Cape Town to Windhoek

The first leg - DONE! And I made it in exactly one month's time! I divided the stretch from Keetmanshoop to Windhoek into two sections. Keetmans to Mariental (230 Km), and Mariental to Windhoek (270 Km). Three days for each leg. What I wasn't counting on was a constant, beating wind! Over the 6 days it took me to get to Windhoek, the wind did a full 360 degree circumnavigation of ... Jolandie! LoL

One of the most important elements for me to consider on these long stretches is water! I carry 8 liters of water with me. Though by the time I get to the end of day 2, I have to find a source to replenish my supply! Lucky for me, every time I need it, 'the source' appears! :-) Out of the 6 days that I spent cycling between Keetmans and Windhoek, I spent 4 nights sleeping next to the road. What I have come to discover is that what I miss most on these nights is a warm bath or shower! These have become an absolute luxury!!

Day 1 (22 May 2011) I spent fighting a very insistent head wind! Though I had a goal in mind and very adamant on reaching that goal! Hanret had described the road ahead to me, according to Google Earth, the previous night. She figured I could cover 100km in one day. And I so wanted to reach that 100km mark as I had failed to do so up to Keetmanshoop. Despite the headwind, I kept my head down and my legs ticking over! By around 7pm that night I had covered 100km!! YES!

That night I had a visitor. Woke up around 11pm with the figure of a man towering over me! "What do you want"?, I asked him. "Oh, sorry. I just saw someone lying here and thought I'd check to see if you're okay". And then he left. I got such fright!

Over the next two days the wind turned. It went from blowing South to blowing South-East, to East. When I finally made it to Mariental, I just wanted to have a long, hot bath more than anything else in the world. My contact in Windhoek, Raymond Spall, had told me to stop at the Wimpy and ask for Patricia Nel. Which I duly did. Patricia then gave me a meal on the house and had organised for me to stay at a local Bed & Breakfast, Villa Volla! How awesome!?

The next morning I ordered myself breakfast at the Wimpy. A lot of people came over to chat to me. I left Mariental on a full stomach and in a very mellow frame of mind. I was absolutely FLYING! AND, for ONCE, I had a TAIL WIND!! Woohoo!! That day I did 102km! Yeehaa! I felt great!

Day 5 (26 May 2011) from Keetmans to Windhoek, I made it to Rehoboth just before sunset. Made a quick stop for water and food and then carried on. I was intent on making it to about 80km from Windhoek...As I left Rehoboth a 'bakkie' pulled over in front of me. It was one of the guests that had stayed in the same hotel (Masonic) as I in Springbok! And here he ran into me again, just before Windhoek! What a 'coincidence'!

The last stretch to Windhoek had me fighting a headwind again. I didn't mind too much though, because I knew once I made it to town, I could have a good rest! I had a very drunk guy try and pick me up next to the road. He said to me that I should accompany him back to Rehoboth as he owns a hotel there and would 'look after me'. Nice try buddy! LoL!

15km from Windhoek you hit a spectacular downhill through the mountains! Heaven, simply heaven! I made it to Windhoek around 4pm and was welcomed by Raymond with a huge hug. And then, I fell right in the center of town to announce my arrival! Haha!

I am NOT used to traffic anymore! LoL. And man, is this a busy town! To me it feels like a huge city!

My first night in Windhoek Raymond took me out to the world reknowned 'Joe’s Beerhouse'! What an awesome place! I had Ostrich and Gemsbok fillet. Yum!

And now I get into organising my Angolan visa!

I would really just like to say a big THANK YOU for all your messages, comments and support! It is what drives me through the tough times! I'm looking forward to sharing the next leg of the journey with you!!

How civilized is this???? OJ and bubbly for brunch!!

And the chef slaving away!!

If you can, listen online to an interview with Radiowave, Namibia just after 12:00 CAT (Central African Time) on Monday, 30 May 2011!!

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Double milestone day!!!

The first 1,000 kilometers are done and dusted AND today was the first day of spending 100 kilometers in the saddle!!! Is that not just fantastic???!!! Yay!! Lol!

The elevation profile for the first 100km out of Keetmanshoop was meant to look like this.  However, Google Earth did not breathe a word about ...

... the howling head wind!! 15km from Keetmanshoop this video was taken: ‘This is the head wind against which I am going to try and cover a distance of 100km today!!’

A delicious jaffle lunch!! 24km’s from Keetmans and still facing a howling wind!

A stark reminder of the road ahead!!

100.44 kilometers!!! Cycled in one short day!! How incredible is that??

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Grünau to Keetmanshoop.

What a crazy last few days I've had?! It is 160km from Grünau to Keetmanshoop. So the plan was to split the distance over 2 days at 80km p/day. Well, that WAS the plan.

On the first day I only managed to cover a grand total of 45km!! The first 30km (always the first 30km?!) was a climb towards Keetmans that slowed me down to a painstaking 12km/h average!

However, 10km from Grünau a 'bakkie' pulled over in front of me. I noticed the registration number - 'EC', Eastern Cape. A couple got out and asked whether I was the girl they heard over the radio? The girl cycling around Africa? "Indeedy, that would be me"! Turns out, funny enough, that that the man had met Riaan in Ethiopia whilst he was cycling around Africa! Fancy that!

Shortly after we parted ways I met a trucker from Kempton Park, where I grew up! What? Did South Africa come to visit me in Namibia? LoL!! My pace remained pretty much the same throughout the day. With incidents like my bicycle computer breaking and a puncture to my rear wheel causing serious time delays in fixing!

