At the moment the world is holdings its breath in anticipation of the corona virus outcome.  So what can you do while under lockdown?

You can be lazy and lie on the couch, watch series and get lazy.  My motto is to tackle only one task that I never get around to do or just always find an excuse for and get it done and dusted, but then thoughts wonder to travelling and I somehow still do not get around to completing my task. 

If you are hungry for a camping trip, but all the campsites are locked for safety reasons the next best thing to do is to unpack and check your camping equipment.  Get the kids involved and pitch the tent, check the zips and window gauze and give it a good waterproof washdown.  Put things aside that needs attention for another day when under lockdown.  Remember the aim is to keep busy!

We take time to plan the details our next off-road trip.  At the moment we are working on a trip to do the Ben 10 in the Eastern Cape mountains.  Hopefully we will be able to accomplish this before the end of the year still. 

While Googling I also discovered some live webcams.  Now I can take my own virtual trip around the world – from Alaska to Zambia. without being exposed to the virus!     Armchair travel at its best!  If you are curious to see what is happening in other parts of the world head over to:   https://www.skylinewebcams.com and https://www.explore.org to watch some wildlife action.

Lockdown also provides me the opportunity to edit pictures and compile some video clips that were pushed to the background for some time now due to other commitments, but now there is no excuse. Ride with us in the clip that we have compiled on the Saasveld Pass in the Garden Route.

And then my all-time favorite is to Google (and drool) about places that I have not been to yet.  The western part of Tanzania with Lake Tanganyika came up the other day when I Googled.  This destination for sure needs to be investigated more for a future trip into Africa ……

You see in the end it is not so bad to have the corona virus around.  It makes you slow down and appreciate what we have to our disposal.  On the flip side it is also really tough to be a travel addict and be restricted to your house, but this will also pass.

All travel plans are on pause, but dreams are on play!

– – – – – – – – – – –

The post UNDER LOCKDOWN DUE TO THE CORONA VIRUS NOW WHAT? appeared first on TRAVELBUCKET.

Let me, as an experienced and seasoned African traveller, give some basic do’s and don’ts when you are out there:

• Zip up your tent – no matter how hot it is in side, zip up for various reasons. It keeps out bugs, mosquitoes and slithering things like snakes.  A lion will not bother you in your tent.  They do not realise that they can rip open the canvas with a quick stroke of the paw and no, an elephant will not trip over your tent.  Elephants are amazingly gracious when they walk.
• When you go to bed stow all food (and garbage) either in your tent or vehicle. Inquisitive animals like hyenas, jackal, etcetera will come and have a look what is there to taste.
• Do not wander off in the dark and outside the light of the fire. There are creatures watching you that you do not even know of.  If  you do have to go for a nightly routine walk let somebody go with you with a torch and keep close to your tent.  Night animals have keen eyesight and spot you long before you even notice them, so take care.
• Be extremely vigilant when vervet monkeys and baboons are around. They are very quick and will grab your food before you know it.  Do not challenge a baboon, if this does happen they can be dangerous.  Rather back off.

• Mana Pools is famous for its “dagga boys” (i.e. a lone stray buffalo) that venture into camp even in day times. Be on the look out and try to avoid them totally.
• A rather difficult one to do is if you have an encounter with a lion or elephant – DO NOT RUN!   I say again – DO NOT RUN!  Your instinct will tell you to get out of the way, but stay put, stand very still .
• At rivers and dams be on the lookout for crocodiles that lurk in the muddy waters especially on the banks when you approach.  Also keep an eye out for paths that animals (i.e. hippopotamus) use that lead to the water. A hippo looks clumsy, but they are not.
• Do not misjudge the small animals as they can bite you and there is a possibility that they carry rabies. Rabies are fatal.  Wild animals that are prone to rabies are:  monkeys, mongoose, meerkat, jackals.

Remember that you are in the wild and wild animals can be unpredictable and “a lot” quicker than you think.  Do not party – alcohol impair your judgment towards wild animals and may land you in unexpected trouble.

