Clansthal

22nd April

This caravan park is certainly an eyeopener, even sports a fellow with a mullet!  Beautiful beach though just 100 m down the road but are there no longer restrictions about how far you may build from the high water mark?

Scottburg just 5 k's down the road is amazing in that it seems to have somehow avoided the 3rd world invasion that's happened in so many other places.  Also a stunning beach protected by a rocky point, tried to go body boarding there this morning but the north-easter was cranking and the water resembled a washer.  Spent 4 hours atlassing in Vernon Crookes Nature Reserve yesterday, stunning day but unfortunately the aliens are gradually taking over - plants that is!  One spectacle was that there were dozens of these scattered throughout the grassland.

Brunsvigia grandiflora, the giant candalabra flower.  Some days are harder to fill than others and I do tend to get tired of my own company, amazing how quickly you drop off everyone's radar.  However the park also boats the Chief's Cabin, a pub and grill which I occasionally visit, though bar prices are a bit above my income level.  Stiill have to find the next stop and somewhere over the long weekend in May, no hurry though.

Queensburgh

100 days of the year gone!  Have now been homeless for over 2 weeks and am looking forward to moving on.  Spent last Sunday down the south coast checking van parks and it appears that most of them are into ripping everyone off.  In one place the rate goes from R200 a day to R800 at peak periods and the long weekend coming up on 1st May is peak.  So have chosen a more reasonable place called Green Point in Clansthal just beyond Umkomaas.  Plan to spend the rest of April there then find another further along.  A lot of them offer monthly winter rates at very reasonable prices.  Reckon on spending winter in KZN then skip what used to be Transkei and get down towards East London for spring.  Guess that means I'm going south, though I still like the idea of winter in Kruger..............next year perhaps.

Going to try and load a picture, hold thumbs.

The Beast.

Will download some interior pics which are still on the camera and include them with the next post.  I thought this was going to be a gentle lifestyle but it's all pretty hectic.  Assumed that as in the old days when you moved to another province you needed to change registration so went up to Joburg on Monday and only had to go back to the Licencing dept. 3 times...............you will never do it once.  First was to collect the forms, the second was to check whether everything was in order - no the letter from my sister wasn't an official affidavit - third time lucky only I didn't have a copy of my ID, so had to gallop across the road to have one made at the local take away!  I then inquired about getting new registration and licences for the vehicles only to be told that I didn't have to - wasted trip to Joburg, as I could have done it all here.  Still it was nice to see Beth and Pete.  On the way back I stopped at the Vaal One-stop for a pee only to be accosted by a seedy looking individual looking for a lift for himself and his wife - you can hop in the back mate and the cab stays locked.  A pair of the herd of so-called poor whites who head to Durbs for the winter.  Hope they're not mistaken for foreigners.

Have been having problems getting the satellite dish working and the fridge never switches off so have a couple of technicians coming today who will hopefully sort it.  Was also in a quandry about where to go next and actually woke myself up fretting, then remembered a line from a new song from our very own immortal Jack Parrow - Google him - "If life gives you lemons, cut a hole and f--- it."

Off I go

On Monday 30th March I trundled the Beast down the road to Queensburgh Caravan Park, motorbike and all.  I unhitched and started to play with my giant radio controlled toy driving it back and forth with the attached "movers" until I heard a bang and the front end sagged.  Obviously hadn't tightened the jockey wheel shaft enough and now my van is praying to Allah.  No worries I'll jack it up using the front stabilizers, yeah well exactly 90 seconds later I bathed in sweat as the beast is a bitch to lift.  Just got that sorted when I hit another snag.  The soil on the site was soft in one section and the jockey wheel ploughed a huge furrow before bringing everything to a grinding halt.  Fortunately the owner, Pieter, came by and said he'd round up some labour to help.  It took four of them to lift it enough to allow me to drive the thing snug up to a wall so that the tent would be on the site and not in the road.  Once they had all departed and I'd had a shower to cool off, I decided to try putting up the awning.  What I had forgotten is that the poles are stored across the front of the van in a locker..............which was now so close to the wall I couldn't get the sodding things out.  I slept on it!  Actually it was my second night in the van the first being on Sunday in the Turners garden where I was storing the thing.  The shower has now become the store-room but it is nice to have somewhere close at hand to empty the bladder at night.

The following day I told Pieter the sad story and though he frowned a lot said he would be round after lunch.  As they'd had previous practice it only took one move to get it where the poles could be extracted and I soon had Pieter giving me a lesson on how to put the awning up............I didn't have the  heart to tell him I owned a van for 5 years in a previous life.  So now it's time to try and remember where I stowed everything when I moved in.  Have a TV and PVR which is still loaded with recordings from months back so have something to watch but am waiting for the Easter rush to have a snoop and see which is the best satellite set-up.  Will be here for another week then it's off to the coast somewhere - still wondering whether to go north or south.  I was afraid the this outfit would be a lot of PT and it is proving to be just that so will probably drop anchor for a month in the next spot.  I do still think that a camper would be a better idea but it is not as flexible.  Not in any hurry though.