Ruddy Rain and Rudimentary Roads

 

Well, this project is coming to an end. I’m not sure exactly when that end will be, but we are in the latter stages at least. The biggest culprit, threatening (with tremendous conviction) to prevent me spending Xmas with the missus and family at home, is the rain. The rainy season has kicked into 5th gear. There is not a single day without rain, although most of it falls in the afternoons. But in order to do a decent amount of production we need to be able to fly from 8am to 12pm (when the storms begin). This we have not been able to do for the last week or so. Its very disappointing and frustrating and one gets quite low staring up at the low, drizzly clouds knowing that with just two good days of sunshine and high cloud we would be done.

A bit of afternoon drizzle – Zambia style	Any sandy area outside becomes a mud bath after every shower

And so we wait… Added to the frustrations are unexpected changes to the planned order of events. For example we were told that it had suddenly become imperative that we drive all the way to Lusaka to obtain our work permits which have been ready for weeks. We can’t wait until after the project terminates and pick them up on the way out, they must be fetched immediately. So another few days lost as we drove the 10.5 hours to Lusaka along the dodgiest road I think I have ever been on! And of course, accompanied by pouring rain almost the whole way.

A pont to cross one of the rivers	Don’t pay the ferryman until he gets you to the other side…
Traffic on the short cut to Lusaka	We drove at 60kph along this road for over 5 hours

We at least got to spend the night in luxury – that is toilets with toilet seats AND electricity that stays on the whole night! We had a contact in the “home affairs” equivalent who we had to meet at 9am and we were then going to fly most of the way back to Kabompo so we could be flying again as soon as possible. Great!

Yeehaa!! I was so car sick from the bouncing I wanted to die	Some very wide rivers in this part of the world
Much better means of crossing	Strange tower building in the centre of Lusaka

No, not really. We arrived at 9am sharp where we sat waiting 2 hours for the lady to turn up. My understanding that a contact would expedite the process for us was clearly incorrect. This was “home affairs” even worse than in SA! When the lady finally returned from being “out” we first recognised her as someone who had been around at 9am when we arrived but had blanked us and left to do her thing. She managed to put the wrong photos on my application form which caused her untold confusion, and when that was finally made right we all had to walk down the street to a copy shop to get photocopies made of the work permits for her to keep on record. “The government has no money” was the justification for us being responsible for her copies; so one wonders where the R5000 cost for the work permit itself goes.

Clouds everywhere, delaying the survey work	Morning fog becomes low cloud, which lifts into rain showers!

Due to her morning shopping trip (I was sulking like a child whose sibling has been given the bigger ice-cream at this point) we missed our flight out by an hour and so had to spend another night in Lusaka – and therefore another day of no production. The weather was fantastic the next day when we did finally get back to Kabompo, but started raining as soon as we arrived, just to rub it in.

All the grass areas are looking quite water-logged now	I think I missed the joke. Or its on me…
Last day of production – with our entourage	I can’t wait for Zack to ensure the data is good enough for us to fly the loop back to the lodge

 

Well, the final day arrived, we finished the last of the survey work – Zack analysed the data on site to ensure we could at least fly the loop the 100km back to our accommodation. Once there we had to wait until both Fugro and the client could have a quick look at all the data and be happy that everything was done correctly before we could pack up everything and think about heading home. And this is when the lying began.

Oh look! Some rain!	The entrance board to the Kabompo Hilton

For about 5 days I told Cath that the rain was still holding us up and we weren’t any closer to finishing. But the truth is that we have now packed up and I have flown the helicopter through Livingstone to Francistown in Botswana for the night before heading back to Lanseria in the morning (23rd December – right before Xmas). Naturally this post will only be published once I get home, but so far she believes that I’ll only be back on the 28th, earliest. And it really was looking that way for a while, but thankfully everything came together and after a blissful night in Botswana (where the people are again, incredibly friendly and helpful) I’ll be back home!!!! We actually arrived in Francistown to the most spectacular new airport I have seen, for a town that only has one Air Botswana flight a day! That’s it!

The new terminal being built in Livingstone	Yes, yes. You presume correctly!

We bought an ice-cream since its been over 2 months since we last had ice-cream and the shop lady and her friend offered to drive us to the lodge that had been booked for us. She drove us into town to the scariest-looking hotel I could imagine. The two of them stopped first in the township (nothing like SA – there is no crime – why? Because they have the death penalty and people are consequently respectful of the law – surprise surprise) at a shebeen to buy some food – proper African mielie pap and dodgy blocks of meat which they proceeded to attack with hands dripping in grease and mouths slapping loudly as they talked around full mouths. Not the classiest two it has to be said, but my point for mentioning that is that both of them said we were crazy staying in a place like the spot we were booked at. They reckoned the Zimbabweans, apparently notorious house-breakers and muggers, would be staying in a place like that. And so we very quickly found our way to a Cresta – far more comfortable and safe!

Botswana. Its thirsty	The new Francistown International. For one commercial flight a day!

And that’s the end of this tour – Lanseria tomorrow morning, Durban tomorrow afternoon…. Can’t wait!!

