SANParks.org Forums

buy water in Upington, for your use in the park, I count about 2/3 l per day for one person (there is bottle of 10 litters) or if you prefer coke or other drink, it's cheaper than in the park. Idem for the wood.
I was already once in Septembre... in the morning is cold... even very cold ( 0° to 10°) during the day, when the sun arrives... normal temperature 30°/35° have a look here
if you will have sunset/sunrise/night drive, yes take gloves, bonnet/scarf, double socks
I use to put my clothes in the bed... with me...and dress up in the bed

see you soon

Dear Anne-Marie
Thanks for the useful information!

Do you know if the shop in Twee Rivieren is open after 6PM. We will buy things in Upington, but if we need something from Twee Rivieren, it would be great to buy after the gates are closed so that we can try to take a look at Samevloeiing in the first day.

Cheers
Charbel

it's seems both, shop and petrol are open 30 min. after gate closed

Thanks, Anne-Marie! Can someone confirm?


Cheers
Charbel

A few things I have picked up from the discussion.

Charbel,

I have a twincab Hilux and I get about 7.5 km per litre.
The shops close half an hour after gate closing times, but NOT the petrol stations. They close earler.
I would fill up when I arrive in a camp, and would not go out for a day with less than half a tank full.
You will be ok going to Grootkolk and Garagab if you leave on a full tank.
Recommended tyre pressure is about 1.5 bars on all roads.
The water on KTP tastes foul.
We usually have enough food and water in the car for 3 days when we go out. If you break down on a remote road it will not be fun if you don't have anything with you. Not many cars break down.

Hi Charbel.

I agree with everything BB has said. I also have a Hilux 3 litre diesel 4x4 and know that you will be fine - just fill up wherever you come to fuel.

I just want to reiterate that the water in most camps in KTP is totally unuseable - too brakish (salty tasting). At Gharagab we could hardly even brush our teeth with it and the washing up was coated with white - presumably salt! In most camps we had to use the water we had taken (in jerry cans and a 60 litre tank in bakkie) for boiling, cooking etc. If you don't have jerry cans, you can buy bottled mineral water in the camp shops and use that for drinking, boiling and cooking.

You will love KTP - it has so much to offer.

Dear Hippotragus and BB,
Thanks for all the information. Our plan is indeed to fill the whole fuel tank whenever we can and buy mineral water to have at least 10l every time with us in the car. The friend who will go with me basically does not drink water but onnly juices. So, also 10l of juice every time in the car.

Very useful to have the information on the tyre pressure. We will try to get a gauge as Son Godin suggested, but maybe we do not succeed. Do you have any suggestions about how to avoid decreasing the pressure too much. As far as I understand, we just open up the valve in the tyres and let some air escape. That's it? If it is, could be hard to control the thing...

About Gharagab, let me ask you. We are not experience 4 x 4 trail drivers. Did we make a mistake in reserving Gharagab (because we can simply get stuck in the way there) and would better change our reservations?

Finally, could someone tell me if I find shops nearby Upington airport, and where do I find them. It would save time not to enter too much in the city and go immediately to Kgalagadi.

I also checked in Google Maps the road from Upington to Kgalagadi. It seems simple. We get out of the airport and get 10 road and then R360 up to Twee Rivieren. I see there are some bifurcations we should not get along the road and I see that there is no town in the way. Is that true? Better not to get lost and leave Upington with a full tank. Thus, I'd like to ask: is the road well signed, so that we can easily follow our way? I guess GPS works in the road from Upington to Kgalagadi, but I'd like to confirm.

Also, does GPS work inside the park, as in Kruger?

Cheers
Charbel

to deflate, the man at the petrol station will do for you
the road Upington to Twee Rivieren is almost straight, you can't be lost... even a blond found her way

GPS works even inside the park
no, no don't cancel Gharagab, never went (alone) but it seems to be genial

Charbel as AM says..........very easy to get there and GPS works in the park.

There is huge direction signs along the way..............

Once you are on the R360, you go about 190 km and then there is a signposted turn off to the right that takes you to the gate at 2R.

Your car should be full of fuel when you get it.

Charbel - the road in and out of Gharagab is not bad at all. We did not go into low ratio 4x4 at all - just put it in high ratio 4x4 as a precaution. Don't miss out on a wonderful camp - it gives you a wonderful feeling of what the KTP is all about. We spent 2 nights there at the end of June 2012 and wished we could have stayed longer. There is a waterhole right in front of the camp and we had lions there and also a brief sighting of a brown hyena. The camp attendant was great, too. You will have the right vehicle and won't have any problems at all.

My friends,
It's incredible how helpful you are! I am glad to know that the petrol station guy can help us in deflating the tyres and, as the Gharagab road is not that bad, probably we'll not need to deflate by ourselves there.

Nice to know about the road to KTP and GPS working there.

My final worry is, then, the freezing temperature in June. Lion Queen already told me that they have not only blankets in the accommodations but also extra blankets. I hope this is also true for the wilderness camps.

My plan is to bring two very warm coats, which were enough when I lived in Copenhagen, so, probably good for KTP, and all the other stuff I can. I even had a nightmare this night after reading a trip report where the person told how freezing was in the tents in Kalahari tented camp, and this was may, not june... Have to be well prepared to avoid spoiling the trip for that....

Let me invite you to take a look at "travel tales". I am putting together a TR for our travel to Kruger there.

Cheers
Charbel


1 June 2013 - Twee Rivieren
2 June 2013 - Kieliekrankie
3-4 June 2013 - Kalahari Tented Camp
5 June 2013 - Twee Rivieren
6-8 June 2013 - Nossob
9 June 2013 - Gharagab
10 June 2013 - Grootkolk
11 June 2013 - Nossb
12 June 2013 - Twee Rivieren

put a bottle of hot water in the bed
we have much more cold in Europe, this winter minus 15° during 3 weeks, night and day...
but we have appartments with radiators and normaly not less than 17/20° inside

once in the bed... it's just difficult... well very difficult to go out of the bed, then put several pile of T-shirts and when the sun arrive, take off one by one... until

you know Copenhague... but don't compare with Brazil

will have a look at travel tale

Dear Anne-Marie,

We will have to face the coldness, thanks for the nice ideas!

Cheers
Charbel

in replay to your Q. in "Trip report - Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, June 2012"
about the Barn Owl...

will search and wait the time needed

Veertiende = 14th
Dertiende = 13th (a little bit like in German... for me )
it's the right reply to your question
sorry I speak French and sometime I mix a little bit questions