Richtersveld - 3 dusty days during Spring *

[Michele Nel]

It must have been in early September that Doug came home to …..

"Hello dear ….I have been thinking… "
Oh no ..he says..here we go again. Your “thinking “ always cost me money…
I just smiled …yes my thinking costs him money (that’s a given) and sometimes ( more often than not) it costs him a couple of days leave as well.
Anyway I soon spilled the beans….my thoughts were that we should spend the long weekend in September in the Richtersveld. Well it did not take much to convince Doug ( it never does) and before long I had a little trip planned. But my original plan of a quick weekend ended up in Doug having to take three days leave…oh and then I managed to sneak in a half day as well.
So Tues 18th Sept found Monty in the garage chomping at the bit and ready to leave….



For those of you that do not know Monty is our trusted 4 x 4…a 30 year old Gelandewagen..and Doug’s pride and joy !
We did not have much traffic on the way out of Cape Town and before long we were driving past Piketberg.



And then over the Piekenierskloof Pass…I put those rather threatening clouds on ignore though.



On and on Monty chugged ( oops ..I hope Doug doesn’t read this ) past Citrusdal and Clanwilliam.
The sun was setting and we were driving through some pretty scenery but we had no time to stop so I just did what I normally do…fire away through the windscreen.



We stopped at Klawer to satisfy Monty’s thirst as well as our hunger.



Klawer is not too far from Vanrhynsdorp where we had planned to overnight. Our chalet at Clearwater Oasis did not disappoint and it did not take us too long to get settled. I was hoping to do a star trail but as usual it was overcast and there were not many stars to be seen…. ( that by the way is becoming the story of my life)

[Michele Nel]

We were up bright and early …well one of us was probably very bright the other one of us was battling to get going. I was actually quite surprised by the fact that I had managed to get myself standing outside in the upright position to watch the sunrise though. Digging the tripod out of Monty required too much energy so I just tried to captured the scene handheld.



But Monty was ready to hit the road and I must admit so was I….



The wide open spaces were beginning to talk to me and I needed to get on with the journey. Our next stop for the night was just over the border into Namibia….
Just outside Vanrhynsdorp the roadworks got us….but one just has to make these stop/go points work for you…so out came the camera.



The countryside around Vanryhsdorp was splattered with chincherinchees……I could have spent hours photographing them but I as I said Namibia was calling.
Onward through Namaqualand we drove….but there is always one obligatory stop at Garies. Doug cannot resist the droewors at the Garies Butchery. While he stocked up on his supplies I photographed the Farmstall alongside the butchery. I must admit I had a good laugh at the two bored gentlemen in the photo….their wives were probably shopping up a storm in that little shop and they were probably wondering where they were going to pack the “stuff” in that tiny little trailer. By the way if you ever visit Namaqualand in flower season this farmstall is a great place to stop. The lady in the store is a wealth of info when it comes to the flowers and she will give you a map and explain to you where the best flowers are at the time…Oh and if you fancy those crocheted toilet covers this is definitely the place to get them....



And so we continued…



Again the roadside was alive with flowers...



But all of a sudden the beautiful green hills of Namaqualand give way to bare and stark rocky mountains…..how does anything survive in this part of the world ?

Approaching the South African Borderpost - Vioolsdrift.

[Michele Nel]

Thanks Gavinw, Flutterby and Lisbeth for your lovely comments.

And a bit more....

Our border crossing was quick and painless…and I was so excited to be crossing the Orange River again that I completely forgot to take any photos. But here is a photo from our last trip into Nambia..



Our next stop was at Engen in Noordoewer to refuel and fill up the jerry cans. Btw the fuel is cheaper in Namibia so it is worthwhile to only fill up the jerry cans in Namibia. I just had to snap away at Doug’s reflection in the window.



And then a Capped Wheatear put in an appearance.



But without much ado we headed off to Amanzi Trails…a lovely camp alongside the Orange River.
It didn’t take us long to pitch camp and soon I was out and about snapping away with my camera.
The view of South Africa from our campsite.



I was desperate to get a photo of an Orange River White-eye but the Hoopoe and the Pied Kingfisher kept distracting me.







I never did get a decent photo of the White-eye at Amanzi. Other birds that I saw but did not get on camera were African darters, Egyptian Geese, Longbilled Crombec (grrrrr!!!!!) Red-eyed Bulbul and some or other Martins/Swifts/Swallows.
Then that beautiful time of the evening arrives….time to sit down with a sundowner and relax…well almost relax…my camera is never far from my side.



