The Honey Badger Diaries
The Old And The Nieu Bethesda
Visiting Nieu Bethesda is like visiting a favourite Grandmother. You know their smells, their curves, the colour of their curls. Her soothing voice is constant. Reliable, patient, and her devotion is unconditional. We’ve introduced our friends, shared experiences at dinner parties, and...
Butch’s Request
Hi faithful readers, followers of my blogs or first timers. We need to pick your well travelled, adventurous brains. We are getting excited about our adventure into Africa, which we hope will commence in the next few weeks. One of the things we have picked up in reading various blogs by...
Wild Camping At KaKhulu Karoo
Like everyone else, I love a riddle, or a lekker ou skinder, but this visit left me with more questions than answers. The ninety-minute drive from Graaff Reinet on the Janzenville road was lovely, with breathtaking views of a rugged Karoo landscape carpeted in deep orange. Aloes were in...
Winter Wandering Into The Great Karoo
We picked up sticks and turned our nose northeast to Graaff Reinet. To celebrate the 4th of July, we stopped for tea and cake at Sophie’s Choice, a fascinating coffee shop just south of Willowmore. Quirky is the only word to describe this worthwhile stopover. No one can resist exploring...
Whether we can, Weather we can’t!
Our little holiday depended on weather conditions. Where are the days when we could determine weather conditions by experiencing the day, e.g.putting your head out the door, or feeling inclement weather in your bones,watching a mountaintop being covered by a cloudy cloth used to be a good...
Life After The Great Trek
Our gut is our best indicator of all things good and dire. We have been incredibly fortunate on this journey as all the keys have fallen into place. For us a good indication that we’re on the right track. Anyway, that’s how I see it. This time the dealer is on our side. Exhausted after weeks...
Our Honey Badger Always Has The Last Word
As we all know, Honey Badgers do not take kindly to being ignored. They’re feisty, resilient, and crafty. Only she knows why her nose was put out of joint. It could’ve been the Khoudom corrugations, the tall trees, the narrow roads, or a field mouse that might’ve done the trick. We’ll...
Keeping The Best for Last – Shametu River Lodge and Spa.
Camping on the Kavango River. We were nearing the end of our holiday when we decided to spoil ourselves with a few days of Glamping. Yes, we were going Glamping! We'd laze by the pool and birdwatch while loeries built a nest in a palm tree on the deck overlooking the river, where boats plying...
Yzerfontein Revisited - A Celebration Of Our Freedom
We’ve benefited from a month of short weeks and long weekends. According to someone with limited holiday time, if a worker took leave on the 14th of April, they would use eight days of annual leave but wouldn’t clock back in until the 20th day after that, on the 2nd of May. How’s that for...
On A Personal Note – When A Spicy Curry Becomes Too Hot To Handle
Sometimes, during a journey, a moment arrives when one’s personal life gets in the way. Like a bank of clouds before the sun, all the Kumbaya moments evaporate. Like a rotten kumquat, life sours. When you least expect it, the wind’s out of your sails, and you’re stuck, rudderless, in the...
Rainbow River Lodge – Okavango River
Long holidays with many rendezvous, campsites, and parks will eventually fill my mental melting pot with a single, rich soup of sights, sounds, and smells. My photographs awaken my memory as I click through my albums, distinguishing one campsite, experience, or adventure from another. Spicing...
Travelling with Somebody. A Weekend in the Karoo - Kanniedood 4x4 Wild Camping
Two’s company and three’s a crowd. Sometimes an unwelcome guest, ‘Somebody,’ causes all the ructions. Her antics make our story light and often entertaining, prompting us to smile at her mischievousness. Our Breede Valley and the Hex River Valley are changing colour. Autumn has arrived,...
Wild Camping - Mudumu Campsite 3 - Second Time Lucky - The Caprivi adventure continues
It’s all very glamorous, staying in beautifully appointed campsites with manicured lawns, five-star ablutions, and interesting restaurants. Even more so is gliding on a mokoro and going on guided game drives. I'm not complaining. Still, we love doing our own thing. Besides, after two years...
Climbing the Skerpenheuwel To The Breede Otter Campsite -
When you’re a Grey Nomad, you’ll probably answer to Hodophile too, and we’re both. The Honey Badger stood forlorn, dusty and neglected in a barn behind a locked and chained door, and she needed a weekend out, even if it's going loco on a road less travelled by us. My response to the...
