Heinzelmann Truck Adventures

Leaving Cape Maclear for Kande Beach Lodge, stopping along the way in Salima, a small town 20km from the lake, we needed to stock up on the usual and fill up with fuel but to our disappointment we arrived there only to discover that all shops were closed. The country was celebrating a public holiday, Mothers Day ! The friendly petrol attendant directed us to a small but well stocked store and soon with provisions in hand we were on our way. Diana from Eagles Nest made us promise not to drive past a little café nearby Salima but to stop for a ice cream, as according to her it will the best we will ever have, and it was too.

The drive further on was hard and strenuous as the edge of the tar was eroded away to half the width in most places. You share what remains of the road, potholes added with oncoming traffic and bicycle taxis in both directions. The bicycle taxis provide a very necessary way of transporting people, sometimes two to a backseat, maize, charcoal, doors, roof sheeting, piles of wood, the odd goat or pig tied tightly to a plank between villages and towns. As the day was getting on we decided to find a place to sleep sooner than our planned destination and two signboards directed us to the most magnificent lodges not far from each other. The one promised such wonderful amenities that no traveller could possibly turn away from. Without hesitation Max turned Bhejane in the direction of Mlambe  Beach Lodge. In only a few hundred metres we found ourselves on a very narrow, bumpy road , but with such inviting accommodation and meals promised we brushed it off as just a way to greater things awaiting us. The road got increasingly narrower and we barely made it across the bridge but seeing the inviting and friendly smile of the security guard we were filled with even greater expectations.

The view of the beach was the most impressive ever. The person that waited at reception greeted us in a most friendly manner but we had to remain in the car park for the night due to the gate not possibly being wide enough for Bhejane to get through. Max was of the opinion that Bhejane would get through and walked to find a good spot with a view of the lake and beach. Max returned with a spot to park in mind and proceeded to point Bhejane in the direction of the narrow gate. Bhejane sounded just as eager as her driver and his passenger. Since Max’s unfortunate electrical encounter at Chipata Zambia  seems even more of a daredevil and this gate seems to have been ordered for him and Bhejane. Wilma and the receptionists warnings that maybe it was not such a good idea, and NO she was not going to fit, did more to encourage than to dissuade. With the determination of a warrior past he flapped the side mirrors flat against the truck body and heaved Bhejane  forward inch by inch. Building work it seems, as we know in these places does not necessarily happen according to the book and the ground,well, that too was not so level either. Halfway through and like a wounded soldier the column just collapsed and soon after the other side column came tumbling down. But the upside of all this! We were through and found the best spot in full view of the beach and lake. After apologizing for the big mishap and promising to make good we ordered dinner at the restaurant.

It was quick to set up camp that afternoon, quicker than normal and not a word was exchanged. When time for dinner the stroll to the restaurant revealed yet another surprise. The restaurant entrance had almost disappeared behind a sand dune and the person from the reception was also the cook. The only item on the menu was fish and chips and by now the pesky insects have also made their appearance and we had to move our table onto the beach to escape their attack.

Later, much later we saw the funny side of this, but was less amused about dinner and the state of the ablutions. The cook even offered the lodge to us for sale. The next morning early the receptionist/cook/negotiator brought us the bill for damages to their property. After negotiations complete and settled we were off and happy to put Mlambe Lodge behind us.