—oOO—

“You have to look after wealth, but knowledge looks after you. — Zambian Proverb”

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I prefer to travel as light as possible and keep the kitchen equipment/ utensils to the minimum.  Fancy cooking is something that I will attempt when I am at home with all the crockery and cutlery at hand.  After all, this is why we come to the bush – to get back to basics again and appreciate nature.  I can proudly say that I have had a braai in countries like Botswana, Lesotho, Namibia, Tanzania, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, Sierra Leone, the Ivory Coast and Zambia!

When camping there are basically two ways to cook – either with a gas cooker or over the open fire.  We make a fire every night when camping so that is the obvious choice for us when we travel in Africa.  You will find wood or charcoal almost everywhere in Africa as it is an integral part of rural living on the continent.

There are various ways and methods to braai as this is second nature for us South African.  Read more on this topic in my post a  “Braai – a way of life”.

When we come to potjiekos which is made in a cast iron pot (three-legged or flat bottomed) over flames and not coals like when you are braaiing.  I prefer the flat-bottomed pot as my dish normally burns in the three-legged one.  I do not know what I am doing wrong!

When making potjie your choices of meat are endless – venison, beef, lamb, chicken, etcetera.  I even make a kick-ass lasagne potjie.  The best thing about a potjie is that you can add what you can find on the local markets.  In our case this mainly determines what type of potjie we are having that night.  (I will post on how to buy food on the local markets in a separate post).  However, I prefer to make a potjie when we are making camp for more than two days at a place, especially if you arrive late, there is not always enough time to make the potjie as it requires simmering over the fire.

A potjie is a good alternative to a braai as quality meat can at times be hard to find in Africa.  I am pretty sure that we had donkey tails once (sold as ox tail) in Choma, Zambia, but we survived that too!  When you are hungry and there are not a lot of options available, you just give it and go ….

My flat bottomed potjie also serves as an oven in which I bake bread.

Buy food that will last in the African heat.  Refrigerator space is always limited.  Butternuts (hard to find in Africa), gems and potatoes, onions and cabbage can take you a long way and sometimes it is the only vegetables that you will source for a couple of days.  So you need to be innovative with your recipes.  Aluminum foil comes in handy when doing vegetables over the fire.

I also take some dry rations such as pasta and couscous for emergencies – you never know what can happen in the African bush.  Rusks and coffee is also a quick breakfast fix when you have limited options in the bush.  Eggs are always problematic to pack and keep them whole, so I only buy it when I am pretty sure that it will be used the same day – boiled for lunch later or scrambled for breakfast.

Share your cooking experience in the commentary section of the post.  It may be useful to some newbie camper that is unfamiliar with local customs and conditions.

–oOo–

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If you like your own company and have some travel savvy then going solo is for you.  Going solo gives you freedom of choice and total independence to change your travel plans on the spur of the moment if something interests you on the wayside.

Things that you need to consider when planning your next solo African trip are the following.

You will need the ability to navigate.  There are not many countries left on mother earth that is unexplored, thus you will need a basic ability to navigate as there can be hundreds of tracks and footpaths not necessarily indicated on maps.  You must be able to understand and read maps whether it is a paper issue or a digital issue.  Sometimes you need to trust your instinct and basic sense of direction to find your way.

So you own a GPS, but do you know all the functions of your GPS, such as marking waypoints that you can return to later?  This can be of great value when bush camping as you need to mark a nice camping spot early in the afternoon but need to return to it later in the evening after dark when things have quietened down.

A reliable vehicle is not even questionable and some bush mechanics can take you a long, long way as everything is not always available in remote areas.  Even if you can phone somebody on your satellite phone it may take days or weeks for a specific part to arrive.

You will need a willingness to interact with the local people to ask directions or permission to camp or even buy some firewood.  If there is a village around do the decent thing and ask permission from the headman to camp there for the night.  They may even provide some security to you as a sign of respect.

