2023 Namaqualand Tour

[Trolly Fan]

This was arguably one of the best tours I have been on.
Mainly for two reasons, good company, and a well researched trip

I am using words sparingly, as I am myself not a keen reader of someone else's detail.
From 30 March to 10 April, this included the following:
1. Wild camping in Gorge near orange river (West of Pella)
2. Drive through 'Boesmanland', wild camping Bolder camp (somewhere between Steinkopf en Vioolsdrif)
3. Two nights camping at Vioolsdrif, with some canoeing on Orange river
4. Drive through parts of Richtersveld and wild camping in Holgate (somewhere North East of Port Nolloth)
5. Drive to Kleinzee and stay at Houthoop, with a few days of coastal driving, shipwrecks and beach picnic) - there are some wild camping spots in this area too
6. Drive back Eastwards to camp wild on the Orange river bank

I am deliberately not giving locations, given that this is a public domain. Some places still have 'halfmens' plants, which are under serious threat of poaching.
But the same tour (Berg & Spergebiedt) can be booked through African expeditions (link below).

The landing page of this site, currently includes the happy faces of this same trip!
https://africanexpeditions.co.za/
The trip can be done with trailers, but ideally not.

Casualties:
Remarkably little. One aircon gone (this time not mine), and the guide's one shock came out. Bad fitment.

[Bugjuic]

Dit lyk nou na 'n baie lekker trip!

Ek neem aan jy het dit met african expeditions gedoen, hoe was die ondervinding? Aanbeveel? Sou jy dit aleen kon doen sonder 'n gids, toegang ens? En wat is die voor en nadele?

Nog nooit saam 'n toer gegaan nie

Mooi fotos!

[HenriSteyn]

Thanks for this report. Sounds like a great tour and a great time was had.

Bucket list!

[Trolly Fan]

Dit lyk nou na 'n baie lekker trip!

Ek neem aan jy het dit met african expeditions gedoen, hoe was die ondervinding? Aanbeveel? Sou jy dit aleen kon doen sonder 'n gids, toegang ens? En wat is die voor en nadele?

Nog nooit saam 'n toer gegaan nie

Mooi fotos!

Ja, its African expeditions. Well, you know the sorry tale of the 10 Patrols that went on safari in Botswana in 2018?
Same people, but the complete opposite experience. In 2018, 4 of the 10 were towed, mainly clutch related, a lot of rain and a lot of mud. But the general levels of stress 'then made it a bad experience for everyone.

For this trip, it was definitely worth the money. The first wild camping spot (near Orange river) is only accessible with this guide. The last camping spot next to the Orange river is publicly available, but is no advertised as the owner want to avoid riff-raff. He does not need the money. So you could say it is pretty much the guide's connections that made it possible.
The other two wild camping spots I can give you co-ordinates, but not in public, as rare Namaqua plants are being poached in the area. It is a big problem.

Our previous (2022) trip through Botswana, Caprivi and Khaudum was all self planned and worked very well. But the amount of R&D required to make it a success was very time consuming. In this case the guide was worth every penny.

[Anthony Forgey]

Looks awesome. I think its the same trip Bernie Williams took recently. It looks like a very nice trip... and no passport needed!