Nom nom nom…	What the poor girl has to look forward to

The Kabompo Hilton

 

The last little while we have been working hard to finish off a very large survey area (about 60 x 30km block) and looking forward to a move. Our little tented camp, as nice as it has been as far as tents go, was starting to get a bit too much. The fences and partitions made from thatch grass are starting to fall down with all the rain, and in the toilets which are covered with a canvas sheet, the ants have been working tirelessly to build their nest up the walls within and in between the grass stalks. My final farewell to the camp came with the death of a snake which apparently dropped out of a tree under which our helicopter security guy was living, before slithering into his little camp area and being beaten to death with a very long, thick tree branch. The closest I think I’ve ever knowingly been to a Black Mamba. :-/

Advanced ant nest building	The straw wall is slowly being replaced
The deadly, dead baby Mamba

Finally the big survey block has been completed and we spent today (8th December) moving from the tented camp into the lap of luxury. Sort of. We ferried the loop all the way from one block to the other, landed in the wrong place (well the place we’d been told to land, however our security guard wasn’t there he was at another spot), landed at the right place, dropped the loop off and screamed down to the town of Kabompo just before running out of fuel, where we are now staying in …. wait for it…. a guest lodge! While I should be writing it thus – “guest lodge” it is apparently the nicest lodge in the area by far.

The wrong place – no security	High flyers in Kabompo

And I gotta be honest, after 6 weeks in a tent I’m happy with anything resembling a real bed and my own en suite bathroom with an actual flush toilet! I feel so spoiled!! But that’s not all…. I also chose a room with an aircon!!! I thought it might be overkill since the nights in the tent were cool enough that I slept under a sleeping bag, but I know now I made the right decision. The buildings are so hot with no breeze blowing through them that the rooms are very uncomfortable. Well mine isn’t – its beautifully cool!

Dining room	Small shop on the side of the lodge
My room – looks way cleaner in the picture than it actually is	Very run down and grotty with stains and marks all over the ceilings and walls

I am a little nervous about the electricity (yes, there’s even electricity!!) quality here, particularly when plugging my phone or computer into the mains to charge them, and en suite shower or not – that thing I’m showering in with slops on! But overall this could prove to be a welcome break from the tents for the final push to the end of the project.

My, er, bathroom	The electricity system
By 11am these are all around us	The ants here are aggressive! An ant colony attacked and killed a termite colony

As fast as we are wishing to finish up here, the weather appears to be catching us. Every morning now there is mist / low cloud at tree-top height until 7:30 or 8am which we have to allow to lift. And then by 11am it is 28°C and the thundershowers start. Today (the 11th – I have been without internet since arriving here) we finished a line right in front of a massive shower and just managed to get back to the field we refuel in before the rain came pouring down from another shower. But slowly, day by day, we are making headway, and if we can do what we did today we’ll be all done in 4-5 days.

The town of Kabompo – that’s it!	In case you don’t believe me – that’s it!
Very pretty location, on the banks of a big river	The majority of the town looks like this

Mist and maternity

 

The last blog ended with a nasty thunderstorm brewing. That very day was followed by four days of almost continuous rain and storms. I think we’ve hit the rainy season.

Cold lunch on a hot day	Steaming hot rolls from the fire

This news did not impress Cathy, who has shown more interest in our daily production than the project manager! Every day I am asked how many lines I flew and therefore which day I predict to arrive back in South Africa. She is even less impressed with my reply, “Its weather dependent”. This, in her mind, is not an acceptable answer and implies that I am not focused on finishing the project and getting back to Durban. The sick truth is that with only one week of high clouds and cooler temperatures we would finish everything. But it’s weather dependent.

Chateau Grant that I’ve been living in since Andrew left	Much more room to, uh, sleep

I’m starting to see the end in sight, particularly with so little left of the whole project, that a rainy day (or four) can be very frustrating. But we keep on going…

Dawn broke, eerily	Can anyone see the windsock?

One morning, for the first time since I’ve been here, we woke up to thick fog and sat on the ground for a couple of hours before it started to burn off and we could get flying. We got some decent flying that day, but around midday the clouds start to build (as its around 30-32°C) into big thunderstorms which sweep over the flat survey area, and we were actually cut off from our fuel cache landing spot by a monster storm. Since I didn’t have a lot of fuel left on board I found a soccer field in a small village and landed the loop and chopper to wait out the rain and lightning.

Halloween came a little late this year	I rocked his world about an hour later…

The locals came streaming out of their huts to crowd around, and since many of them speak English they could chat with us about what we were up to. They had heard we were doing survey work in the area and wanted to know if we had found anything because they were all praying that the area would be mined because of the jobs they could then get. Shame, they are such decent people – not demanding anything, not whining about what the government hasn’t done for them or given them, just praying that mining will come to their area and with it, an opportunity to work.

They took photos of us as if we were rock stars!	They also said we’re welcome anytime we want to land there

Anyway, when we made it back to our fuel cache an hour later we were told that the rain was so heavy they couldn’t see across the clearing we land in and our data processor said it was the strongest wind he had ever seen. Glad I didn’t try to sneak back in just ahead of the storm with a massive loop of cables suspended below me…

Maternity ward – clean and new wing of the clinic	Much older male wing – less utilised, but due for a refurb.

Today we have rain (surprise surprise) so taking it easy from the hectic relaxing we were doing during the last rainy patch, and the American pastor who runs the clinic next door came round to give us a tour. They must have tons of donation money because its an impressive clinic all round. Various doctors from ophthalmologists to paediatricians to general surgeons come at different times and have an operating theatre available should it be necessary.

The delivery room with three beds – no stirrups ??	No government funding, all foreign donations

Obviously all drugs dispensed are free, and he mentioned that if we needed any medical assistance at any stage, that that would also be provided for nothing. A very impressive set up. He took us down to his house and showed us all the flowers, trees, fruit, vegetables etc. that he’s growing, including a hole in the ground where a local “plank maker” comes and saws by hand, logs into planks for building. One guy holds the saw from inside the hole underneath the log and the other holds the saw above. Hopefully I will get a pic of them in action when they’re next out.

Out-patients wait to see the doctor	Husbands can wait for their wives while they give birth

The two pics above show the American chap who showed us around. (In typical Grant fashion I have no idea what his name is – forgotten in about 30secs…)