The Gondwana Collection - Getting Carried Away - A Handy Tip From Us
We all know we should do our homework thoroughly before any trip. We often intend to follow up on friends’ recommendations, advice, and experiences, but we rarely do so when it comes to the crunch. The reasons are lack of time, procrastination, and the sheer exhaustion and anxiety of planning...
Calamity Jane Rides Again - Wild Camping While A Storm Brews
Life never runs as smoothly as we expect. While storm clouds were brewing, we went blissfully on our way, entirely unaware of our troubles simmering away. We left the leafy confines of Ngepi and made our way to a wild campsite in the Mudumo National Park. Now we were going to chillax, do...
Island Style At Ngepi River Camp - Namibia
The marvellous advantage of writing or keeping a diary is that Butch and I continually relive our adventures; sharing these moments makes you feel part of our journey and inspires you to create your own. I’ve just returned from an invigorating 27 km bike ride, feeling energised and eager...
Casually Cruising The Khaudom National Park - North Eastern Namibia
Once again, we set off as early as possible. We had a big day ahead and knew it wouldn’t be easy. We were breaking all the rules. It’s suggested that one does the Khaudom in a convoy of at least two vehicles, preferably three. We had a Honey Badger, a Butch, and an eager learner, Maricha,...
Namibian Bank Holi-YAY And A Flat Battery
You may well ask, “How the Dickens do you two do it?” We don’t know, and we do our best to avoid misadventures. But, as I remind Butch, nobody is interested in a boring story, and everyone loves a liberal sprinkling of drama and tension. Our excitement intensified as we navigated “real”...
Beating The Odds - Navigating Namibia Naturally
Thanks to Boris Johnson, who tried to win Browny points, South Africa was once again on the red list, banning all travel to and from our country. By the stroke of a pen, millions of travellers could unpack their suitcases, lock up their passports and go out and buy a Christmas tree; they were...
Being Gobsmacked By Beauty - Nieuwoudtville And Biedouw Valley
In the grand scheme of things, three OMGs in one day aren’t that bad, but you see, I’m not that sorta gal. But then again, I’m known to have a mouth on me. My expletives were utterly spontaneous; what my eyes saw, my mouth exclaimed before my brain had caught up. My most vivid memory of...
Exploring Van Rhynsdorp and Garies - Unlocking The Door To Spring -
Maskam Guest Farm and Klipkraal Campsite. Day two of our blooming bonanza road trip began bright and breezy. We needed to get off the N7, the busy main artery from Cape Town to Namibia. Blooms, still closed, were arousing our appetites. Flowering is a stop-start affair. But to do that, we...
Flower Power - Camping Around Namaqualand
TOP OF PIEKENIERSKLOOF - KARDOESIE CAMPSITE AND ON TO CLANWILLIAM. My best childhood holiday memories are of waking up reluctantly at 4h00 on the morning of our departure. Then we could get away with travelling the first bit in our PJs, squashed up against my brothers, who complained...
Spring Shenanigans and Daisies with Honeyed Hearts
TIPS AND TRICKS FOR SUCCESSFUL FLOWERING IN NAMAQUALAND. Within hours, we had the Honey Badger packed, our bikes strapped on, our picnic basket brimming with delicious goodies, the fridge stocked, and meat in the deep freezer for six braais. My tummy clenched and unclenched like a teenager...
Clickety Clack Closer To Home
Camping in Rawsonville - Goudyn - Stillewater on the Smalblaar River. You might think it’s ridiculous to go away for the weekend only to head to the next hamlet. As soon as I step into our Honey Badger to spring-clean and spruce it up, make my bed and pack my goodies into the fridge, I’m like...
Shell We Go West?
Exploring the West Coast National Park and Groenrivier. With the sun on our backs in the morning, we set off from Upington to Springbok. Along the Orange River, aqua systems run through vineyards, date palm plantations, watermills, and the legendary Pink Padstal, where stocking up on books,...
We're On The Bus Gus
We had to fetch the Honey Badger in Upington. Our immediate thought was a rental car, but the logistics would be a nightmare. Flying was out of the question; too expensive. Driving up in our car wasn't an option either; two vehicles on the road would be ridiculous, so we had no choice but to...
