Wednesday 18th February
Went
to bed last night with an electric storm brewing and woke up to
flooding on the plains below. Suspected it might be an interesting ride
for the 14kms back to the main road. When we departed the lodge, it was
raining heavily and after we exited the main gate we were swimming in
mud, literally. Engaged a lower ratio on the gearbox and apart from a
bit of slipping and sliding, we made it to the main road in about 30
minutes.
Thereafter
it was tarred from Olifantshoek to Kathu. A chance conversation with
the manager of the lodge before we departed resulted in getting
information on an auto electrical repair shop he knew of, in Kathu.
There was a small rewiring job required on the EGT gauge we had fitted
before departure. This measures the exhaust gas temperature out of the
engine and gives advance warning of any overheating problems, a problem
this particular model of diesel engine has. At installation it was wired
through the ignition system but as soon as we turned the aircon on, the
EGT gauge switched off.
So,
we either roasted to ensure we didn't overheat the engine or get the
repair job done. We set out for the workshop and quite honestly, you
could have driven around town all day and never have found it but thanks
to Garmin satnav, it took us straight there. They set to work
immediately, rewiring it and also replaced a small unit. It took about
40 minutes and the total cost was R128 ($13). Now it's working
perfectly. Don't you just love Africa when you can get a professional
working on your vehicle for that price.
A
bit of shopping followed in a new shopping mall in town, a quick Wimpey
burger (diet is shot! again!!) and we were on the road to McCarthys
Rest which is the border crossing into Botswana. This section of the
journey was about 200kms and initially we had good tarred roads but then
we had a gravel road again. This lasted for 135 kms. Needless to say,
along the way we encountered yet another breakdown, a young man with a
flat tyre. Seems like we're destined to become the roving tyre repair
men of africa! He did have a spare but what good is that without a jack.
You've got to laugh sometimes so we quickly jacked up his car and had
him on his way in 10 minutes.
The
border post closes at 6pm and although we could have comfortably
reached there in time, it made sense to spend the night in South Africa
(There's that flexibility again). About 8kms before the border we
stopped in at a guest farm called Springbokpan and got ourselves a
lovely little find. Two rooms for R250 each (we're getting a bit better
on the pricing!) and a very hospitable and entertaining lady manager.
She's also providing dinner, game pie with boerwoers and pumpkin, and a
7am breakfast tomorrow morning to set us on our way for a very long
journey across a long stretch of the Kalahari desert.
It
might be a little while before we can post again as I'm unsure of the
internet access along the way. We are using the connection here,
courtesy of Molly, the manager of Springbokpan. Also, apologies for lack
of pictures as yet. Internet connection too slow where we've visited so
far.
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