Back on the road to Kande Beach and there is still 5 hours of the same tuff road ahead. Kande Beach Resort  is one of the most popular stops-offs for overland trucks around the lake. It has easy access and high trees, so this time there is no fear to bring down any columns. The Lodge was buzzing with visitors and locals as the 15th and 16th were public holidays. The bar is a popular hangout for locals and the TV provided ample entertainment for soccer lovers during the day. We arrived well in advance of the quarter final rugby world cup matches on Saturday and Sunday. Max had to continually get confirmation that they would switch over to the rugby as most people were soccer supporters. During the SA/Wales quarter final we were the only SA  supporters amongst a large contingent of Wales supporters. Needless to say we were more than relieved and proud with the outcome of the match. The days were extremely hot with not a breath of wind blowing at all day or  night. Our stay at Kande Beach was most pleasant but very busy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We entered Malawi on the 8th October 2015 and without any drama headed straight for Lilongwe Golf Club on recommendation of fellow travellers. The campsite was very basic but offered what we needed with a guard on duty during the night.The next day we did the necessary shopping , stocked up on fuel, airtime etc. and seeing that it was Friday night we thought that it was time for socializing and joined the locals at the club. It was surprising to see how many people came to enjoy the music provided by a local band that was a regular feature every Friday night. We enjoyed dinner, drinks, good music and chatter with the locals and a good time was had by all. The next day we packed up early and moved as there was a soccer match being played and a wedding ceremony later in the day. The road to the campsite is shared by both soccer field and wedding venue and we feared that we could get parked in for the rest of the day and most probably the night.

We drove through town and our destination was Cape Maclear some 260km further on lake Malawi to Chembe which was nicknamed Cape Maclear by Dr David Livingstone in honour of  a friend in 1861. Cape Maclear is a fishing village and Chembe Eagles Nest Lodge sits on the far northern end of Cape Maclear beach. In order to get to the lodge you have to snake your way through the narrow village streets where all the goods and stalls have been put out on display for the days business.The lodge sits on an idyllic spot on a beautiful stretch of beach with shaded trees.

The campsite at Eagles Nest is situated on a spot higher than the lodge. Max had to engage 4 wheel drive  to get over the rocks and a steep hill to where we would park for our stay but like before Bhejane did not disappoint. The view was not so great from our end of the campsite but with this size vehicle it is not easy to always find the ideal spot.

The newly appointed managing team Gordon and wife Diana who arrived just three days before our arrival at the lodge had many new plans and ideas for the future. Diana did her best to supply us with contacts and information for our trip further up the lake. We experienced our first freshwater Scuba dive ever with Fred the D.M. with a diving concern in the village. It was not a such great experience as the visibility was between 5 to 6 metres but diving always remains a fun experience for us and this time was no exception. We explored the village and surrounds on our scooter through thick sand and dirt roads. It provided much amusement to the village children and later decided to abandon the excursion in fear of making utter fools of ourselves if the bike and us should not stay on  track.

The Highlight for us was the Rugby and SA beating their opponents and meeting young Ryan from Cape Town who chatted so excitedly about the SA team and who he thought should and should not be playing, reminding us of our own grandsons back home in SA and feeling so terribly homesick.

The downside was swarms of small insects appearing from nowhere that forces you to abandon all activities at night and sit in total darkness as these little pests are attracted to the light. All in all our stay at Cape Maclear was a most pleasant one.

We drove from Chipata to South Luagwa Game Reserve and booked in to the Wildlife Camp outside the park. Most travellers recommend that one should stay outside the park and take daily game drives due to the high fees charged to stay inside the park. This was good advice. The park is about 9000 km2 so self driving would be a tedious task especially with a vehicle of our size.

The campsite was very basic but the game drives were exceptional. We saw many animals like Lion, Elephant,Leopard, Buffalo, all the buck species in that area, an abundance of birds including the crowned blue crane. The highlight was an evening drive with a leopard kill on an impala and hyenas finishing off the remains.

We travelled back to Chipata and stayed at Mama Rulas where Max got electrocuted once again connecting the Electrical supply to the camper even after they confirmed that the problem had been rectified. Max went flying once again and landed on his back proving that one does not need Red Bull to Fly.

