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Published: July 18th 2011
The Truck
Hitch-hiking on a truckWhile the promise of a connecting bus to Kasane kept going through my mind, I sat in the dirt at the side of the road wondering where it all went wrong. Being stranded in a desert town 350Km from the boarder was not how I had planned on spending the day. But neither was rescuing a 600 litre fuel tank while hitchhiking across the Kalahari in a 28 tonne truck bound for the Congo!
After getting up a 4.30am and packing my tent in the dark, I left the Ovakango Delta heading towards Nata while expecting to get a connecting bus to Kasane. Having done this route in reverse a week before, I felt relaxed, expecting an easy day travelling. I should have known better, after all, this is Africa.
On arriving in Nata, the bus stopped at a dusty little petrol station where I was told to wait for a connecting bus. After a couple of hours a small tin bus with a hand written sign for Kasane eventually arrived. It was packed with so many Africans that it could have rivaled the most outrageous transport in India.
Trying to climb onboard, it became clear myself and
Truck Driver -Chris
The driver who rescued us at the side of the road! a 65 litre backpack was not going to fit into a 60cm gap on the floor. Being quoted African time for the last bus and having no guarantee that it wouldnt be full, I began to wonder where it all went wrong.
Sitting in the dirt at the side of the road I asked a local about the possibility of hitch-hiking 350Km towards Kasane. After all, what was the alternative? pitching up my tent and waiting for a bus the following morning? While discussing the options, a homeless man overheard the conversation and offered to flag me down a ride. Being slightly suspicious, I agreed to let him try while I also flaged down passing vehicles.
Knowning that in the UK I would never consider picking up a hitch-hiker, how could I possibly expect anyone to give me a lift across the Kalahari in Botswana? After 2 hours of receiving various hand gestures from african drivers, the homless man returned. He found me a ride in a 28 tonne truck transporting toilet paper to the Congo! I strapped my backpack to the dusty trailer and jumped onboard.
The driver was a 60 year old white guy called
The 28 Tonne, 24 Metre, 1000 Litre Truck
Hitch-hiking across Botswana in in a truck heading for the Congo. Chris. He had been driving trucks across Africa for 40 years. He liked his drink, his girls and his lifestyle. He was an old school afrikana and would draw me into some strange conversations. He told me that black and white people shouldnt breed. He said black africans didnt need to worry about walking in the bush because Lions only like good meat and often referred to them with racism. He told me how girls have stripped in his truck, and he once had a lion jump into his cabin. He talked of how boarders could no longer be controlled and that everything could be resolved with a nice pair of titties. This guy had clearly been on the road too long!
An hour into the journey we got pulled over by another truck. To our horror, we discovered that the 600 litre diesel tank had ruptured. The fuel was spraying out of like water out of a high pressure hose. Realising we were in the desert and in serious trouble, Chris began to panic and tried to stop the flow with his hands, after all this was his livelyhood!
Having no tools to plug the hole, I
began to strip down my backpack of plastic bags, clothes and rope. Being slightly calmer than Chris I climbed under the truck and used everything from condoms, socks, plastic bags and paper towels to block the broken fuel tank. Somehow in the haze of madness I managed to block the flow of diesel down to a drip while Chris looked on in amazement. Its strange how resourceful one can be in the moment of desperation!
Stinking of diesel and slightly high from the fumes we continued with our journey towards Kasane. While I sat back and tried to take in the randomness of the moment, Chris seem suprisingly happy that we had only lost 80 litres of fuel. As Elephants and Giraffes strolled into the african sunset, the beers flowed and the truck began to swerve, while Chris sang along to 60s music pumping from the sound system.
Just one of those days in Africa!
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