Innholdsfortegnelse for October 2016 i Caravan and Outdoor Life

A couple of days into spring, I was approached by a South African morning television show and asked to appear in a segment to talk about camping. It was a pretty spur-of-the-moment arrangement, so my colleague and I were not given very clear briefs on what we should prepare, or what to expect. On our arrival at the studio, we were told that the interview would be about how the warmer weather this time of year tempts people to head into nature – in other words, to go camping. This sounded fantastic: a chance to promote the outdoor lifestyle on television! Then they added that they wanted to focus on the new gadgets, gear and equipment for camping, and how they make the outdoors feel a little more like home.…

There are two ways of travelling: you hit the road and take the fastest, straightest route to your destination; or you take your time on the scenic route, and experience whatever you find along the way. And, let me tell you, if you take the second option when you travel along Route 62 in the Cape, it will stay etched in your memory forever. This route, which (in my humble opinion) leaves the Garden Route standing in the dust, starts in Cape Town and winds through numerous rural towns before ending in Port Elizabeth. The names of the towns roll off your tongue like a song of the road: Worcester, Robertson, Ashton, Montagu, Barrydale, Ladismith, Zoar, the historic hamlet of Amalienstein, Calitzdorp, and on to Oudtshoorn. Sadly, my partial exploration…

If fishing is your thing, then look no further than Wonderland Family Break-Away and Fishing, which is situated on the Boschkop Road south of Pretoria. This resort, which is situated on the Wonderland farm, offers camping, day visits, a playground for children, and the option of fishing in five dams and the Boschkop River. Owner Henk Janse van Rensburg has been living on the farm for over a quarter of a century. As he is a family man and a passionate fisherman, Henk developed Wonderland with its five dams specifically so that families could camp, enjoy the surrounding bushveld, and enjoy some fishing. The series of dams is fed by the crystal-clear Boschkop River which originates as a spring about a kilometre upstream from the dams. Oh, the joys of…

During my years at Caravan and Outdoor Life, I have taken a Jurgens Penta on a couple of extended trips, so I was intrigued when I was asked to pick up an interesting new concept from Kempton Caravans in Edenvale. It’s called the Jurgens Penta KC. If you’re wondering, KC stands for ‘Kitchen Conversion.’ Kempton Caravans manager, Clive van der Vyver, took me on a one-on-one with the Penta KC. At first it looked like the standard Penta that I had taken on previous trips, but the moment Clive opened the door, I realised that this was a lot more than just a ‘kitchen conversion’! The guys at Kempton Caravans have taken the standard Penta and turned it into something truly special. As Clive explains, ‘We really do listen carefully…

Driving a vehicle this big for the first time is daunting; and before I had even put it into first, I was wondering how I was going to manage reversing if we were to stop at small campsites… or, even more stressful, having to do U-turns. But after an introduction and explanation by the friendly people at Maui Motorhome Rental on how everything works, I hit the road, and soon realised that the task was not going to be as hard as I had thought. The six-speed manual gearbox responds fast, even for a diesel. And the power is impressive, especially taking into account the amount of weight that is put onto this Iveco chassis. This is a four-berth motorhome, consisting of two double beds, two dinette areas, a kitchenette…

One of the items on our bucket list is to tour Namibia, and after looking at the amount of dirt-road travelling we would be doing, I concluded that a camper trailer would be more suitable than our 2004 Jurgens Fleetline. So, the planning began! As I did not want to build from scratch, there was a long and hard search for a trailer that I could use as a base, until I came across a second-hand Challenger with 14” tyres. I then drew up plans, searched the internet and borrowed ideas from others who had done similar projects, before deciding on the final plan. I removed the lid and built a steel structure using 38mm square tubing. This was secured by bolting it onto the lip of the trailer, with…

Ginger-flavoured Sosaties (Makes about 8 sosaties) Ingredients: 500g rump steak, cut into 3cm cubes Green pepper, red pepper, yellow pepper Babymarrow Red onion Marinade: 2 tbsp finely chopped fresh ginger ½ tsp cayenne pepper 2 tbsp red wine vinegar 3 tbsp fresh lemon juice Salt and pepper, to taste Method: 1. For the marinade, mix all the ingredients together and pour over the steak cubes. 2. Cover and marinate in the fridge for 2-3 hours, turning occasionally. 3. Thread meat onto skewers, alternating with pepper, babymarrow and onion. 4. Braai over moderate coals for about 15 minutes until done, turning and basting with marinade. Serve immediately. Beer Potbrood Ingredients: 500g self-raising flour 1/2 teaspoon salt 20-30ml sugar 1 egg 340ml beer Method: 1. Mix all the dry ingredients together. 2.…

SETUP AT THE PRESS OF A BUTTON My wife and I tow an Echo 3 off-road trailer, bought new in 2008, behind our Land Rover Defender. As retirees who are not in any hurry to reach our destination, we love this combination. The only disadvantage was the rooftop tent with the side tent and L-shaped veranda which took a lot of time to pitch and fold away, taking into consideration that the underside of the floor of the side tent was usually wet and had to be dried before it could be folded away. With time on our side, we conducted a fair amount of research and were amazed by an article on the quick-pitching ability of the Bundutec rooftop tent. This rooftop tent has an electrically operated motor and…

