol sales on weekend, and, although we had easily enough
Our first challenge was to get our negative Covid test results booze in the caravan, we could not bring it into the restaurant.
and a Travel certificate, leaving us enough time to cross the bor- So inconvenient!
der at Martins Drift before the expiry date in three days’ time. The next leg of the journey was to Thebe Lodge in Kasane -
We presented ourselves at one of the popup Covid Testing sta- some 768 km away, and so we started out very early. On the
tions first thing in the morning and received our results that way north, after turning right off the A3 at Nata and onto the
same afternoon. This allowed us to leave well before sunrise the A33, we were blessed with numerous elephant and antelope
following morning - full of vim and vigour! sightings. Wow! Perhaps we should have started even earlier
Although we could have easily towed our caravan at a speed of because potholes and traffic slowed us down to the extent that
120 km/h, the higher fuel consumption of about 16.5 l/100km we only arrived after 18h00. Realising that we were going to
in comparison to 12.5 l/100km at 106 km/h, made the latter a be late we called ahead and the reception lady kindly stayed
much more economical option for a trip of some 5 500 km. Yes, on to welcome us and book us in. We had decided to pamper
it would take us longer but we were on holiday, so what’s the ourselves in lodge accommodation in Kasane and to save the
rush? camping for Savute and Moremi, where camping is really fabu-
We had already identified the Renheim Campsite (just north lous, i.e. wild and adventurous. The best I can say about Thebe
River Lodge is that it was clean and the staff wonderful. The
of Bloemfontein) as a potential place to overnight but since rooms were adequate but not particularly luxurious. I had been
we had to travel just over 1 000 km to get there, we thought there a few times in the past but they had moved the restaurant
it prudent to make an enquiry and a reservation only once we and bar to a new position. Although appointed in a suitable
were certain that we would make it. We were lucky and arrived bush-lodge vernacular, it had been moved away from where
late afternoon at this most beautiful campsite on the banks of previously there had been a lovely view of the Chobe River - so
the Modder Revier, where it passes under the most picture- we could have been anywhere. The food was acceptable and
perfect bridge on the N1. Although there was truck-traffic noise although a Sunday, as residents, they were prepared to serve us
throughout the night, it didn’t disturb our wine induced slum- alcohol with our meals. Oh joy!
bers to any unpleasant degree, and we would both camp there
again in a heartbeat, because the campsite was so beautiful.
The next leg was shorter but there was a border crossing with
which to contend so we left before daybreak and arrived just
after lunch at the Grobblersbrug Border post, the South African
side of Martin’s Drift. The emigration formalities on the South
African side were pretty normal, given that we were experi-
encing a pandemic but OMG, the other side was chaos! Their
computers were down and the Semis and trailers were com-
pletely blocking the entrance. Usually pickups and passenger
vehicles have a different and easier path through immigration
and customs. Not on that day. Eventually the mess cleared and
we managed to conclude all the formalities some three hours
later. While waiting, we were entertained by a group of truck Sunset over the Chobe
drivers from all over Africa. The gist of the conversation was -
which country had the most corruptible police force. The DRC The water level of the Chobe River was very high and the river
was awarded that dubious distinction. South Africa rated highly road in the Chobe Reserve was inaccessible in many areas. But it
desirable, while Botswana was adjudged to be the best, as their was still very beautiful and we saw lion, buffalo, elephant, giraffe
traffic police were absolutely incorruptible! and millions of bokkies. André was blown away by the beauty
Fortunately, we had booked camping for the first night in Bot- and the scale of wilderness. I, on the other hand and although
swana at Kwa Nokeng which is on the banks of the Limpopo fully cognisant of all this beauty, was a bit miffed at the scant
River and right alongside the border post, but screened by trees photographic opportunities. However, I did get in a couple of
and bushes and full of signs warning us about the danger of decent buffalo images.
crocodiles and hippos. We were lucky to have chosen to over- The streets of Kasane were teeming with warthog, seen com-
night here because unbeknown to us, the Botswana lockdown ing out at daybreak and going home at sunset. It was a truly
regulations included a curfew, starting at 20h00, and we would astonishing site. I have been to Kasane many times in the past
have been hard pressed to find other accommodation before and warthog sightings were not uncommon, even elephant
in the main road, but I had not been for about five years and
this time the sheer numbers of warthog in the streets was as-
tounding. Perhaps the low volume of visitors during the ongo-
ing pandemic? One evening, while André and I were enjoying a
pre-dinner bottle of wine, a honey badger created quite a stir by
running between patron’s legs, through the dining room, under
our table in the bar and down into the riverine bushes. It never
stopped nor showed any interest in the humans at all. A badger
on a mission - how special was that? By the way, sunsets from
the bar serving the campsite, on and overlooking the river, are
not to be missed, ever... absolutely spectacular! That same night
the curfew was shortened to start from 22h00, which made a
big difference when dining out!
Breakfast on the road

15 Cape Town Photographic Society