Suzuki Safari - Searching for Namakwaland Flowers
Around the beginning of September is when the spring season starts. Accompanied by the spring season, the Namakwaland flower season starts. This is a South African event that many adventurers love to follow and make a trip out of. Suzuki South Africa invited us along to search for the blooming Namakwaland Flowers with their Suzuki Safari.
The adventure started in Upington where we would collect our adventure vehicles for this trip. This time we would be spending some quality time in the Suzuki Ignis. We had the blue-ish 1.2 GLX model. Day 1 saw us embark at Upington Airport and head 600km west, towards and past Springbok until we would reach our trip’s accommodation of ‘Die Houthoop” near the town of Kleinsee. For those who know the Northern Cape, it is pretty flat and the roads are very straight. We finally turn off the tar road and start our first leg of gravel driving.
After much of the emptiness of the Northern Cape, we headed down the beautiful ‘Spektakle Pass’ as the sun was low in the sky and we reached ‘Die Houthoop’. We enjoyed a beautiful sunset and dinner at the rustic accommodation.
Day 2 - Today was the day we would be in awe. We headed north towards the town of Nababeep. This once thriving mining hub of the De Beer family is now a forgotten little town. Just outside the town, we drove into a valley of beautiful orange flowers which carpeted the floor. We successfully found the blooming Namakwland flowers and like typical tourists, we frolicked in the flowers and captured some bright and colourful pictures. We then headed into town to the local museum where they would give us a brief tour of the town and how the mining systems work. I highly recommend visiting the town of Nabebeep and the museum to learn about and support this fascinating little town. We ended the day in the town of Kleinsee, another small abandoned town which once housed 4’000 people and now has a dwindling population of 800 people. To reach the Kleinsee Angling Club, we had a bit of sand driving to do. The tires were deflated to 1.4 bar and using a bit of momentum we managed to clear the small sandy segments. Pretty impressive for a non-4x4 vehicle!
After devouring a delicious seafood platter, catered by Chef Jackie the night before, day 3, your last day of the trip would start. We packed our bags and JJ, our tour guide, would take us to the end destination of Garies. We left Kleinzee and stayed on the gravel road. We drove over the escarpment via the ‘Wildeperdehoek’ Pass. This beautiful pass goes through the Namkwaland National Park and gives you a breathtaking view of the landscape. We managed to spot a herd of 13 Oryx (Gemsbokke) galloping over the horizon. The surrounding area still shows traces of the ox-wagon routes which the early settlers made use of to navigate between the riverbeds and escarpment of the inland-to-coast route. 40km further we arrived at the tarmac and we would stay on this smooth and comfortable surface until Garies and then later Cape Town.
This trip just proves that you don’t need a big, fuel-inefficient, kitted offroad rig to explore our beautiful country. Yes, you are limited, the front-wheel drive drivetrain does mean you will have to stick to flats-ish, compact gravel and the ground clearance of 180mm is also a limiting factor. This Suzuki Ignis is a Cross-Over vehicle and will help you cross and explore the country on a budget. Pricing at R236 900, it is a great daily car which will not only get you to and from work but if that travel bug bites, then it can be there to assist you as well.
Thank you to the Suzuki team, Cars.co.za and African Expedition for another amazing Suzkuki Safari and for showing us what beauty lies in South Africa.
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Негізгі бет Автокөліктер мен көлік құралдары Namaqualand Flower Season with a Suzuki Ignis | Northern Cape
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