I got going at 5:50am because I was picking up Liz from the airport who was meant to arrive at 6:15am. However the Singapore airline flights had been arriving early some as early as 5:30am. I was on the way to the airport when Liz rang to tell be she was waiting at the airport. I got into the P1 parking area (open air so I can fit Clancy in), and Liz and I found each other. So we loaded up and headed south to join the N3 towards Durban. It was a good drive. We got to Harrismith and went shopping at Checkers for supplies and then headed for Mt Everest Game Farm.
We got through two security gates to get in. We camped up the hill in the camping area with no power, but an ablution block. There are various animals wandering around Mt Everest. We walked around and saw various antelopes, zebra, wildebeest, Ostriches with great views of the mountains behind. We spent two nights at Mt Everest.
Mt Everest is a climbing destination. There were meant to be a large group of climbers arriving when we stayed, however they cancelled because of expected rain. We did see some climbers up the mountain.
Camped at Mt Everest Game FarmZebra at Mt Everest Game FarmA male and female OstrichWildebeest at Mt EverestEagle Mountain
The next ten days were spent fixing things. I needed to replace the 7 year old AGM batteries with new LiFePo batteries. As well I replaced the tail lights with new ones. Topped up diff oils, greased the tail-shaft. I also spent a couple of days building a new bike rack at the rear to hold two bikes.
Taking out the old corroded tail-lights after 7 years
Installing a replacement door lock
Building a new bike rackTwo new tail-lights plus a relocated diesel heater tank
I arrived in South Africa 9pm September 7th 2026. At the campground Clancy is stored at David had started up the camper and shifted near the kitchen. After a chat with Marion and David, I started removing all the stuff jammed in the camper so I could make room to sleep. The inside was musty and dusty, but sleep I did. I decided I needed two days to get everything ready for a run to the Botswana border to get a new TIP (Temporary Import Permit). My existing TIP had been extended by six months but was still expiring on the 19th September, so I had to drive to Botswana cross the border, then come back into South Africa and get a new TIP.
After two days I set off on September 10th towards Botswana and made it after 260km to Hunters Moon a campsite east of Zeerust. Hunters Moon was a nice campsite. It had big lawns and a river. The couple running it had built it up over recent years. It was cheap at 100Rand a night (about $A9).
camped at Hunters Moon east of Zeerust
The next day I headed west towards Zeerust. I had a leaking alternator oil return hose. I thought I had a spare but two searches had failed to find it (about two weeks later I found it stored in an electrical spares box!) . So I went to the Toyota dealer in Zeerust to see if they had a replacement. No luck they showed it out of production. They sent be to a spares place in a side street. They sold me hose, but told me that they couldn’t sell be connectors, they sent me to a place that did hydraulic hose replacements for earthmoving machinery. When I visited them a very helpful guy told be he could make the hose. So I removed the hose from the alternator and gave it to him. I watched him make the replacement hose. With a bit more cutting it fitted, and I had solved the oil leak. He charged me $A5 while the original Toyota part costs $A55.
Removing the alternator return hose in the yard to use it to make a replacement in Zeerust
I then headed north to a little border post north of the N4, at Swartkopfontein. This border crossing did not go well. The cop decided I did not have the right paperwork and made me follow him 40km north to the Tlokweng border port. There was a lot of back and forth and eventually I got released to Botswana with a fine. Then it was 9pm at night. I got through a very busy Botswana border post and then made another mistake. I exited the Botswana border post and headed along a road. It was confusing there were trucks queued along what I thought was a service road, and I was on the main road. I was very wrong, I was driving on the wrong side of the road, and along came a police car to confirm that. I followed him back to the Police Station in the border crossing to be given a 1,000 pula fine (about $A105). Eventually I got on the road again to arrive at Gaberone backpackers at 10:30pm at night.
The next morning I headed for the South African border wondering after all the problems yesterday if I would be able to get a new TIP. When I got to the border it was a long search to find anyone in customs. However after a bit of a delay I got my new TIP and was on my way. I headed again for Hunters Moon, and got there late afternoon. The next day was an uneventful drive back to the campsite in Benoni in Johannesburg.