Then it is time to light the fire... and that always goes hand in hand with a Jägermeister.
I had set my camera up for a star trail but unfortunately the wind picked up and once again trying to capture a star trail was an useless exercise.
And so ended our first night ….Monty and Doug tucked up for the night...oh and the resident dog that followed me everywhere. :)

[Michele Nel]

20 September.

I awoke early to the sound of birds chirping and immediately the saying “the early bird catches the worm” sprung to mind. I must admit the noisy critters got the better of me and I managed to drag myself out of the tent. This is it I thought…some awesome shots coming up…Pied Kingfishers catching fish, Fish eagles soaring above, Africa Hoopoes deworming the lawns…but oh my word did I fail miserably !!!



After a while I decided that I should sit down and let a cup of coffee work it’s magic. The reflexes were a bit better after that…but The Kingfoishers had disappeared and the Fish Eagle had not put in an appearance. I had to be content with watching these two little Bulbuls going about their house building business.



The foraging hoopoe was intent on staying just out of reach of my lens as well…



But the resident dogs were probably to blame for me not getting too close to the birds..they followed me everywhere and my creeping around the bushes was just too much for them to cope with. For them this was a wonderful early morning game of hide and seek.

Amanzi Trails ( also known as Abiqua) is a really awesome campsite…not far from the borderpost. The campsites are large and quite private…each one having it's own braai area as well as a wash up basin underneath a reed shelter. Ablutions are great….
Our campsite, Kingfisher…..with a lovely view of the river.





Eventually it was time to pack up and hit the road. We had decided to back track to Noordoewer before travelling along the D212 to Sendelingsdrift. The reason being that one of us had forgotten to pack tomato sauce ( an essential ingredient for my prawn cocktail) and the other one of us was not sure that he had enough spare oil for Monty.
A quick stop at Engen solved the oil problem and on our way to the “supermarket” we stopped at the local farmstall…..the following sign made me chuckle.



Thereafter we found a little store that sort of resembled a “supermarket” and I was able to obtain a small bottle of tomato sauce at one heck of a price. I got back into Monty grumbling much better and as I went to close the door I saw a bird soaring in the sky…well grumbles forgotten I grabbed my camera and was able to capture it as it flew over. Oh yes….a juvenile Fish eagle….I was indeed a happy camper !!!



Myself and my camera were beginning to attract unwanted attention in the dusty carpark so I hopped back into Monty and we finally hit the road that would take us along the Orange River to Sendelingsdrift.
You are probably wondering why we were using this roundabout route to the Richtersveld. Well we were going travel this way on our last trip to Namibia( April 2011) but due to bad floods the pont at Sendelingsdrift had been washed away. We felt somewhat cheated at the time so this was just our way of finding out what we had missed out on.

The area is pretty barren until one gets to Assenkehr…



And goodness knows where this person was walking to..or from for that matter.


Asssenkehr consists of vineyards irrigated with the water from the Orange River as well a “ squatter camp”. I do not know how these folk survive in the heat of summer. For all the water in the river and the lush green vineyards these poor folk living in this camp do not have much…



And clearly this is Snob’s Hill



And finally the road took us alongside the river.

[Michele Nel]

20th September
En route to Sendelingsdrift via the D212.

I had been really looking forward to travelling along this road because I had expected it to follow the Orange River all the way. Unfortunately there were many times that the road deviated away from the river through scenery like this.



I had high hopes of seeing many Fish Eagles etc and sadly I did not. Birds that I did see but were too far away for any kind of photo were a Goloiath Heron, Grey Herons, Cormorants, a Black Stork, Swallow-tailed Bee-eaters and Pied Wagtails. There were many little roadside LBJ’s but it was pointless in stopping for them as they take off before Doug can bring Monty to a stop.. The only mammals that we saw along the way were a few baboons.
We continued our way through the desolate landscape



And across the dry Fish River



Seeing that Rosh Pinah is only 20km’s from Sendelingsdrift we decided to pop in there and have a look. Nothing much happens at Rosh Pinah but we were able to fill up with fuel. At least there were some roadside flowers that prettied up the scenery.



AS one approaches the the Orange River the stark rocky outcrops appear again…majestic rocky mountains but the afternoon light did not really make for awesome photography…so I just kept snapping through the windscreen.




