Our lion ordeal spurred on our drive to spot a big cat. From that point forward every impala, wildebeest and zebra was nothing more than future cat food with Shea and I fantasizing about lion attacks unfolding before our eyes. We headed west into the heart of the Moremi Wildlife Reserve to a spot known as Third Bridge (Botswanans are very good at counting). We’d been told there were a pride of lions in the area and were lusting for a big cat sighting. It turns out the “Bridge” part of Third Bridge is a bit of an embellishment. Getting into the camp requires either a vehicle with a snorkel or an extra high clearance Land Cruiser with a lunatic American at the wheel.
Our trip to Third Bridge was the closest we’ve come to rally driving with more sand-track than we could have imagined, but still not a single lion spotting. It was time to head back to Maun for a breather and a shower. We’d lost the element of surprise. The lions could smell us coming.
Bubbles was in need of a bit of TLC* by the time we got back to civilization. We had blown a couple fuses, a spark plug cable had come loose under the bonnet, one of the engine hoses was looking dicey and the exhaust needed a bit of a weld. Luckily we found a great bunch of mechanics at Fika Trading Automotive Mechanics that sorted us out. We also acquired a rim for our rooftop spare tyre from the guys at TyreMax.
The next stop was Savuti campsite where we befriended a pair of Doctors (Paul and Beck) from Germany and Netherlands, respectively. They joined us for a late evening game drive where we tested the spotlights, the most epic thing short of the apocalypse. Still no cats but two hyena sightings and a puff-adder. It was on this trip to Savuti that the issues with Bubbles’ wiring started. By the time we got to Chobe Safari Lodge we had lost our fuel gauge, the radio and the ability to engage the reserve fuel tank. We tried to patch the issue with a bush mechanic in Kasane but only managed to conclude that diagnosing the cause of the problem was going to be a much bigger job. We’d been told Jolly Boys Backpackers, in Livingstone, was an oasis of sorts so we decided to push through into Zambia in search of a proper mechanic that could help us out.
*TLC: Tender Love and Care
Joburg to Scotland 