A Magnificent Loop in the Southern Rainbow Nation (page 11 of 14)

Hi Isabelle,

Thanks for this beautifully detailed travel journal... I wasn’t familiar with this part of the country (except for Cape Town), and your story has made me want to explore it in the coming years. I’ll definitely be back to ask you some questions when I’m planning this future trip...😎😎😎 But before that, I’ll see you soon on the roads of Namibia this summer (it’ll be here before we know it🙂) Maybe we’ll run into each other? If not, we can swap travel journals and experiences...😉 See you soon,

Jean Luc

Sure, of course, don't hesitate if I can help you out 🙂. For Namibia, we’ll actually have the chance to meet up for 2 weeks 😎. We’ll see about the itineraries 😉.

Hello Isabelle,

It was a pleasure to follow your post—great writing and beautiful photos... even if bad lighting means you can’t expect miracles 🙂.

I don’t know the AFS yet; I usually stick to neighboring countries. But someday, I’ll definitely give in to the call of the south 😉.

Thanks again, and well done 🙂

Thanks for following along in South Africa—I can only encourage you to go check it out! 😊 But after all the wide-open spaces you’ve already explored, you might find South Africa a bit Americanized. 😄

While browsing posts and travel journals about Namibia, I came across your post from a few years back where you were planning your first trip to Southern Africa. 😮 It made me smile because it was your first time camping on the roof of a car, and you were wondering if you’d manage to pull it off. 😂

It gave me a lot of hope because this summer will be our first camping trip, and I’ll admit I’m a little nervous. 😊

Looking forward to reading about your return from the red dunes of Tadrart! 😊

Hello Isabelle,

It was a first to go camping on the roof of a car, and you were wondering if you’d manage to secure it

yeah, and I was also wondering if 2 days in Etosha wouldn’t be too long!!!! ... So many memories ... 😉

Anyway, you know the answer ... hee hee hee.

The only risk is the cold—it’s not a certainty, but it’s better to be prepared.

Hi JF,

The only risk is the cold—it’s not a certainty, but it’s better to be prepared.

What temperatures have you experienced, and how low can they drop at night without issue? Are the rooftop tents suitable for the cold? For next summer, since we’re traveling with five people, I was thinking of getting a "clamshell" rooftop tent for the two girls and a ground tent for the three boys... but this cold issue is really bugging me. Thanks!

it can easily freeze at night—back in 2017 in KTP, temperatures dropped to -2°C in the early morning.

Depending on where you're heading, it can get really cold, so make sure to pack a good sleeping bag.

Hi Régis, Thanks. Ouch, ouch. I just got back from a camping trip with temperatures dropping to -2°, -3°. It was more than borderline. Okay, it's true we had two -5° sleeping bags (comfort temperature) and two others rated for -15°. The two youngest had the -15° ones and slept really well. Maxime, with his "-5°" bag, slept like a bear, but I was waking up every time at 4 AM despite two layers on the bottom and four on top, plus a big wool hat covering up to my nose... We’ll need to invest in some quality -15° sleeping bags because bad nights due to the cold kind of ruin the camping fun. On the other hand, "canvas" tents that take 10 minutes to fold up when it’s freezing aren’t great, especially if there are two of them! This reinforces my idea of getting a pop-up tent that folds in 1 minute, and our MSR tent that packs up in 4 minutes flat.

This reinforces my idea of a pop-up tent that sets up in 1 minute

What’s a pop-up tent?

The bush campers I usually rent.

you’ll find South Africa a bit Americanized

It depends where you go...

you’ll find South Africa a bit Americanized

It depends where you go...

Yeah, of course 😂 Just bouncing off their first message where they said it felt like San Francisco 😆

Hi Guillaume,

At its coldest ... 3/4°C around 5 AM 😮

Normally, it's in southern Namibia where it gets the coldest (Sesriem), but for us, it was in Botswana at Sakhawe.

It's true that a rooftop tent doesn’t provide much insulation. 😮

You have to remember that the cold in a rooftop tent comes through the floor, so even with 3 blankets, you can still feel cold. After 2 nights, we found a solution: we unfolded emergency blankets under the mattresses, and it was immediately better. 😉

Hey Régis, Thanks. Ouch, ouch. I just got back from a camping trip where temperatures dropped to -2°, -3°. It was more than borderline. Okay, true, we had two -5° sleeping bags for comfort temperature, and two others rated for -15°. The two youngest had the -15° ones and slept really well. Maxime, with his "-5," slept like a bear, but I was waking up every time at 4 a.m. despite two layers on the bottom and four on top, plus a thick wool hat covering up to my nose... We’ll need to invest in some quality -15° sleeping bags because bad nights due to the cold really ruin the camping fun. On the other hand, canvas tents that take 10 minutes to fold up when it’s freezing aren’t great, especially if there are two of them! This just reinforces my idea of getting a pop-up tent that folds in 1 minute, and our MSR tent that packs up in 4 minutes flat.

So, this cold issue is really bugging me too 😩 I already have to deal with sleeping on the roof, unreliable showers, and now the cold 🥶 knowing my lower limit is 25°C—this is gonna be tough 😅 Okay, we were planning to invest in sleeping bags. I’ve started looking at warm and lightweight options, but I’m a bit lost since I’ve never camped before—it’s not easy. So, could you give me the reference for a good, warm sleeping bag that’s not too bulky? That’d be awesome 😊

me, waking up every time at 4 AM despite 2 layers on the bottom and 4 layers on top, plus a big wool hat covering up to my nose.

Unfortunately, dressing inside a sleeping bag isn’t effective—in fact, it’s the opposite. You should stay lightly dressed and keep the sleeping bag as close to your body as possible. If you want to add layers, do it on top of (or under) the sleeping bag.

Covering your head is essential. Another effective trick is to create a kind of "collar" at the sleeping bag’s opening (using clothes) to "seal" the air volume inside as much as possible. The coldest time is indeed just before sunrise.

Gonna have to invest in other -15°C-rated sleeping bags,

it’s never a waste 🙂.

Just remember not to leave them in their compression sacks at home. 😉

Bring reliable sleeping bags and share a tent for two. Human warmth isn’t a myth...

I have this one. It's super comfortable and quite roomy. That's why I chose it—I don't like feeling too squeezed in a sleeping bag. I've never been cold in it... even at 0°C (or lower) in the Algerian desert last week 😉

Silly question! Is it less cold sleeping in the car?

Bring reliable sleeping bags and sleep two to a tent. Body heat isn’t a myth...

Yeah, we’d already thought about that a lot 😊

Covering your head is essential

The night beanie, the adventurer's best friend in Australia?