Can you adapt and react to changing situations such as hazardous roads,  political climate, etc or are you set in your ways and love your comfort zone?  If you love your comfort zone you need to reconsider the urge of going solo.

The bottom line, and I think the most important aspect, that you must ask yourself is if you are prepared to rough it at times and skip a shower (or maybe two) to experience the joy that wild camping can offer?

Wanderlust: === the desire and irresistible urge to travel

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At Kalizo on the banks of the mighty Zambezi river

Now there are no ”official” rules for having a braai.  The people of the Rainbow Nation each has his/her own preference on the when, how and what to braai.  Some of us like to have a basic fire place where you can sit as close as possible to the fire when it is cold – and do not mind smelling like smoke – and some of us like to do a classy braai in a build-in fireplace inside the house or on the stoep.  For most of my fellow citizens a braai is not about grilling the meat on a gas barbeque.

Lighting the fire in the Klein Karoo

First of all, the choice of firewood has to be sorted.  If you come from the Winelands you will probably prefer old grape vines, but if you are from the maize producing areas you may prefer to build your fire from maize cobs.  A popular wood, which is also freely available, is the alien Black Wattle and Rooikrantz or the option of charcoal.  It is all about taking time to sit around the fire and chat while you wait for the coals to get ready.  As a guest, it is very important to remember that the host is the one who starts the fire and will decide when it is ready for the meat to go on the fire!

Preparing a meal in Northern Kenya

The host will stipulate beforehand whether it is a “bring and braai” or not, but this is not always the case.  You will be notified if you will have to bring your own meat and/or salad, etc.  Remember that you are only allowed to braai your own meat if you are told so.   So, listen carefully!!

What do we like to braai?  Our creative nation loves our meat – anything from red meat, chicken, sausages, sosaties, fish or a braai pie.  We are always ready to try our hand at something new!  And with your choice of meat you will be served braai broodjies or garlic bread or pap en sous and a salad ….. or just meat!

Making a breakfast plan in Mozambique

A braai in South Africa is a social event, most public places have braais available.  In a campsite, you will have braai stands, but mostly each campsite will have an individual braai place.  Apart from braai we love to travel and if you do self catering accommodation the chances are excellent that you will have access to a braai space. And when on holiday, South Africans will braai.

Even in the Sudan we managed to find some wood in the desert

We even made a plan on Christmas eve in Sudan where wood is really a problem to find.  As you can see from the pictures you make do with what you have, as long as we can braai and enjoy some good company.

Do we only braai on National Braai Day?  No!  The Rainbow Nation will always look for an excuse to enjoy their favourite pastime any day of the week and regardless of the weather conditions.  The braai rules are actually very simple:  make your choice of meat and wood and braai regardless the weather!

