After some drama with locking the laundry, we finally got away from home at 10h00. The cats were dropped off at Angels and we drove to the optometrist to collect Stephen’s much needed new glasses. He was very relieved when Pierre phoned him to let him know his glasses were ready. His old ones would never last on the coming trip! By 11h00 we were on our way past Uitenhage. It was a coo land overcast day and perfect for driving. We stopped a the Wildstal Magoyi for coffee and bought some dry sausage for padkos. There were lots of animals alongside the road. Notably, the warthog population was becoming more visible with each trip. A huge kudu bull showed himself and there were some springbok grazing in the dry veld. There were also a few huge flocks of blue crane near Wolwefontein and plenty of monkeys. Cockscomb loomed in the distance over the dry plains. Some Witgat Trees (Boscia) tried to give a semblance of greenery in the desiccated landscape. We stopped a the revamped Noorsveld Padstal which now had a smart service station attached to it. Strangely, not much had changed inside the shop. We came across a thought provoking sight. An old windpump (good old time green energy) was standing across from a modern electric car charging system. To complete the irony, a rusted old timer stood between these two innovations from different eras and it was almost as if this old car was shaking its head!! What next! Stephen also had a good look at the old vehicles at the other side of the parking area. He later identified one as a 1949 International workhorse! A little black and white cat completed the picture. Most aloes around Jansenville had finished flowering, but it was evident that many were succumbing to the drought. A few coral aloes were still giving us a show. We decided to push for reaching Sandriver Farm campsite just outside Carnarvon and we made few quick leg stretching stops along the way. The roads were very quiet and there were virtually no trucks the way. Even Graaff-Reinet seemed deserted. It was fun driving up the Ouberg Pass again and passing Murraysburg, where we enjoyed the minicamp just a few weeks ago. Now we recognized Spitsberg, Kruger’s Kop and Meelberg in the distance. The dams here were full of water and the landscape now looked so much more pleasant. The sky was deep blue and we were playing Laurika Rauch’s “Stuur groete aan Mannetjies Roux” as we passed through Victoria West. The disrupted roadworks from our previous trip had been completed. Thank goodness. We realized that it would be pushing it to get to Carnarvon and I found a good sounding campsite in Loxton on the IOverlander app. Pear Tree camp is in town and a very good choice, since we had our own facilities and we were also the only occupants. The owner was busy establishing the camp ground and he was also the owner of the well known art gallery in Loxton. We enjoyed a home prepared meal and then went for a walk through the quiet streets of Loxton. We did not encounter a soul. Not even barking dogs. Just a very cuddly cat in front of the Vleisboere Ko-operasie. One cannot go for a walk in Loxton without doing the circle around the lovely old church. The Rooi Granaat coffee shop was being renovated and a new one had sprung up. A spotted eagle owl was calling. We were wondering whether we had seen more than 50 cars in the 524km we had covered today! The Vodacom signal had fallen away and we were off line! Only much later the Vodacom signal came back and we could let Penny know that we were fine and also communicate with Paul and Petra. It had been a very relaxed and enjoyable first day of travel. We tucked in under both our sleeping bags and mohair blanket. The temperature was dropping! PS I had been to Loxton several times on my tours and I was quite familiar with the little town, but this was Stephen’s second visit.

Geschreven door Leartravels