SILWERSTRAND CARAVAN PARK, ROBERTSON The Silwerstrand Caravan Park on the banks of the Breede River, in Robertson, is a private resort roughly an hour-and-a-half’s drive from Cape Town. The well-known Montagu Caravan Park now owns Silwerstrand. All the sites are grassed, and nearly all have shade. Each site has access to electricity, braai facilities and shared drinkable water points. As it’s on the Breede River, it’s an ideal place for fishing, canoeing and waters sports. The resort is literally a minute’s drive from Robertson and its shops, restaurants and local wineries. The Silwerstrand Golf Estate is situated right next door to the caravan park. CONTACT: Tel: 023 626 3321 Cell: 076 199 4085 Fax: 086 5519 120 GPS: S 33° 48.677' E 19° 51.241' Web: www.silwerstrandcaravanpark.co.za MONTAGU CARAVAN PARK…

I last visited Chapman's Peak Caravan Farm over 20 years ago, and to my delight, I found that today it’s still a family enterprise, and still has a relaxed farm feel about it. It has, however, been renamed to Chapman’s Peak Cottages and Caravan Park. The park in Noordhoek, about 30 minutes’ drive from Cape Town, blends in with the serine mountain atmosphere, with its tree-lined campsites surrounded by woody backdrops. In winter the mountains are cloaked with ericas, fynbos and proteas. The area is also endemic to the endangered Peninsula Sandstone Fynbos and the Cape Granite Fynbos species. Lush lawns populated with “feathered friends” amplify the rustic farm-feel appeal. The well-fed farm dogs and fat felines are social animals so familiar with the daily concentration of campers that they…

When August comes around and you’re lucky enough to be in the Cape, you have to head out to see the flowers. Whether they’re in Namaqualand or just up the West Coast, the multicoloured display this time of the year is simply spectacular. So, when we started getting reports that the flowers were popping up for their “annual show”, we arranged for a quick trip to check it out. A trip up the West Coast is always a pleasure; but for this travel story, we were going to do it in style. Thanks to the friendly people at Maui Motorhome Rentals, I was heading out in a brand-new four-berth Iveco M4BI motorhome. What a beauty! And the perfect ride for a glamping adventure. I was lucky enough to have three…

I was born and raised in the dusty streets of Soweto, and my wife was born and raised in Atteridgeville outside Pretoria. As a child, I often saw white people in South Africa towing caravans and going on holidays, and always wondered what it felt like to be inside a caravan – no one in the township owned one. My first caravan experience was in 1993, when my family came together at my parent’s rural birthplace in Mapangula in Limpopo. We were gathering to thank the ancestors, to celebrate the return of four members of the family from exile and prison, and to mourn the death of my brother, who had been shot by the police during the liberation struggle. There was not enough accommodation for all of us, so…

A FAIR TO REMEMBER Over 130 caravan and motorhome brands, more than 590 international exhibitors, about 2 100 vehicles, all displayed on 210 000 square metres of showground – this is Caravan Salon 2016. Celebrating its 55th anniversary, the world’s biggest fair for mobile vacationing posted record figures this year. The annual show in Düsseldorf, Germany, was on between 27 August and 4 September, and attracted more than 190 000 visitors. Many caravanning enthusiasts travel to the fair in their own vehicles, with over 65 000 staying in their vehicles at the Caravan Center of Messe Düsseldorf. At the Caravan Salon, everything this market has to offer is on display, including motorhomes and caravans, basic vehicles, accessories, technical equipment, detachable parts, awnings, mobile homes, campsites, trailer parks, as well as…

The third-generation Tucson was introduced to South Africa earlier this year. I had already tried one model out on an extended trip to Gauteng (where I towed a variety of caravans and trailers), so I was pretty excited to do so again on this Route 62 mission. As a starting point, I love the Tucson’s looks! The outside has sleek, bold dynamic lines, and inside the fascia has been “cleaned up” to have a neat and uncluttered appearance. The cabin has been upgraded from the i-series and now contains soft-touch materials. The seats seem to hug your body, and being heatable in both back and front you can be sure of a comfortable ride. Leather seats and a six-speaker DAB+ digital radio are standard across the range (although a navigation…

Winter has come and gone, and the summer holidays are around the corner. That means that many of us are getting ready to go camping again, and need to take our caravan or trailer out of hibernation. But, before you just throw off the cover, hitch up and hit the road, make sure that your rig is still safe to tow after having stood unused for these last couple of months. In fact, anybody planning a trip should make sure they are towing as safely as possible. This month, we take a look at one of the most important parts of a caravan of trailer when it comes to safety – the tyres. Remember that the tyres are the only parts of the caravan which are in contact with the…

An article in the July issue from Chris Erasmus prompted me to send you some queries, as I, too, have made numerous mods to our 2011 Xcape. 1. I have installed a second battery in parallel but seem to have problems. After consulting numerous caravan dealers, I went ahead and added an additional battery in parallel, together with a monitor. (Some dealers said that they do this all the time, but one said that the Hercules 20 system could not cope). The problem is that, with batteries fully charged before leaving home and then charged while driving, I feel that the fridge, a new 90-litre National Luna, should run on the two caravan batteries for longer without requiring a recharge. However, when the caravan is disconnected from the car, the…