Approaching the Namibian Borderpost..



Our passports were checked in no time but a couple next to us were given a hard time…
Why ? Because they were rude to the officials and were giving them a hard time over filling in a departure form. A departure form has to be filled so fill it in with a smile on your face and you will get a smile back. Cussing and bemoaning the fact will probably end up with you having your entire car searched….when will people learn.
Bye-bye Namibia…



Now it was time to cross over on the Pont…I was not entirely happy about this. I am not a great water fan. Imagine my relief when I realised that the river was not too wide at the point of crossing but imagine my horror when I saw the size of the pont….that little Pont was supposed to hold our precious Monty. Imagine my relief when I realised that Monty was the only passenger on that crossing ( the Pont can actually hold two fully laden 4 x 4's ) but imagine my horror when I saw how the Pont was rocking from side to side.

The Pont arriving on the RSA side …

Pont on it’s way back to collect us.

Pont crossing with SANParks reception building in the background.

Monty being driven onto the pont.

Once Doug had driven Monty onto the Pont ( horror) and parked in the middle (relief) we were told to get out ( horror) and we were given life-jackets to put on (relief). The following photos were taken with my camera in one hand while the other was tightly clenched onto Monty - did I mention that I don't do water....did I mention that the Pont was rocking from side to side !!!! And did I mention that Doug gets motion sickness and was already looking a bit green about the gills. I was not going to get any sympathy from him.







The crossing was very quick...the Pont is in fact motorised...so it was with a huge sense of relief that I whipped the life-jacket off and jumped back into Monty to await been driven off. Doug hung about waiting to pay a fee for crossing but he was ushered into Monty and told to drive off. We now had to do two things...enter South Africa and check-in at SANParks. Clearly one should enter the country before checking in so we made our way to the borderpost. WRONG decision....one actually has to go to reception and pay your Pont crossing fee first(R100 and R150 if you are towing a trailer). Then you take your little receipt and go through customs....THEN you go back to reception and check in. No problem with that system but it would have been helpful if the chaps on the pont had told us what to do. Anyway everybody was very friendly and helpful and eventually we were back in Monty and ready to start the next part of the adventure

SANParks reception.

Border control

[Michele Nel]

Thanks again to everybody that has been reading and commenting...and welcome to you Guinea Pig
Yes you may all laugh at our crossing....actually I do as well now !!!!


So at last we drove into Richtersveld and already I was in two minds about it. I knew not to expect much around Sendelingsdrift due to the presence of mining etc but as we continued into the park I got more and more irritated with the telephone poles lining the road. Every time I wanted to take a photo the darn telephones poles got in the way. Eventually we left them behind and I managed to get a photo or two before descending into Potjiespram ( btw the Official Information Guide refers to Pootjiespram and the webpage refers to Potjiespram…take your pick!!! ) Again some shots through the windscreen.



Seeing that Potjiespram is a mere 9km away from Sendelingsdrift and it was only 3 o’clock there was plenty of time to stop if I should want to take photographs…but nothing really inspired me.Those telephone poles had really made me grumpy but in actual fact I was beginning to stress about the road…did I mention that I don’t do little tracks that go over mountains very well either. What on earth had made me want to come to this park. All of a sudden the road was no longer a road….it was a silly little track that meandered it’s way through narrow little crevices until we eventually arrived at Potjiespram….a campsite along the Orange River.



Luckily for us we managed to get what I, in my opinion, think is only acceptable campsite at Potjiespram. It seems there is only one campsite that has a view of the river….the others are all surrounded by trees. Under the trees is possibly a good place to be in the heat of the summer but I prefer to be able to see the sky and the stars. Again I was not going to be able to photograph the stars. Anyway we set up camp and had a bite to eat. Luckliy our little sandy patch along the river was just big enough for our table and chairs. Birds that put in an appearance were Familiar Chats, Cape Robin-Chats, Red-eyed Bulbuls and Southern Masked Weavers. Red-knobbed Coots , Darters and a family of Shelducks bobbed down the river but stayed out of reach for any decent shots. I then went on a voyage of discovery. The ablutions were quite adequate with flush toilets and cold water showers as well as a sink for washing dishes. I walked a good distance away from camp but all that I managed to get on camera was a Familiar Chat



and at last a photo of a Orange River White-eye...not an very good one but proof that I have seen one !



