Wild Wild West!
Certainly one of the more remote and wild adventures we have been on. It’s the type of trip that leaves you with some of the happiest, weirdest and wildest memories. Serene river scenes, dramatic rocky outcrops and extreme Martian landscapes – you are deep in the natural world, where the chirp of the birds, the rays of the sun and the gusts of wind are your constant companions.
Drift or row, it’s entirely up to you and your co-rafter (FYI – you can go solo!). For us, it was three incredibly relaxing days spent swimming in crystal clear river water while eating and drinking to our heart’s content and soaking up all that Richtersveld has to offer.
We were (un)lucky to have been on the river when the water levels were high so the current pushed us along instead of our oars doing all of the work. This in turn meant fewer rapids (the higher water levels cover the rocky riverbeds that create the rapids). We still enjoyed a few of the bubbling rapids, jumping off rocks and floating downstream in (or on) our life vests. You spend your evenings as you wish, sleeping under the moon and the stars, in a tent or under a gazebo.
Every day was a new adventure from packing up camp, seeing incredible landscapes, visiting hidden beaches, bird spotting and rationing your snacks and beverages.
Practical aspects
At the time we went, there were 7 river tour operators that will take you on a guided tour. Depending on the company, they offer various packages, we chose the 4 day, 3 night catered option departing from Vioolsdrift, Northern Cape (most of the operators depart from here as it is a border town).
You are provided with:
- One ARK inflatable raft (1 or 2 persons) – the raft is really stable and never tipped even when we jumped off the tip or pulled ourselves out of the water.
- One rowing oar per person.
- One hard cooler box per raft (roughly 30-40 liter in size).
- Two large wet-bags (ours had a small leak – not a problem).
- Three meals per day.
- One ice bag top-up per day on the river.
- Camp accommodation and dinner the night before you depart on the river.
You must bring (and carry on your raft):
- Drinking water – At least 2 liters per person per day. We had 5-liter containers which we kept loose on the raft and used these to fill smaller 500mil bottles which we kept in the cooler box.
- Other beverages – we had small cans of cooldrink – these get colder quickly and are easy to access and drink from while rowing. We also brought along some beers and ciders – no glass bottles allowed.
- Snacks – nuts, biltong, chips, sweets, granola bars.
- Clothes & toiletries – bring three times as much sunscreen as you think you will need (in small and large containers). If you don’t have an umbrella (see below) you are in the sun for 12 hours a day. It sucks if you run out of sunscreen on day 2.
- Wide-brimmed hat – the sun is relentless.
- Long-sleeved rash vest/sun protection shirts to keep the sun off your arms and if you have sun protection pants, bring those along too. Alternatively, at least a thick cotton sarong/throw/towel to put over your knees to keep the sun off.
- Aqua/water shoes – we didn’t bring these, but they would’ve come in handy when climbing rocks along the river banks or trudging through slimy patches when you dock the rafts on the river edge.
NB! Come prepared and purchase all these items before you arrive – Vioolsdrift is a small town and there is a high chance the shops in the area will be closed if you arrive in the afternoon. If possible, do your top-up shopping in Springbok or Upington. There are no planned stops to refill on the route and the guides do not carry drinking water for you. Calculate your alcohol to water to extreme sunshine ratio wisely.
We eat a lot but the three meals provided on the trip are plenty, so no need to go too overboard on the snacks.
Optional items that are highly recommended to bring along:
- Camping chairs – the sand is literally baked by the sun so when you stop for lunch or make camp, these are a treat to have (Here’s a tip – the guides are exceptionally good at paddling large volumes of kit along the river. We found they were more than willing to pack a small amount of excess kit if somebody couldn’t quite manage to fit everything on their own raft).
- Beach umbrella (we squeezed this between our cooler box and the raft).
- Tent – we don’t enjoy being itchy, so to avoid mosquito bites at night we slept in a small 2 man tent without a rain cover (the breeze through the tent at night was amazing). Setting this thing up in the wind was interesting.
- Sleeping bags – we didn’t have ground mattresses, so we ended up using our sleeping bags to provide some cushioning.
- Temperature – The suns beats down all day but it generally cools down later in the evening. It hardly ever rains.
- Inflatable pool tube – we didn’t have this, but in hindsight, this would’ve been great fun to tie it to the back of the raft and float along half-submerged in the water.
- Frisbees, balls, beach bats, books to pass the time once you have made camp. There is a lot of free time between paddles and camps.
Itinerary
There is a meet and greet with the group and guides the night before you depart. You get your safety briefing, your cooler box and wet bags to pack. Our tour operator has campgrounds on the Orange River so we spent the evening eating potjiekos around the braai and getting to know some of the other people in our group. Our group of 27 comprised people of all ages (the youngest was about 6) and fitness levels –the only real prerequisite is your sense of adventure.
DAY 1:
There are no alarm clocks or wake-up calls from the guides, the heat of the day and noisy campers will chase you out of your tent early anyway.
Breakfast: A continental breakfast (toast, jams, muesli, fruit, yoghurt, coffee and tea).
Namibia was closed to tourists at the start of our trip, so we could only access the South African part of the Orange River. This meant we were taken about 20kms upstream on the back of an old sky blue Toyota farm truck to our launch site. On the drive out you already start to experience the unique and breath-taking landscapes.
