:: Carnet de Voyage ::David

// Nikon D7200

Happy morning, after a pressure test of the repaired tire, looks like I did a good job last night and we didn’t lose any pressure overnight !!!
To get out of this place, I asked Mike to walk in front of the van, clearing any metallic debris from the path, we cannot take a chance to have a second flat.
From there, gravel road, a very bumpy one on the way to the mountains with a pass at nearly 2000m. The engine temp went up pretty quickly and I had to slow down the pace to keep it under control. Eiji had the same problem with his landcruiser, it looks like the strong wind in our back is messing with the cooling system in front.
The rest of the road was mostly down hill but in a pretty bad shape, and at a bottom of a ditch, I saw a big bump, too late to slow down the van (there is no way to slow down 2 tons on gravels) and we hit that bump pretty fast, and nearly went airborne ! Alright, I should be more cautious, you really have to anticipate a lot while driving this vehicle on gravel roads.

Next destination is a cheetah farm near Kamanjab. This place was recommended by a few travellers and since the cheetah is one of my favourite animal, we had to check it. Price for camping and having fun with these animals if 350nad per person. The camp itself is very nice, with a large swimming pool, fire pits everywhere and drinking water on site. The rest of the day was another surprise. Once in the farm, we met 3 cheetahs, living among the family. You can touch them, and get some very nice shots, obviously, some rules to respect. After all, they are deadly animals. Never approach them from the front when they lay on the ground, never run, no sun glasses so they can see your eyes. No eye means it’s your back, and they may attack. And most important thing, never let your kid alone running in the area.

While sitting on the ground and taking pictures, one cheetah jumped at me and started licking my arms. I was really scared, but this contact was magical at the same time, and being so intimate with this animal was an unforgettable moment.

A few hours later, we went in a trailer, driving inside a fenced area with wild cheetahs. Here, you obviously don’t step out of the vehicle, and on top of that, it’s feeding time, so don’t be the food ! Seeing these wild animals in the nature was another great experience, and we felt very lucky to be there.
A truly magical day !