I had seen many flowers on the way down to Potjiespram but they were scarce in the vicinity of the camp….these yellow “Dubbeltjies” being the only ones on offer.



I was disappointed in the fact that I had not seen one lizard, bug or butterfly in my little walkabout.
When I got back to camp it was time for a sundowner. We started off sitting on our sandy little patch to watch the sunset but the wind soon put paid to that and after taking a quick photo or two to illustrate our private little river view we moved to the braai area which was more sheltered.





The fire was lit…the Jagermeister was poured and we settled around our fire listening to the watery sounds of the Orange River….
My thoughts that night….I was not sure whether I was going to fall for this Richtersveld or not. It could very well end up being a "one night stand"…

[Michele Nel]

Thanks again for all the comments..apologies for the delay..life has been a bit hectic !!!

21 Sept
Potjiespram to De Hoop

I woke up to the chirping of birds and while I was debating whether I should get up and try and capture them on camera or whether I should just turn around and go back to sleep I heard a very distinctive bird call. Well that was enough for me to make up my mind….I was up like a shot, almost fell down the ladder( as we all know my reflexes in the morning are not of the best)grabbed my camera off the front seat and went in search of the bird. Just as I got to our private viewing point I heard it again…this is it. One amazing shot coming up !!! But where was the damn bird ….ah there it is..it couldn’t be more further away or so well hidden even if tried.
Herewith my amazing photo of a bird that can get me out of bed quicker than a cup of tea can !!!



What do you mean you can’t see a bird …look at the top of tree…believe you me that is indeed a Fish Eagle. To add insult to injury another Fish eagle dived bombed that one and they both flew away…bah !!! But it is always special to see a Fish Eagle ( remember that I do not get to Kruger that often) and even more special to hear one call ! Oh well I consoled myself with a photo of a South African Shelduck.



Then back to the tent to make a cup of tea….back to the river with the cup of tea but the Fish Eagles had disappeared never to be seen again. It was while I was sitting enjoying this peaceful scene that I felt I was being watched…no it was not Doug..he was still enjoying another peaceful scene in the rooftop. What was watching me…eventually I heard a twig snap…and yes there they were..two pairs of beady little eyes that were watching my every move. No doubt they were watching the bag of rusks on the table as well. I guess these two vervet monkeys were waiting for a bird to distract me and then they would swoop down and steal the rusks. I foiled their little plan though and put the rusks away whereupon they went off to the next campsite to harass them instead.

We had a very relaxing pack-up….it makes a change from the get up and go go go go that we do in the KTP. We probably left camp at about 10.00 and started the journey towards De Hoop Campsite.
This part of the road from Potjiespram is incredible pretty and I asked Doug to stop so I could take a photo.



But on looking at this photo I thought it did not really show the vastness of the landscape at all. Before leaving Cape Town I had read up on taking Panoramic shots and although I did not quite know what I was doing I gave it a bash anyway. Here is the result…..6 photos taken handheld in portrait and stitched together in Photoshop. I am well pleased with the result although the sky is a bit patchy. That is probably because I neglected to take the photos in manual mode. I took them in AV which caused the exposure to change slightly. Anyway at least you can sort of see what a beautiful vista I was looking at.



We continued on our way and before long I had Doug stopped again. One way to get him to stop is to say “ I think I need a photo of Monty on this road “..or something to that effect.

Be prepared for many suchlike photos…..

I then use the opportunity to see what else I can photograph..in this instance these yellow flowers nestled amongst the rocks.

[Michele Nel]

And so we meandered further into the Richtersveld…stopping here and there. Birds were few and mammals were non-existent. But worse of all I had once again caught sight of the telephone poles. I thought I had left those behind. We were driving through the Halfmens Pass ..oh yes plenty of Halfmens to be seen but in such inaccessible places. Grumble grumble grumble …the Richtersveld was not faring well with me. Eventually I saw a Halfmens fairly close to the road….so we stopped and out I hopped…..thrilled at the prospect of getting some decent photos of a Halfmens.