By the time the sun set I had reached just over 40km! I wasn't sure as to whether I should carry on or call it a day? I decided on the latter! I found a dry riverbed well below the road and nearly broke my neck dragging Luna et al down! A sudden drop resulted in my falling and Luna with all my gear on top of me!

Once at the bottom, I got a really bad feeling about the spot, so unloaded my gear and dragged it all back topside, bit by bit!! I reloaded my gear and carried on to find a more suitable spot, which I found at about 45km!

I was up again at 5am, (or so I though!!! I only discovered yesterday that Namibia is one hour behind South Africa, so in reality I was up at 4am!!!!) as I knew I would need a miracle to cover the remaining 115km! As I loaded my gear I noticed my rear wheel had 'locked' somehow and my gears were jammed. This took me a good 2 hours to fix!

Standing there I thought to myself, I need some luck. And as I looked up, next to me, on a boulder stood written in big white letters: "LUCK"!!! I kid you not!! And soon after the road flattened out. So much so that I was up to maintaining between 26 - 28km/h!!

I was gonna make it! I stopped, for the first time, 30km from Keetmans. And then, a bad judgement call! Turns out people were on the lookout for me as news of my bike trouble had spread. And this is where they found me and insisted on taking me to town. I felt bad about their driving out to find me and accepted! I was so dissapointed!

I was not in a happy place! Ingo, the owner of Shütsenhaus Guesthouse where I am camping, invited me to the pub for a beer. I stood there, in a bar full of men staring at me, drinking a Coke! I felt uneasy, until one of them started chatting to me. News travels fast and before I knew it they had clubbed in and gave me N$350, offered to fix my bike and I was drinking a beer!! So 2 days from hell ended on a high note!

This morning I went back to the spot where I got a lift from yesterday and proceeded to cycle the remaining 30km back to town. Then I had Luna fixed!

All is well that ends well! :-) I hope to reach Windhoek by this coming weekend! A stretch of 500km!!

But, before I go, I have just chased this scorpion out from underneath my tent!!! Eeeekkk!! And then, sadly, the security guard put an end to his life!!

Photographs relating to Grünau to Keetmanshoop were posted in Leaving Grünau behind and On the road to Keetmanshoop.
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Leaving Grünau behind

Meeting Janine and family from Jeffrey's Bay just outside Grünau. And what are the chances?? Her husband met Riaan Manser in Ethiopia when Riaan was on his trip around Africa!!  Shortly afterwards a trucker from Kempton Park (my birthtown) stopped to say hi!!!

At least it is the right district ...

... but it is still a long way to go!!!!

A healthy, hearty, happy road side lunch!!

Luna, 'bene in die lug' (legs in the air) with a rear wheel puncture!!! Aaarrgghh!!

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To Grünau and sleeping under the stars.

When they said it was uphill from the border town, Noordoewer, to Grünau they weren't kidding!!

I had a late start yesterday due to, yet another, flat tyre. Front wheel again, of course! Enough to drive one insane!! Lol!!

Proudly South African Pannier!!

I met a girl named Su, from Vietnam, on the road. Hitching a ride to the Fish River Canyon. Unfortunately I won't get to see it this time round! And unfortunately I couldn’t give Su a lift!!

The first 30km took me a good 4 hours to cover! It is a LONG slog uphill! Thereafter I was given a bit of a break with, a much needed, 10km slight downhill.

Luna resting in the shade, taking a break from the uphill slog.

Another serendipitous sticker!!

A reminder at the foot of the downhill of how far I still need to go.

Stood at the side of the road and had my first live radio interview in Namibia on 5 FM! This delayed me by an hour and a half, by the time I got going again I only had about half an hour of daylight left.

Being interviewed by 5 FM at the roadside!!

Here's the fun part!! I couldn't bare to think about not making it at least halfway (70km) to Grünau. So I took advantage of the spectacular full moon and cycled well into the night! 

A man pulled up next to me in a car and handed me an ice cold energade energy drink! (Probably figured I needed it!!)

I eventually called it a day around 21h15, and started scouting for a place to sleep. Found a nice deep ditch next to the road and lay down my sleeping bag. (By then I was way too tired to pitch my tent). I had a bat for company all night!

A spectacular full  moon to guide the way.

A ditch to sleep in!

Rose at dawn this morning, made myself breakfast (oats with honey) and a cup of coffee before hitting the road again. The second half to Grünau went a bit faster today. Nothing as hectic as the first 30km from yesterday! Still a long, seemingly endless road. But plenty of friendly truckers, greeting me with loud horns as they pass me by! :-)

Waking to a glorious sunrise!

Firing up the stove ...

Yum!!! Oats with honey!

I made it to Grünau just after 15h00 and pitched my tent at the camping grounds next to the garage. And even had a warm shower! Woohoo!

Tent pitched!!

And a comfortable bed for the night.

Giving Luna some tender loving attention.

Delight after a warm shower.

Boil one part of rice and one part of soya mince...

Add one part of left over bully beef and one part of sweetcorn...

Mix well, season, serve and garnish with SPORK!! Yum!!

And then, a gesture of friendship and goodwill that I will never forget. A friend in Windhoek (although we haven't met, I call him my friend), Raymond Spall, sent me a little gift. A woman came round the corner with a cup and a note in hand. The note read: "from Raymond Spall". He had organised me a cup of hot milo, all the way from out Windhoek! That small gesture just about had me in tears!!

The most generous, touching gesture from Raymond Spall!!

Tomorrow night I will sleep next to the road again. Then Friday night, hopefully, in Keetmanshoop! With a rest day on Saturday!!


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