Ewe Herd We Explored The Kgalagadi?
We shrew did, and Verreaux eagle to meet you! I Gnu we’d have a fabulous time. I haven’t felt the sun on my skin for days and feel cheetah’d. That’s the sort of thing I do when I’m cold. With this thought, I decided to cheer myself up and click through some of my photographs of our recent...
The Chase – Homeward Bound
There comes a time on every trip when one’s nose turns homeward. In Afrikaans, it is likened to a spirited horse that stops in its tracks, cocks its head, and gallops back to its stables. Nothing can stop him when his head’s down. Indomitable, they are then. Our heads turned as we...
The Honey Badger Headlines - The Annual Moan Report
Many a sailor or boat owner will attest to this. Boats spend more time dry-docked than afloat. Our darling Honey Badger never lets us down in that respect either. When one problem is sorted, she springs a leak elsewhere. I think she’s just attention-seeking. She has character. Who wouldn’t be...
Big B and Little B Go On Safari
This Kgalagadi trip was an experience for the books. During a recent weekend away, I realised how special it is to go on holiday with family, especially with one’s children and grandchildren. Butch’s greatest dream has always been to spend time with all our children, especially in the bush....
Fab Four Ride Again - Kraalskloof Campsite - Slanghoek
My sister-in-law Sue needs no introduction, though she’s a tough cookie and doesn’t take no for an answer. Trouble came as an email from the proprietress of a campsite she’d reserved for the weekend, on the banks of the Breede River. Glamping in the mountains The email said the grounds...
Death And Mourning In Times Of The Corona Virus
Maybe it’s just me who’s dwelling on death today, as a photograph pops up on my screen, taken three years ago, before the unthinkable. One of my very best friends passed away and will never appear in another photograph. Technology and social media are our new memory keepers. ---oOo--- With...
A One Night Stand - Cremorne Holiday Resort - Port St John's - Fabulously Flamboyant
Travel is about exploring deeply, delving into a place's culture, history, art, and architecture, and sparking curiosity and connection. Before our trips, we research as much as possible before we set off. My inquisitive nature, fuelled by the anticipation of new, unexplored destinations, is...
Road tripping the Transkei - Wondrously Wild – Mdumbi backpackers
Mdumbi Backpackers is one of the few places that make me feel as if I’m in another country. The people are cool, the weather’s divine, the landscape is so different from ours, and even the history is different. Many people find themselves drawn back to their homes in the Transkei, where...
Tranquil Transkei - Mazeppa Bay Revisited
Promises made must be kept. That’s a golden rule. Melissa, our niece, showed remarkable dedication and bravery by taking up a position as a dietician at a rural hospital in the Transkei, earning admiration and respect from us all. At Christmas in 2019, we solemnly promised to visit Melissa...
Searching For Magic Mushrooms - Hogsback - Eastern Cape Province
My Grandmama told me about the Hogsback. In the early 1930’s she’d haul my aunt, my Dad, a French nanny and a German wet nurse, by train from Cape Town and steam off during the hot summer months to sojourn in the cool, misty Eastern Cape Amatole mountains. In tow, her best friend, Margie...
Hoo-Ray It's holi-Yay!
There were a few weeks to go before the summer holidays would break the monotony of 8 months under house arrest, as we continued to endure the lockdown. Like a bolt of lightning on a summer’s day, a nephew and niece took over our holiday home for three weeks. They were determined to make it...
Glamping in the Kgalagadi Trans Frontier Park
Butch and I have never camped at a SANParks campsite. We prefer to stay off-grid or wild camp, as people do in Botswana and Zimbabwe. Without a doubt, our favourite campsites are Polentswa and Rooiputs on the Botswana side. This time, we were putting SANParks to the test. The corrugated dirt...
A Saffa Safari - A Road Trip To The Kgalagadi Trans Frontier Park
Do yourself a favour. Make a reservation, pack your tent and raid the pantry. Dust off the ammo boxes. When you've done all that, grab a few T-shirts, a pair of shorts and your favourite flip-flops. Don't forget last year's stretched and perished bather. It will do. Believe me. Now, head off to...