Game Over: The end

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“The time has come, my little friends, to talk of other things”. For me, it was time to say goodbye to absolute indulgence and return to the real world. A date was set, Brett would meet me in the Karoo for a last gasp of holiday bliss before the final leg over the pass to Knysna. Like a horse who knows when they’ve turned for home, the appeal of dilly dallying faded. Time to brave the Beitbridge boarder and take the great N1 home.

After months of dry, hot weather, Joburg welcomed me with a storm. What a shock to the system. Traffic and rain, not a good combination. A quick check in with Claire, Ashly and their clans before heading on.

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How to get back into the real world rhythm according to Jack Mitchell. A crazy Jack Russel inhertieted from my Dad, Jack has a death wish. His wish is to die hunting, everything that moves is fair game. This time he was on the sharp end of a baboon. A few stitches later and a 24 hour rest he was ready to go again. Jack Russel…………………………..The compromise the view from the cottage stoep is usually good enough to right most irritations.

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Willowmore to Knysna, via the Prince Albert pass, on a Public holiday, in December. Not the most thought out decision. It’s a narrow gravel track, beautiful but not suited to low slung BMWs with sun roofs. 20km/hr is too slow, even for me. I can’t believe they chose the route. Perhaps its like a revenge of the Garmin horror story. Shortest route…………….Not without a Florence.

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People often ask what the highlight of my travels has been. It’s impossible to answer. Everything I set out to do I did. Every experience was a treat. But for every Beauty there must be a beast. From a personal perspective, when Brett said I should use the land cruiser I was hesitant. I’ve never really liked the car but boy am I pleased Florence was the chosen one. She seriously is a machine. The beast however, is her thirst. Flip………..she is nothing short of an alcoholic in a brewery. But, she compensates in 100% reliability and go anywhere capability.

Malawi’s beauty needs no explanation. The beast lies in taking for granted that the beauty will always be there and be enough. The beast photo above is of the the next door bay to the beauty. The transition line is fragile to say the least. Hopefully the Beauty has enough power, even if it is just in the form of tourist dollar, to beat the beast.

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In Zambia the problem is a lot more complex. The beast has been invited in and comes in the form of a world super power. China. The insidious take over on multiple levels is obvious. Mineral resources, Timber and and and. Massive walled cities, entire hospitals, schools and shops in every village mark their presence. I fear this beast will not let go until it has feasted and had its full.

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Interesting numbers

• 15 522 km traveled
• 110 Days
• 2518 litres  petrol
• ZAR 6460 road taxes and border crossings
• 14 Border post crossings
• 5 Countries visited
• 9 Zambezi River crossings 5 different bridges
• 0 Zero, nothing not one, tyre change
• 0 Zero, nothing, not one, mechanical problems
• 0 Zero, unpleasant encounters at road blocks or border
• Still collating bird lists. Probably around 450 plus ticks
• Loads of interesting people, places and experiences
• Exponential……………need to appreciate every opportunity

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Home again in my place. Work starts again 2 January. Time to say thanks to all the friends and family who joined me on this odyssey. Thanks to you for reading along and a massive thanks to Brett for allowing me the unconditional space to pursue a dream.

This is Gailo signing off…………..That’s all folks………………The end.