We drove from Livingstone and our destination was Lusaka the capital of Zambia. The trip was too far for one day so we decided to do this leg in 2 days and stayed over at a campsite about half way called Moorings. Moorings is a working farm with mainly pigs but also grain and cattle and then has this makeshift campsite that is very basic but safe. Lusaka is a typical large African city with the usual major traffic problems. We camped at Eureka Camping Park situated just 12 km from the city centre which is truly a park with Zebra and giraffe just a few metres from the main road. We met Wayne Wiid for drinks which is a friend originally from Nelspruit working in Lusaka for the past two years. The next evening we went for a fabulous dinner with Wayne and his wife An-Marie. Its truly great to have someone living in a city and knowing the best places to have a meal.

We left Lusaka destination South Luangwa Game Reserve. The road out of Lusaka can only be described as ones worst nightmare. With regular power outages throughout the day it can take up to 35 minutes to drive just a few blocks which is the distance between one and the next traffic circle. Traffic around the circles result in utter chaos and traffic officials can do little to improve the situation.Finally after3 hours we could swing Bhejane’s nose east towards Chipata. The road was under construction and was very bad with long detours and it took 8 hours to do 250 km. We camped at Bridgecamp which was still 350 km from Chipata our destination before driving to South Luangwa Game Reserve. The next day we arrived at Chipata and booked into a Campsite called Mama Rulas just before the SA/Samoa rugby game. Max plugged in the Electrical connection into the lodge supply and when he  stood barefoot on the step entering the  campervan as the camper is a no shoe zone, he received a terrible electrical shock which sent him flying away from the vehicle for a good few metres. Wilma got the fright of her life but got Max up and dusted like they do during Rugby matches put his shoes back on, reported the problem to management and discovered that the barman also experiences the same when handling the fridges.

While watching the SA rugby match at Mama Rulas we started chatting with people around us and introduced ourselves to a “young” lady aged 74, Diana from London. Diana had a tiny yellow 1300cc vehicle shipped to Cape Town and is driving solo back through Africa to London with no real plan but will work it out as she goes along. We have met up with many travellers doing what we do but she is definitely the most inspiring so far.

 

 

 

 

 

We left Shackeltons at about 11h00 and said our goodbyes to our now good friends Dave and Tammy.We also had the privilege to meet the owner Harold. We did the 150 km of terrible potholed road to Livingstone and booked in at the Maramba River Lodge.The lodge campsite was basic but the tented camp and chalets was reasonable.Here however both of us was down with the most unpleasant attack of travellers tummy that you can imagine and for 3 days first Wilma and then Max did the  trip to the ablutions and back. It is a rather scary situation when Elephant and Hippo share the same Bush with you at night in total darkness.The lodge borders on the Mosi-oa -Tunya National Park. Between the lodge and park runs a river which during the dry winter is very low and Elephant and hippo move across into the campsite on a regular basis.Sadly the river  is totally covered with water Hyacinth and on enquiring from staff it seemed that not much is being done about the problem.

We always make sure that the necessary meds are in our first aid kit for situations like this and soon both of us were up and running again to enjoy all that Zambia has to offer.

Zambia the country that is called the land of natural delights and man made wonders.The Victoria falls is 7 km from the lodge and we visited the majestic falls on our motorbike when we were still feeling rather wobbly in the knees from the tum ordeal.

Rugby at the Zambezi Sun Hotel and a booze cruse on the Zambezi river put an end to all the nasties.

 

Due to Maxes dizziness and some business matters we decided to fly back to SA. Dave from Shackeltons kindly organised a lift to Livingstone for us for, our flight back to SA. We flew back to SA on 4th September 2015 and returned on the 21st September 2015.

We drove about 300km to Rundu and after having Maxes blood pressure taken at a clinic at Rundu we booked into the Sarasunga River Lodge and campsite on the banks of the Kavango river which is well situated on the river with a bar, restaurant  pool and each camp site has its own toilet.

The next day we drove a short distance to the gate of the Caprivi Game Reserve and took a right to the so called Popa falls which is more of a cascade than a waterfall but still a pretty site. We then booked in to the Ngepi camp which is also on the Kavango river and has a bar and Restaurant. We stayed 2 nights and must admit that we enjoyed the open air showers.

