SANParks.org Forums

charbel,

The activities as requested lasts about 3 hours.
Regarding the meerkat colony inside the camp, they haven’t been seen lately but meerkats do change their den sites often and will move around. They might still come and visit their site within the camp again.

Regards

Dear Kgalagadi Guru,
Thanks!
Planning almost done...

Cheers
Charbel

I'd like to thank you! My planning is done for Kgalagadi June 2013:


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

Any ideas or suggestions, please tell me.


Cheers
Charbel

I am reading trip reports to Kgalagadi and was prompted to ask:

How corrugated are currently the roads in Kgalagadi? Am I expecting too much if I plan to drive at 40Km/h in the roads?

I also read in one trip report that someone forgot to "deflate our tyres and proudly apply our yellow ribbon". I guess this means to take some air out of the tyres. Is this very important? About the yellow ribbon, have not idea about what does it mean.

And what about sightings? Are they too rare in Kgalagadi?

Cheers
Charbel

Hi Charbel,
As for the yellow ribbon. All forumites attach a yellow ribbon on the driver side mirror. This is for other forumites to recognise you and have a quick chat. It is a great chance to meet other forumites

Hi,
Great to know about the yellow ribbon. I'll attach one when I'm there.

Any information about the tyres, my planned driving velocity, and the sigthings?

Cheers
Charbel

Hi Charbel...........by deflating your tires the drive will be comfortable and the impact on the roads will keep them from becoming to corrugated.

It's okay to drive at 40km/h. BUT you will miss a lot!! All those smaller creatures and that leopard hiding in the trees!!!

There are not so many different animal species as in Kruger, but I'm sure you will see more than enough.

Hi Charbel,

If you can change your booking of the 5 June to either Nossob / Mata-Mata / KTP / Urikaruus you will find the traveling not to hectic.

The road to Gharagab is a 4x4 track over the dunes and you might need to deflate the tyres a little more than for the gravel road, although the recommended pressure should be fine. Try to get a your own gauge to measure the tyre pressure to ensure you do not deflate too much.

Gharagab can only be reached from on direction and when doing a extra afternoon drive you result in more fuel consumption than planned. The loop is 97 km long and you may decide rather to stay in the camp for the afternoon so that should not be a big worry.

You planning looks great and hope you have a wonderful time.

Thanks, Lion Queen and Son godin.

About the 40Km/h, let me be more specific. I did my planning like this.

Let's take 5 June, to which Son godin referred to. First, we need to go back to Twee Rivieren at that point for making important phone call, that's why I booked Twee Rivieren that day. It would be really less hectic not going back down there, you're right. But had no choice...

So, for instance, from Twee Rivieren to Nossob, the distance is 151Km. Then I calculated that if we drove constantly at 40Km/h, it would take us 4 hours to get to Nossob. As we plan to leave Twee Rivieren at 8:00 (thinking about possible traffic in the gate) and arrive at Nossob 18:00, we can allow for 6h of stops. So,I used the calculation for the 40Km/h just to have an idea about how long we could take just nearby waterholes waiting for animals to come. Doesn't mean we'll drive 40Km/h all the time. But it does mean that, depending on our time, we may need to drive at 40Km/h. So, it is important to know that this is possible, despite the corrugated roads.

Thanks for all the important recommendations on deflating tyres. Could you tell me what would be the recommended pressure on the tyres for usual roads and for Gharagab 4 x 4?

The idea of having a gauge is great. But can I buy one in Upington without having to get lost in the city while having to drive several Kms to get to Twee Rivieren? It would be not really practical to bring one from Brazil.

About Gharagab, I noticed that it can be reached by only one direction and included in the calculations. About fuel, our plan is whenever we are in Twee Rivieren, nearby Mata Mata or Nossob, to complete our tank. The car we intend to hire is a Toyota Hilux 4 x 4. So, we will have a full tank when leaving Nossob at June 8th to spend two days with no way of filling it again, one in Gharagab, the other in Grootkolk. So, we have 164Km until Gharagab at June 9th, 56Km to Grootkolk at June 10th, and then 112Km to get back to Nossob in June 11th. What do you think? Will the full tank of a Toyota Hilux be enough for that?


Cheers
Charbel

Charbel,

The Toyota Hilux should have a 80 liter tank........we usually get at least 10km/l so that should give you at least
800 km you can drive on a tank.

I see you talk about possible traffic at the gate...........we've never encountered more than 5 cars at the gate........and when leaving TR for Nossob, you just get your permit from the gate guide.......doesn't take more that 5 minutes.

Upington is far from a city........rather a big town. Where are you renting the Toyota?? PM me the details and I could maybe help you out with the gauge.....

often the roads are very narrow... beware Snakes, Squirrels, Suricates etc... at 40 km/h
I saw a lot of Puff Adders dead on the road and even a Jackal and a Squirrel

and each time you can have petrol : DO IT, sometime petrol is still not arrived at the pump

Dear Lion Queen,
Thanks for all the help. We will rent the car at Upington Airport. I could not give any information on 4 x 4 cars from the big rentals, Avis, Budget etc. The best deal I found was Drive Africa car rental (http://www.driveafrica.co.za/car-rental ... uth-africa)

A Toyota Hilux Double Cab or similar will cost USD 1489.38 for 13 days, with air conditioner, coverages, unlimited mileage.

If you could help us with the gauge it would be greater. I've got the information for the traffic at gates in some descriptions in the web. Nice that it doesn't happen.

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

Dear Anne-Marie
Thanks for the indications. Maybe I should make my calculations considering 30Km/h...

Cheers
Charbel

charnel,

You will not run into problems getting late to the next camp and the time to Nossob should not take more than 4 hours including sightseeing. The road from Rooiputs to Kij-Kij is open again and you will therefore have a far better road to travel on than the Botswana two track road.Below is estimated times from the Park Home site. Its possible to travel at speeds of 50 km/h even if the road is corrugated, but for sight-seeing a speed of 30 - 40 km/h is recommended.

When you book in you will receive information about the park rules, the recommended tyre pressure and how the permit system work.

If you fill up with fuel at Nossob the distances between the wilderness camps will not be a problem and you can even add another 150 km for day drives. The reason I mentiond it is that some 4x4 can only do 400 - 500 km, specially in 4x4 drive. If you do an afternoon drive on the first day you wil cover more than 400 km, but from the post from Lion queen the Toyota Hilux is not that thirsty and you should be fine.

I am sure you will still see many other tips on the forum and already read about the water and cold winters.

Best of luck with all the planning and wishing you a great trip.






Travelling distances within the Park
•Twee Rivieren – Nossob: 3.5hrs
•Twee Rivieren – Mata-Mata: 2.5hrs
•Twee Rivieren – Kalahari Tent Camp: 2.5hrs
•Twee Rivieren – Grootkolk: 6hrs
•Nossob – Union’s End: 3hrs
•Nossob – Mata-Mata (over Kamqua dune road): 3.5hrs
•Nossob – Bitterpan: 2.5hrs
•Bitterpan – Mata-Mata: 2hrs
•Nossob – Grootkolk: 2.5hrs
•Mata-Mata – Kalahari Tent Camp: 4 km

Dear Son Godin,
I already booked but in the information they sent me the recommended tyre pressure is not informed....

About water, you mean "keep at least 10litres of water with you at any time"?

I read about coldness and we will bring warm coats, gloves, etc.

Thanks!

Cheers
Charbel