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• Which border post? In all our years of travel we found that it is much easier to enter/exit at smaller border posts.  At the bigger border posts, the officials are sometimes tired and irritated and will take their time to work through the processes.  Our experience is at the smaller posts they are friendlier and welcome a chat while doing their work.
• When? Try to avoid peak times, if possible, like month end, late Friday afternoon or popular public holidays like Easter.  Everybody is in a hurry and the queues are longer, the tempers flare quicker and willingness is shorter.
• Be positive! No matter how frustrated you get, try to smile and be friendly.  They are only doing their job.  A positive attitude goes a long, long way.
• Take your own pen. Pens are rarely supplied at most border posts. If you have your own, you can get a jump in the queue while filling out the form.
• Keep it simple. A clear plastic folder works wonders to keep all the documents together.
• Step out of your vehicle. When you get swamped by all the touts, step out of your vehicle, pick one, and tell him that you will contract him if he makes sure all the other touts disappear, agree on a price beforehand to go with you to customs, immigration, third party, police clearance and sometimes the health department.  In some places, the third party office can be a container hidden behind other buildings and difficult to find.  Keep a watchful eye here on your tout!
• Keep your eyes on your stuff. Even though the border officials may be above board, opportunistic thieves and pickpockets spot you long before you spot them. Make sure your vehicle is locked.  We have a standard habit of one of us stay at the vehicle while the other do the paperwork and then rotate if necessary.  Rather be safe than spoiling your trip from the word go.
• Money matters. Know the current Rand // USD exchange rate before you arrive at the border. There are APPS available for this purpose or phone a friend if needs be.   If possible, use local currency and give exact  It is easy to “not have change” available and is sometimes a standard answer (and can be very profitable)
• Never flash the amount of money you have on you – be discreet.    If you need to change money at the border, count it slowly and make sure you received the right amount.  There are “experts” out there with very swift hands.   We rather exchange Rand // USD before we leave home to avoid the risk of using money changers.
• Some borders do take bank cards, but on the other hand this is a great way to get your bank card cloned. Officials are not always willing to offer a card machine due to the “not have change” rule.  As in many situations – use your discretion!
• Check the stamp. Before you leave the counter make sure that the date stamps are correct.  You won’t be able to change anything easily once you leave.
• Obey the rules of the road. The areas around border crossings are particularly happy hunting grounds for traffic police.   Remember to stop at stop signs and stop behind the line even though they eagerly wave at you to come forward.
• Remember that as soon as you cross into another country you are on roaming charges for your cell phone.  If you plan to phone a lot rather buy a local SIM card – it is a lot cheaper.

Do you have any questions?  We will gladly give advice if you ask the question.

—oOo—

This is Part III in the series of articles.  Remember to read Parts I and II as well.

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The sound of an African wild dog will send shivers down your spine if you hear it for the first time.  One of it’s most striking features is it’s very large round ears. The ears are not only perfect for hearing calls over large distances but are also important for heat loss to regulate their body’s temperature.  They are very efficient and agile hunters capable of reaching speeds of up to 55km/h.  So watch out for them!

Like the African civet, each of these dogs has a unique coat but they also stand out because of their interesting toes. While all other canid species have five toes, the African wild dog only has four.

Bucket list:  Ticked 

Status at the moment:   Endangered (estimated 5 500 left on the content)

ooOoo

AFRICAN CIVET

These beautiful creatures are nocturnal and you have an off chance that you will spot one once in a life time.  Going around a lot of national parks it was only the second time that I was fortunate enough to witness one.  This beautiful animal will rock up at your camp without you even knowing it as they are masters of stealth.

Each African civet has a different pattern of brown and black spots on their coat. This colour combination provides excellent camouflage in the forest.  Their natural habitat is becoming more and more under threat, because of expanding farming activities, but luckily they are very adaptable creatures and are not on the endangered list for the moment.

Bucket list:  Ticked 

Status at the moment:  Least Concerned

ooOoo

ZANZIBAR RED COLOBUS MONKEY 

 As its alternative common name of ‘Zanzibar colobus’ suggests, Kirk’s red colobus is found on the island of Zanzibar. Its population is worryingly small today and it is estimated that as few as 1,000 to 1,200 individuals persist, mainly within the Jozani Forest Reserve. A small number of individuals also live on nearby Pemba Island, in the Ngezi Forest Reserve.

I was astounded as to how tame these primates in the Jozani forest are when we went on a walking safari.  Some of them came as close as one meter from where I was standing, sitting down and foraging in the leaf carpet for some food.  For me this was a special experience!

Bucket list:  Ticked 

Status at the moment:  Endangered

ooOoo

KUDU

A kudu might look big and clumsy but they are actually swift and excellent jumpers. To clear a fence of 2m (6.6ft) high is nothing out of the ordinary.  They are also responsible for many accidents at night in the Karoo area of South Africa.  So be on the look out for them at night.

They have long necks that they use to reach food on high branches. The only other animal that beats them on their impressive reach is the giraffe.

The meat of the Kudu, having a coarse grain, can easily be mistaken for beef.