The next day we drove across a big, strong bridge that crosses the Kavango river and into the caprivi strip and after 185 km was stopped at a roadblock and for the very first time in Namibia was asked for proof of our road toll tax. We drove on to Katima Malilo and booked into the Namwi Lodge and campsite on the banks of the Zambezi river. We stayed at Namwi for 2 nights. Max was still dizzy and we decided to fly back to SA to have it checked out.

The next day we crossed the border into Zambia without any difficulty and drove to Shackeltons Fishing Lodge owned by Harold and Cherie and met the very friendly managing couple Dave and Tammy.Bhejane was stored at Shackeltons thanks to Harold for our short visit back to SA.

We arrived at Otjiwarongo at 10h00 and phoned Joseph at Northern Auto Services.We explained our predicament and he proceeded to remove and dismantle the whole damaged ” Rolebar ” with his team and started welding every conceivable section that could break as well as the parts that  were broken. The whole job took 6 hours to complete and when asking what the cost would be he replied ” NO COST “. We were astounded and on our insistence he allowed us to pay each labourer a small token of appreciation. The Namibian people are fabulous.

We slept the night at a terrible campsite in Ondangwa but was in bed at 20h00. We drove 350km and with some difficulty found the only campsite in the area at a lodge that was in the process of being built on the Kavango river with the most spectacular views we have seen on this trip so far. Max started feeling lightheaded when bending down and getting up which was very concerning.

 

We drove from Namutoni in Etosha to Otjiwarongo and then 70 km further to Okahoa. It was getting late and an unexpected signpost directed us to a National Heritage Site with camping facilities, a museum, a restaurant, bar and a 10m2 swimming pool. The camp site was situated in the middle of a township and was not bigger than 4 times the size of our truck with a baobab tree taking up half the space. The facilities were clean and had a 24 hour security guard. The history behind the Heritage site dates back to the SA/ SWAPO war where people were tortured under the baobab tree.

We were awake very early the next morning due to the many roosters around the campsite. We then tackled the notorious road to Epopa falls. 180 km of sweat, gravel, detours,corregations and dust,dust,dust took us 6 gruelling hours.

We stayed one night at the Amarunga lodge and two nights at the Epopa campsite where we had a very nice site on the Kunene River. The river was very low and the falls were more of a cascade but still impressive. While packing up to leave a few drops of rain fell that changed the chalky landscape into the most unexpected colourful scenery but lasted only a few minutes and when the sun came out everything changed to white dust again.On our trip back we met two motorcyclists on their way to Epopa and by chance found out that Braam lived in Otjiwarongo. We asked where we could get some welding repair work done to our vehicle and he replied that it could be done at his workshop and we should just ask for his brother Joseph. We drove to Okahoa and slept at the National Heritage campsite once again.

Max insists on asking fellow travellers and locals the conditions of the road, and more often than not their response will be OKAY or GOOD but, somehow the OKAY and GOOD turned out to be the most terrible conditions imaginable. We found ourselves crawling along at 20km an hour. Etosha consists of 3 main camps namely Okaukuejo to the west Halali in the centre and Namutoni to the East.

We spent the next 4 days travelling through the park stopping at waterholes and spending our nights camping at all 3 camps. At Okaukuejo camp the waterhole with Black Rhino, Giraffe and Jackal was certainly a highlight. There is a superb viewing point from the hill in Halali camp at Moringa waterhole where we were saw by Gemsbok, Blackfaced Impala and another Black Rhino. On our drive to Namutoni at Goas water point we were entertained by a herd of about 50 Elephant. Just before entering the camp we spotted 3 Lion at  Fishers Pan. As in the past we don’t leave without connecting with fellow travellers and in this case it was the Krause family from Nuremburg , Gary and Maryke from Focus-for-Africa and Brenda and Peter that certainly made a lasting impression.

We depart from Etosha satisfied, we certainly had a great experience but the road was not OKAY and the amount of dust this time of the year is just too impossible to describe.