|  Author | Topic: 4 Corners - October 2008 (Read 412 times) |
johangt
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Karma: 0 |  | 4 Corners - October 2008
« Thread Started on Feb 11, 2008, 8:47pm » | |
While at a club meeting some members got the award for doing the 4 corners of South Africa and there and then I decided to try this as well.
Ina is studying and she goes to our daughter in Stellenbosch once a year before the exams for a period of 3 weeks. I thought I would do the trip in these three weeks. But when Ina heard about it, she said that she has also not seen many of the places along this route - so I am fortunate enough to have company on this epic trip.
We have some parameters that we have to keep in mind:
10 September to the end of the month Ina will be joining our daughter in Stellenbosch to study for the exams
Ina writes exams from 8 - 14 October
The flowers in Namakwaland is beautiful end August and September
Malaria is at its lowest during August through October and with my spleen that has been removed I cannot afford this illness
Try and use as little leave as possible
Limit the length of the sections as not to get Ina fed-up with the trip AND give us enough time to visit places along the route that we have not visited before
So it looks like the best time for this trip is during the beginning of October when my Sarbanes Oxley year-end testing will be something of the past.
My first task is to identify the 4 corners on my GPS.
The next task is to identify the places we would like to see
Then identify the routes we will follow
Lastly divide the route into small sections for petrol and overnight purposes.
I will be making use of this web site extensively to draw from the experiences of the experienced travellers!
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Dani
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Karma: -1 |  | Re: 4 Corners - September 2008
« Reply #1 on Feb 24, 2008, 8:58pm » | |
Surely a trip to look forward to!
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leroy
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Karma: -1 | | Re: 4 Corners - October 2008
« Reply #2 on Apr 3, 2008, 8:58am » | |
Sounds like a nice ride. Limit your daily distances to less than 500kms - gives you enough spare time along the way, sight seeing time, etc, and will also keep Ina happy. Personally when we travel we rarely do more than 500kms per day. Also travel 3 days, lay over 1 day. LeRoy.
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steyngert
Paddlefoot
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Location: Moreletapark
Karma: 0 | | Re: 4 Corners - October 2008
« Reply #3 on May 26, 2008, 10:45am » | |
It is a fantastic trip - did it at the end of March. Some experience gained from our trip:
We did the trip over 11 days (10 nights), and due to some technical difficulties on my clutch on one day and with a tire on one of the other bikes on the following day, we only did 600km's over these few days. The result was that the other days was just a tad too long. I would also recommend 500km trips - BUT try and get 1500km under the belt in the first two days. From Gauteng to Alexanderbay the roads are straight, fairly good and extremely monotonous. Don't waste too much time on these roads. The other bit that I found quite boring was from Ermelo up to Polokwane. In my humble opinion the worst road in SA. Very little that it offers in terms of scenery, there are trucks, bad drivers and potholes. Try and get this over as quickly and painlessly as is possible.
Allow yourself, after you have planned the whole trip, an extra day that can be taken whenever you want to (or need to, should you have any mechanical difficulties. Yes, I know, we ride BMW's, and it should not happen, but the unforeseen is a funny thing...).
Try not to book your accommodation in advance. At this time of year, you are pretty sure to find accommodation easy enough. Rather have a list of possibles with telephone numbers. Should you decide to spend more time at a destination, or decide to press on a bit, at least there are no deposits to worry about etc.
200km's before breakfast. Try and start your day early with a cup of coffee and a rusk. Drive then to a destination approximately 200km's before you have a leisurely breakfast. In this manner, you get a lot of riding done before the day even starts, and the rest of the day is very relaxing and you are never pressed for time or kilometers. Stop and take enough pictures! We were four riders, and took about 600 pics between us. Even that did not do justice to the beauty of the country or the trip. Let your wife practice taking pictures while driving. A decent camera will produce decent pictures at a decent speed.
Wear cycle shorts underneath your pants! Enough said...
The tip that I was given years ago for traveling internationally applies to motorcycle trips as well: When you have taken all the clothes that you think you need for the trip, place them on your bed. Alongside this, put all the money you intend spending on the trip. Then you halve the amount of clothes and double the amount of money. Then you should be OK!
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RichardH
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Karma: 2 | | Re: 4 Corners - October 2008
« Reply #4 on Jun 5, 2008, 9:07pm » | |
Go for it...! 
I have also added my bit to the Long Distance Riding Body of Knowledge - see elsewhere on this site.
To my reckoning, the trip would go very well in around 18 days - a week more than we did. With a stop for washing every three days, one should be much better off than we were (luggage space wise). This is important when you have a pillion and even more so if your pillion is of the fairer sex...
The most important thing is not the itinerary, the route, the rate or the cost - the real reason is THE RIDE. Having just returned from 11 days in the saddle and with the circulation in our buttocks just returning, I realised that if someone suggested we have the bikes checked out and serviced to start it all over again next week, I would have done it all over again. To the delight of my bank manager and the relief of my wife, nobody did suggest it... 
 But there's always next year...!
WATCH THIS SPACE...!
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enduro
Paddlefoot
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Karma: 0 | | Re: 4 Corners - October 2008
« Reply #5 on Jun 6, 2008, 11:37pm » | |
I am planning on doing this trip in Sept. Can i also draw on the experiences of those who have done it? Buccaneer and I had planned to do the trip this year and a few of us are going to do it in his memory. Anyone got exact routes and directions and any tips of where you stayed etc? Am looking at details ?
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Dani
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