Bucket list:  Ticked 

Status at the moment:  Of least concern

ooOoo

WILDEBEEST OR GNU

There are two species – blue and black – and another species that are only found on the African continent.   The black wildebeest has a lovely white tale, almost horse like, and the blue wildebeest has an all black tale. These strange looking (somewhat ugly) animals are already extinct in Malawi, but was reintroduced successfully in Namibia again.

The blue wildebeest is best known for the yearly migration that takes place in the Serengeti.  The Great Migration sees over 1.5 million wildebeest, 200,00 zebra and a host of other antelope traveling cross country.  During the migration period around 250 000 wildebeest and 30 000 zebra are killed off every year as a result of predation by carnivores, but also from thirst, hunger, and exhaustion.  If they can survive the migration stint they have a life span of up to 20 years!

Bucket list:  Ticked

Status at the moment:  Not threatened

ooOoo

GERENUK

“Look, it’s a deer! It’s a baby giraffe! No, it’s a gerenuk!”  This is about the best description for a gerenuk that I have stumbled upon.

This strange deer is related to the gazelle, but only differences between the gerenuk and the gazelle is that gerenuks have a more solid skull and an elongated neck.  The elongated neck is definitely the gerenuk’s most outstanding characteristic.

The name ‘gerenuk’ means ‘giraffe necked’ in the Somali language and is also known as ‘Wallers Gazelle’.

We were fortunate enough to spot these rare animals on the horizon while crossing the Chalbi desert in Northern Kenya.  The image, which was taken with my mik en druk,  while driving, is a bit blurry, but this is my proof that I have seen three of them!

Bucket list:  Ticked 

Status at the moment:  Conservation dependant

ooOoo

“You either get the point of Africa or you don’t. What draws me back year after year is that it’s like seeing the world with the lid off.”  — A A Gill

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Where are we going – love the planning stage!

You see this is where the practical me jumps in again.  I like it because:

There is nothing more rewarding when you are planning a trip than to spread out the map on the table and say that is where I want to go.

Yes, yes, I know the GPS shows me where I want to go, but sometimes we get so blinded by tunnel vision  focussing on what the GPS tells us what to do that we do not actually know where we are in the bigger picture.

Driving in town that is fine, you can just replace/recharge the batteries or plug into your car’s power source, but what happens if you are in deepest darkest Africa with no shops around to get the right size of batteries and/or no auto electrician to find the electrical failure and fix the problem while out there?

Seeing the bigger picture – nice!

Theft is a real issue these days in our day to day existence.  You are in Africa and jump out in a small village to buy that cold Coke to quench your thirst, but forget to press that button on the remote ….. Gone is your GPS!

You can even scribble a quick note or telephone number to someone on a piece of your map if needs be!

Ever spared a thought what you will do if you loose that vital satellite signal?  It is unbelievable what a piece of paper in your hand can do towards reassuring you on a remote adventure trip.   In our travels we have learned a few times that the GPS is not always right.

And then there is the me thing.   I do not always want to follow a tinned voice telling me what to do, because

I am me:

I am an individual …

I want to explore more …

I do not always want to follow …

I want to test my own navigational skills …

And what else tells a better story than a well travelled map with pigs ears, creases and plotted routes?

Our well travelled pig eared, coffee stained map from our Sudan trip – such good memories!

Hopefully I have planted a map “seed” while you were reading this.  So go out and buy that map, learn to orientate and read the map – sooner or later you will need that map!  And do not fret, we take our trusted Zumo on all our trips into the unknown.

…. and if you need some assistance in the planning department – I will gladly help!  Just email me.

“This heart of mine was made to travel the world.” – Unknown

IF YOU NEED ASSISTANCE WITH PLANNING ROUTES DROP ME AN E-MAIL

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Fever trees

 My first introduction to Nairobi was, to say the least, very interesting.  The bumper to bumper traffic is nerve wrecking, but my Better Half was not intimidated at all by this as he is used to driving in Khartoum, where he worked, with even worse traffic.  Thumbs up to him!  You really have to have nerves of steel and adapt or die to cope with the aggressive African drive style, but our trustworthy Garmin GPS took us all the way to Upper Hill campsite in the middle of Nairobi without any glitches.

