Driving long distance.... any advice?

[Mortymoose]

Always Travel with water and a bog roll in your car.

The tar road from Keetmanshoop to Rehoboth is a narrow strip of tar and not appropriate for the traffic on it, so watch the trucks and buses....

 

[Forza]

As others has suggested, stop every 2 hours to stretch. It makes a massive difference.

Also when I hit the long road, CPT-PTA, I usually pack me padkos. I feel like stopping and eating at a wimpy or steers garage wastes quite a bit of time, anywhere between 40min-60min at every stop which can add a bit of time on your trip. Chicken Mayo on rolls does the trick for me, because you don't need to warm it up and it means only a 20min stop.

But I guess with you planning a 3 day trip, then it should be okay.

 

[KleinBoontjie]

What's the price for flying Durb -> Windhoek? Then rent car to Swakkop?

 

[Chingha]

A couple of audiobooks. Best thing ever for long distances

 

[ngoni615]

Not sure if this helps...

View attachment 1066543

damn it seems i need to keep checking their requirements. It seems like they keep changing thngs

 

[ngoni615]

What's the price for flying Durb -> Windhoek? Then rent car to Swakkop?

Flying is cheap but this is more like an adventure i have always wanted to do and then fun.... road trips are fun arent' they?

 

[Cius]

If you are not too rushed and want to do some stop overs that is a nice 4 day trip @ roughly 600KM per day. I would not drive after lunch then. However if you want to rather just reach the destination faster then I would aim for 800 to 1000 km per day but I would only try that with someone to rotate driving every 2 hours.

Personally I know of too many people driving at night that have hit animals on roads and horrific accidents and almost had it happen to me so I do not drive at night if I can at all help it. Going to durbs I found that as far as Heidelburg it is fine and well lit so I can time it for dawn as I pass there as an example.

If you do do longer days its nice to do an early session (say 2 to 3 hours), then a relaxed breakfast at 8AM or about there, then a morning session of 3 to 4 hours, then lunch, and then a short drive after lunch till you reach your destination for the night at hopefully 3 to 4PM so you can unwind a bit. While driving I try not to overeat at stops, or have carb heavy meals as that tends to make me drowsy.

That is how I would do it. Never drive if you are alone and finding yourself dropping off to sleep. Stop and do something. You can have some cold water in a cooler box or something to splash on your face as a short term measure but be very careful. Falling asleep at the wheel happens to a lot of people and some it kills. If you have someone else in the car and you are dropping off because its quiet tell them and start a conversation. You can stay awake a lot better while talking.

Then just a recommendation for Swakkop. If you are all interested in nature book a guided desert tour of the desert ecosystem. We went on an absolutely stunning one when we where there a few years back where the guy drove us out and showed the eco system from top to bottom caching (humanely and then releasing) and showing us most of the incredibly adapted creatures that live in the dunes.

Dune boarding was OK but a schlep to walk up the dune again and you get sand everywhere. Was a bit overrated. Quad bike tours are also great. Did that too (I was on an all expenses paid jaunt for my trip so costs where not a factor).

 

[Forza]

Also drive with Google Maps on the whole trip, so make sure you have a good phone holder which is on a angle where you can glance at the the maps (if you vehicle does not have satnav), as it is always good to know what the road ahead of you is like, in terms of possible turns ahead, and also helpful for notifications of possible breakdown of vehicles ahead, which could lead to a sudden stop, and for cameras on the road.

 

[ngoni615]

As others has suggested, stop every 2 hours to stretch. It makes a massive difference.

Also when I hit the long road, CPT-PTA, I usually pack me padkos. I feel like stopping and eating at a wimpy or steers garage wastes quite a bit of time, anywhere between 40min-60min at every stop which can add a bit of time on your trip. Chicken Mayo on rolls does the trick for me, because you don't need to warm it up and it means only a 20min stop.

But I guess with you planning a 3 day trip, then it should be okay.

Since i will be driving solo, i thnk 3 days should be enough to get there safely. I just need to get tested for covid19 somewhere along the way maybe around Upington when i leave.

 

[TheChamp]

A couple of audiobooks. Best thing ever for long distances

I don't know how that works but it sounds painful.

 

[ngoni615]

If you are not too rushed and want to do some stop overs that is a nice 4 day trip @ roughly 600KM per day. I would not drive after lunch then. However if you want to rather just reach the destination faster then I would aim for 800 to 1000 km per day but I would only try that with someone to rotate driving every 2 hours.

Personally I know of too many people driving at night that have hit animals on roads and horrific accidents and almost had it happen to me so I do not drive at night if I can at all help it. Going to durbs I found that as far as Heidelburg it is fine and well lit so I can time it for dawn as I pass there as an example.

If you do do longer days its nice to do an early session (say 2 to 3 hours), then a relaxed breakfast at 8AM or about there, then a morning session of 3 to 4 hours, then lunch, and then a short drive after lunch till you reach your destination for the night at hopefully 3 to 4PM so you can unwind a bit. While driving I try not to overeat at stops, or have carb heavy meals as that tends to make me drowsy.

That is how I would do it. Never drive if you are alone and finding yourself dropping off to sleep. Stop and do something. You can have some cold water in a cooler box or something to splash on your face as a short term measure but be very careful. Falling asleep at the wheel happens to a lot of people and some it kills. If you have someone else in the car and you are dropping off because its quiet tell them and start a conversation. You can stay awake a lot better while talking.

