Truck life ...
Trip Start
Dec 17, 2007
1
8
26
Trip End
Jan 19, 2008
Maun,
Botswana
Friday, December 28, 2007
Truck Life...
Keywords - Long Drive from Chobe 600Km, Kalahari, The Elephant who thinks he's a mouse, road kill with a difference
Bugger all!!
The next day is another early rise at 6am but this is no a game drive but rather a long leg of 600KM to Maun and the Okovango delta ... These days are is something of a necessary evil ... but this gives me a chance to talk a little about Truck Life ... perhaps making a comparison with the Patagonian overland experience with Kumuka ...
Overland trucking has its good and bad points ..
Truck Life1
. it is a little like being in yet another reality show on Channel 4 ... you half expect some twit of a washed out TV wannabe to turn up to evict you at any moment as millions of bored lifeless individuals look on and pass judgement from their sad sofas ... it is intense also ... on this trip we have 11 passengers, 1 guide, 1 driver and 1 cook ... you spend what seems like every waking hour in the presence of these people and over the period of our month's journey we will have spent perhaps more time in each other's presence then one would spend hanging out with our best of friends over a matter of many years ... so it is imperative you do your best to get along ... you need to understand that much of your heart and sole is often bared naked for all to view as they see you warts and all ... good and bad ... So far this group has a nice dynamic and the newbies blend well with the original crew ... but it is not without the occasional bump ... this is only human nature ... we have come through some tests together also with sickness, dislocated arms (see New Years eve), broken down trucks, flat batteries (try push starting a 19 Ton truck in 35C humidity surrounded by wild elephants for example) ... and more ...
On long drives the ritual on this truck is everyone gets within themselves and much time is spent sleeping, reading, listening to music on a walkman or eating snack food ... there is some conversation but not a whole lot really ... when I think of the comparison to our Patagonian adventure with Kumuka a few years back there are marked differences ... in that trip we were in the same space with 24 passengers, 1 guide, 1 trainee guide, 1 driver ... long drives on this trip had a more lively feel with card games and laughter more common ..
Truck Life2
. though we did have our down days here also ... Lunch on drive days involves a picnic like affair where we pull up under the shade of a tree (if there is one!) by the side of the road ... set up tables and feast on Ham and Cheese sandwiches, Salad and the remains of last night's feast ...
We stop for three reasons mostly - pee stops, shopping for food and snacks at a Shoprite or Spar and breakdowns (we have had a few... but Wil our driver has coped well with Benjis many foibles ...
On arrival we get a quick briefing from Jacques our guide before the ritual of tenting begins ... the tents are spacious and, with the exception of my ancient heavy crew tent, relatively new ...
Cleanliness and Hygiene are important and observed by all ... we wash and sterilise all the time ... when we can ... but the dirt gets everywhere and you often can't avoid looking scruffy and, in the heat, smelling pretty high ... there are some days when you'd wonder why you put on a clean clothing item when 1 hour after showering it feel like it has been worn for days ... getting clothes clean is difficult to say the least ... often the best you can hope for is to get rid of most of the smell ... it sounds more horrible than it really is and you get used to it ... we may look a little scruffy ... even a bit like new age hippies ... but we are disciplined about cleanliness generally ...
There is a work element to this trip with a roster of four/five duties - Washing dishes (least popular ..
Truck Life3
. especially on nights when Joe uses a lot of pots), PC priority (to back up any memory cards you have), Truck cleaning (passenger area only), cooking (helping Joe as his commie chefs ... this is most popular as it gives you a chance to have more say in what is eaten) and finally days off, not so much a duty but a reward!! Benji our truck is the best designed for overlanding I've ever seen ... and when I compare to the crowded overlanders I've seen in the heat here I am very content ... You get two sizeable storage lockers, lockable and shared with one other person (since we are not full I have my own private) ... one is at your feet inside the truck and big enough to take quite an awful lot of gear and also contains a small safe for valuables ... the other is in the belly of the beast ... there is a fridge and two cooler boxes inside the truck for drinks and snacks ... each seat has lots of leg room with two fully operable window (essential aircon for hot drive days) ... above your head is a hatch for game viewing ... especially useful when a lot of vehicles crowd around some poor unfortunate animal for viewing ... you can get above the action. The cab is separate but only by a little curtain ... and in the rear is ample storage for food, spares, tables and cooking gear ... for pictures you can google Africa in Focus ...
On this long drive we must cross through dense scrub and forest lands ... elephants or giraffes regularly appear by the side of the road ... at one point we stop to observe what ends up being a rather distressed elephant ... who, upon stopping, comically tried to hide his mass behind a bush and trumpets us ... seeing his obvious discomfort at our presence we quickly move on ... another uses a massive tree to scratch his huge bottom ... in a gesture of defiance to our cameras ... eventually we cross the top of the Kalahari desert ... it is surprisingly fertile in this part of it at least though very arid with sandy rust coloured soil ... and like all deserts it is HOT! ... but at least it is dry :D
We arrive in daylight at our destination - the Audi Campsite at Maun on the edge of the Okovango delta ... Joe cooks dinner while we chill out at the campfire with a few beers and a chat before heading off to bed for the evening ...