Within five minutes another vehicle pulled up behind Monty ...also clearly thrilled at the prospect of photographing a Halfmens. From then on every single angle I tried of the Halmens either had the head of a very chatty lady in it or…yes you guessed correctly…darn telephone poles. Yes I know I can photoshop the poles out of my photo…but I was fast approaching stubborn mode…and I really felt like photoshopping that very chatty lady clean out of the Richtersveld as well. I took a deep breath..calmed down..after all it is not all about taking photographs….and went back to Monty to fetch my Macro lens. I beat both the very chatty lady and the telephone poles at their own game…they would have a very hard job trying to get in between my macro lens and my subject.
Finally a photo of the Halfmens flowers.



And a well camouflaged lizard



And once again some flowers growing out of the rocks…



By now it was fast approaching 11h00…and the wind had picked up. In other less than ideal conditions for macro photography…so after one more shot of Monty I decided it was time to move on….without any decent shots of the halfmens.

[Michele Nel]

Our next stop was at the “ Hand of God” and ”telephone poles of Man”
The Hand of God is situated about 200m down the Oena-Mine turnoff. It is a 2 meter high image of a hand imprinted on the rock face. Local people believe it to be the Hand of God. Above it run the “telephone poles of Man” but at least this time I was able to get a photo without the telephone poles in it.



Two chattering Sunbirds came flying over and landed in the tree. I rushed back to Monty to get my other camera but all I managed was a blurry photo…it was enough to ID as a Dusky Sunbird though.
After a quick flower shoot we continued towards De Hoop



Next up was the Akkedis Pass…and once again I had my knickers in a knot . The following description that I read in the official booklet was firmly wedged in my head…..”this is the first STEEP pass with lots of SHARP turns, named after the typical walking pattern of a lizard.” Thank goodness it did not contain the other S-word….SHEER drops. I do not do sheer drops very well. Anyway to my surprise I coped pretty well with this pass. It is beautiful and I saw many beautiful things that I would have liked to photograph but I did not think it wise to ask Doug to stop on a STEEP SHARP bend. I also spent half the time stressing about what would happen if we came across a vehicle travelling in the opposite direction. We never did pass another car so all my stressing was for nothing. We did however stop somewhere near the top…here the road was flat and wide enough for another vehicle to pass…and there were no telephones poles to irritate me.



And eventually I managed to get one of these beautiful Cape Flat Lizards on camera...well sort of..



There were plenty of Rock Agamas running around but they were far too quick for me.
Back in the car and down the pass we went….a truly beautiful vista.



Again the road going down to De Hoop became non-existent in places…the upside being that the recent rain had left puddles for the birds to play in. I saw many Cape Buntings, Sparrows, Mountain Wheatears and one lonely Three Banded Plover. It really did look out of place amongst all the rocks. Luckily Doug was able to stop for me to take a photo…



We arrive at De Hoop at13h30…..

[Michele Nel]

I really must get on with this Trip Report...red face.
Thx again to all that have been reading and commenting...:)

Now if there is something that really irritates me when we arrive at a camp that we have not been to before is deciding where to pitch camp for night….but in this instance the camp was already fairly full so our options were limited. At least at De Hoop everybody has a view of the river. We finally settled on a campsite….under the watchful eye of the welcoming committee….





Anyway it did not take us long to set up camp and after a bite to eat Doug got himself settled in the shade of a tree and I took myself off on a little walk. There were quite a few birds around….a Goliath Heron, African Darters and many Cormorants but a bit too far for any decent photographs. However a Pied Wagtail came hopping along and kept me entertained for a while.



There were a fair amount of Southern Masked-Weavers around and I was soon to learn that these little birds put the monkeys to shame when it comes to thieving.



I was beginning to like this camp ...there was plenty of action to keep me happy. I was beginning to think that Richtersveld could end up being more than a one night stand.
Later on in the afternoon I started setting myself up for some sunset shots...it looked like we were in for a good one……



Well I spoke too soon and before long clouds started pouring over the mountain and it became totally overcast….the sun was definitely going to set that I was sure of …but there was no hope of me getting it on camera. I packed up the tripod...caught my finger in it which actually called for the First Aid kit ……and to prevent myself from going into serious sulk mode I sat down with a sundowner…at least I did find something to photograph. I spend a good while experimenting with different F-stops and the use of flash....





The fire was lit and the Jägermeister was poured and we managed to get the braai done before the rain came down. Yes ...it rained ….it might have only been a drizzle but it rained. I could not see a star..I could not see the moon ….again no opportunity for photographing the stars. It rained slighter harder through the night….
My thoughts as I lay in the tent listening to the rain…..fail Richtersveld…fail epic fail…..!!!!!!