Then just a recommendation for Swakkop. If you are all interested in nature book a guided desert tour of the desert ecosystem. We went on an absolutely stunning one when we where there a few years back where the guy drove us out and showed the eco system from top to bottom caching (humanely and then releasing) and showing us most of the incredibly adapted creatures that live in the dunes.

Dune boarding was OK but a schlep to walk up the dune again and you get sand everywhere. Was a bit overrated. Quad bike tours are also great. Did that too (I was on an all expenses paid jaunt for my trip so costs where not a factor).

Very useful thank you man. I have never been to Nams before. Hows safety? Is it safe to drive around namibia especially swak and Windhoek? I will be likely driving alone so i will be taking necessary precautions. I am also really worried about falling asleep on the wheel because i have heard it happens in a short period of time and then kaboom. So i try to drive when i am energetic.

 

[ngoni615]

Also drive with Google Maps on the whole trip, so make sure you have a good phone holder which is on a angle where you can glance at the the maps (if you vehicle does not have satnav), as it is always good to know what the road ahead of you is like, in terms of possible turns ahead, and also helpful for notifications of possible breakdown of vehicles ahead, which could lead to a sudden stop, and for cameras on the road.

Sweet. already have google maps i will also try and download offline maps just in case i lose signal along the way.

 

[Mortymoose]

Very useful thank you man. I have never been to Nams before. Hows safety? Is it safe to drive around namibia especially swak and Windhoek? I will be likely driving alone so i will be taking necessary precautions. I am also really worried about falling asleep on the wheel because i have heard it happens in a short period of time and then kaboom. So i try to drive when i am energetic.

Namibia is generally a safe place with friendly people across the entire demographic spectrum. As with most places in the world, be aware of your surroundings, I found Swakopmund very safe but cannot say the same for Walvis Bay!

My recent roadtrip to Swakopmund.....

https://mybroadband.co.za/forum/threads/moose-goes-to-swakopmund.1133859/

 

[Pegasus]

No i am not planning on driving all night but i was hoping to cover ground as much as possible. Atleast i have cruise control. So i can just hit n3 and lock in at 100 or 120km.

110 is a good speed. Any faster and you have to focus harder, making you tired quicker.

Don't take chances when overtaking, especially when you cant see far enough ahead. Eg , a turn or hill ahead.

Find a few sights / monuments / shops etc that you'd like to check out on a break. Reboots the brain.

Keep the inside of your car clean.

Make sure you have the number of the AA, or whoever you have to phone for a breakdown.

Have R1000 or so in cash in case you have to use it to pay somewhere where your CC doesnt work.

Stay somewhere overnight.
1000km or more a day is tiring, unless you are twenty something. Then you can try 1600 in a day.

Drink water. Don't pee into the wind.

 

[Foxhound5366]

Question: how will you be keeping your phone charged? If it's plugged into your car while you're driving, then take two cables (cables can fail and you don't want to lose weight our comms). If it doesn't plug in, then get the big Romoss battery bank (20 000mah) for around R700 ... that'll keep you going the whole trip.

 

[one poster]

Enjoy the journey.

Do a bit of pre-planning (checking distances between towns/places on the map to not run out of fuel) (in SA there are very few places where there is not a next dorpie within 60km or so - Namibia is a beeeeg place).

Especially in Namibia do not plan to drive your tank to almost empty believing you will get petrol at your next stop - fill up when you can (have not been in Namibia for a couple of years, but smaller places cash seemed preferred for petrol).

Both SA and Namibia - when not in an actual city, try to not drive when dark (hitting a Kudu/Oryx @ >40km/h will do serious damage). If driving in the dark is absolutely unavoidable - slow down (<80km/h).

With all due respect to the Namibian roads department I found their decision on where to use solid white lines somewhat strange (my personal opinion is that a broken white line on a Namibian tar road was a cost saving way of painting a solid white line ...i.e. make very sure you can see very far ahead before overtaking).

Take a break every couple of hours (do not wait till you feel sleepy - fatigue is like altitude sickness, by the time you have it, you are already making crap decisions and unlikely to then actually do the right thing).

When taking a break, walk around your car, check tyres etc.

Take a 500ml bottle of water and a small lappie/face cloth/piece of old t-shirt - when taking a break or generally needed wet said lappie and scrub some of the bug splatter of the windscreen (wet the lappie - do not pour water over windscreen) - then use windscreen wash/wipe once or twice to get a nice clean windscreen. (this will be especially appreciated when perhaps needing to drive after dark and vision is already affected by oncoming lights).

Refill your winscreen washer tank when you refill with petrol. (petrol in petrol tank...water in window washer tank.. )

When perhaps driving the dirt roads - take it easy, most of the dirt roads are (were?) better to drive than many SA tar roads meaning you often end up driving faster than you intended and can get caught out by some loose gravel/sand.

If travelling on a dirt road (especially some of the dustier ones), when an oncoming vehicle has passed be aware that you may struggle to see the road/other vehicles (slow down if needed but don't just jump on the brakes and completely stop).

Support local business (don't try to take all your supplies from SA side).

Enjoy the multitude of colours of the landscape.

Enjoy the journey.

 

[WaxLyrical]

Do most of your driving on day 1 when energy and alert levels are at max.

Where you planning the stay overs?

 

[scudsucker]

Since i will be driving solo

I suggest borrowing a 2-4 year old child to accompany you. It will really make the trip memorable.

 

[ponder]

Service the car and check your tyres before you go.

If you gonna service the car do it at least a week or two beforehand so any possible niggles can be caught well in advance...

 

[ponder]

Don't forget your passport.

That made me see red. Years ago we were supposed to travel through Swaziland and my passengers forgot theirs at home so I had to drive all the way around...