Driving into Nairobi

As I had a “fly in” visa for Sudan (which was pre-arranged before we left home) we set off to the Sudan embassy to change it to a “land” visa as this was one of the last opportunities before entering Sudan.  Arriving at the embassy we are enlightened that the embassy only deals with visas on Tuesdays and Thursdays.  Today is Friday!!  Bummer.   This means I cannot drive all the way with hubby in the bakkie to Sudan.  Plan B needs to kick in now.  So we decide  to get to Addis Ababa and then we will have to make the final decision about the Sudan visa.

For the rest of the day we were on the road and arrived after dark at Mountain Rock Lodge just outside of Nanyuki .  That night at an altitude of 6 420 ft we have our last beer  (aptly named White Cap) in the Southern hemisphere in the foothills of Mount Kenya and  sleep like logs near the equator (S00.06.687, E37.02.464).   Tomorrow will be a big day as we will cross over into the Northern hemisphere.

Proof that we are on the equator in Kenya!

On 22.11.2007 at a height of 6 495 ft and 5 895 km from our home in George I can remove the tag from by travel bucket when we cross the equator.  We pass big commercial farms and get our first glimpse of Mount Kenya with its ice cap.

Mount Kenya

At Isiola we fill up everything with fuel and water before we set out on the infamous road to Marsabit.  Our trusty Hilux was taking a beating on  this stretch.  At the 12 km mark we had our first “incident” when we lost a spot light, at 44 km we lost our rear back shock due to the horrendous road conditions, at 116 km the gas bottle holder on the roofrack breaks and at 206 km the roofrack finally breaks.  We still have quite a bit of road ahead of us.    The “incident” list is getting longer and longer as the driver’s safety belt gets stuck in one position,  I loose the glass on my watch and we almost have no breaks on the Hilux.  After driving 7.5 hours to cover the 250 km we arrive tired in the dustbowl town of Marsabit.

On the road from Isiola to Marsabit

Just a few quick but necessary repairs before we go to bed in a howling wind.  Tomorrow will be another long hot day when crossing the Kaisut desert as we also need to be on the lookout for bandits before we reach Moyale on the Ethiopian border.

We buy fresh bread from the bakery run by a Swiss guy who has been living in Marsabit for the past 30 years  (I can think of a lot of other places I would rather stay!) before we take on another hot day in Africa.  The Kaisut Desert is waiting.

The brakes finally packs up

At the police post at Sololo we were told to take four policemen as escorts to Moyale as we are not traveling in a convey through bandit country.  After much negotiation, and just because there is no space, we are allowed to squeeze in only two guards. I end up on the backseat with a lot of stuff on my lap and hubby and the two guards, with AK47’s, sharing one seat in the front.  It is going to be a long hot and sweaty 130 km to Moyale!   After 8 hours and only covering 250 km we reached the dusty border town of Moyale – and did not see one bandit on the road!

Top speed!

Camping at the Kenya Wildlife Services grounds

After dropping off the guards we located a camping spot in the compound of Kenya Wildlife Services.  We just unpacked the necessary camping gear and then had to deal with a trickling cold shower and a toilet without water.  Tired as hell we went to bed early!

A first visit to Kenya was ticked off from the list!  After this I have made several transfers at Jomo Kenyatta in Nairobi enroute to other wild and wonderful places on the globe.  I will always remember my first Kenyan visit.

CURRENCY NOTE:  The Kenyan shilling is the local currency, but American Dollar is widely accepted especially in touristy places.  At Jomo Kenyatta Airport they accept Euro, Dollar and Kenyan Shilling (KSH/KES) as payment method.

“Time flies. It’s up to you to be the navigator.”
Robert Orben

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