At the launch site, you are expected to help carry all the goods down to the river. You are assigned a boat and the guides help you to pack and strap it all down. Packed and loaded and you are off!
We rowed for a couple of hours and stopped for lunch on a massive beach near a wide shallow stretch of the river. At this stage, we are still giggling (nervously) about where we find ourselves.
Lunch: Hotdogs, salad and some fruit.
There is some free time to laze about on your inflatable tube, chill in the gently flowing river with a cold beer or play around in the water at your leisure.
After lunch, there’s an hour’s row or so towards our campsite for the night. This is again a sandy stretch opposite a massive rocky hill. There is NO shade on the beach, so we head out along the riverbank in search of respite and settle on a grassy patch under some trees for an afternoon snooze. Once the sun has set we return to the beachy camp spot and set up our tent in the sand. The dinner call is sounded by the guides and we line up for the buffet.
Dinner: Spaghetti bolognese, garlic bread, salad and surprise – chocolate mousse for dessert!
After a s(f)un filled day, the campers settled down quite early for the their first wild camp under the stars.
DAY 2:
The mornings are not rushed, as you wake up there is coffee, tea and rusks waiting for you while the guides prepare breakfast and you pack up your camp.
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs, bacon and toast. YOLO, now we are living!
After rowing for a few hours, what a treat when our guides pulled into a hidden little beach on a river island and set up a beach volleyball net. Campers teamed up and played a few friendly games while the rest of us watched from the shallows.
Unfortunately, strong winds prevented us from being able to row to our lunch and camp spot and we detoured to the formal campsite. This isn’t the usual plan we are told, but everyone is secretly happy (if even just for a second) to use the showers and ablutions (more on the bush ablutions later*). A slight letdown as we were expecting another night camping on the riverbed.
Lunch: DIY sandwiches.
Dinner: Chicken and vegetable stir fry.
This actually proved to be a great opportunity to mingle and get to know the rest of the group.
DAY 3:
Breakfast: French toast, fruit and yoghurt.
This day presented us with some of the most spectacular scenery as we got closer to the Namibian side of the river border. Enormous rock formations, caves and rock pools lay in wait. This would normally be your day 1 if the borders were open.
Rowing away from the town, you spot Namibian and South African herders with their goats traversing the rocky edges like pros. Small rural communities dot the river banks with children playing in the water and fishermen hoping for a catch.
Abundant birdlife can be seen from our grassy patch where we settle for lunch. We saw the Goliath Heron on 2 occasions.
Lunch: Rib burgers, coleslaw and fruit.
The wind was unyielding this day and we were all glad to arrive at the camp spot for the night, only to realise umbrellas and tents wouldn’t stand a chance against the fierce gusts. In the heat of the day perched atop a sandy, jagged rock outcrop with no trees to provide any shade, everyone is scrambling to find a slither of shade, anywhere.
We decided to submerge ourselves in the water and if we angled our faces just right, the rocky edges of the river cast a welcome shadow. We literally spent 5 enjoyable hours in the water hiding from the sun.
This was a tough day with the scorching heat and howling wind, but what a sunset we got that evening. Truly spectacular.
Dinner: Braai bonanza – pork chops, wors, butternut, beetroot.
DAY 4:
Everyone woke up slightly gloomy knowing that it was the last day on the river. We were excited for the day ahead knowing it would involve clambering up a tall rock formation (Jump Rock) and plunging 5 meters down to the cheers of the fellow campers in their rafts below.
Breakfast: Flapjacks and crispy bacon. YOLO, now we really living it up.
We stopped for lunch on a tributary of the river against the backdrop of a massive boulder. The river here is dotted with little islands teeming with birds.
This last day was a physically challenging rowing experience due to the wind. The guides decided to push hard to get to the exit site where the trusty old Toyota truck would be waiting.
Lunch: Chicken and tuna wraps.
The rafts touch down and our trip is over. Everyone again helps to unload the rafts and carry the gear to the truck. The bumpy ride back through the Martian lands of the Richtersveld is in itself an experience you won’t soon forget.
Bush Ablutions
Honest review – not for sensitive readers:
Bush ablutions are a large part of the experience as there are no toilets or any other facilities along the river. This is all very al natural. Although an awkward topic it may be of interest to those who don’t know what to expect.
A spade, a canvas-covered iron chair frame and a big blue bucket are placed in the middle of camp by the guides every morning, afternoon and evening. Standing isolated but visible to all, like in the hunger games. Put your embarrassment aside when you do the walk of shame through the camp to collect your DIY toilet.
Bush ablution etiquette:
- Find a spot FAR away from camp where no one can spot you.
- Dig a hole with the spade provided. The hole should be twice the depth and width you think it should be.
- Place the chair frame over the hole – you will most likely misjudge your aim, hence the requirement to dig a hole bigger than you think you need.
- Once completed, cover said spot with sand and mark with an upright stick to notify your fellow campers that they should steer clear. Moving on!
- This is a leave no trace experience so your toilet paper goes back into a large blue bucket that will be disposed of by the guides.
Our Summary
We would definitely do this again!!! It’s a fantastic trip as a couple or with friends and family. It’s four days of adventure camping, fun in the sun and sleeping under the stars. You can’t really go wrong with this formula.
Til the next mile,
Wes & Lieza