Kalahari Catharsis

[ Resort Review ] Leeupan Guest Farm, NC

- Nick Yell

There are some semi-desert environments that really speak to your soul. For me, it’s the Kalahari.

The Karoo and the Gariep River region of the Northern Cape are also mind-expanding wildernesses, but the miracle of red desert sands supporting park-like trees, long waving grasses and wild animals of all kinds, makes it my favourite.

My travelling partner, David Lowe, and I arrived at Leeupan Guest Farm late in the afternoon, after having wrestled with around 200km of dirt track that we’d accessed from the N14. As we were in the Mazda BT-50 on long-term loan to Caravan & Outdoor Life, the vagaries of this road’s rutted surface (sometimes thickly covered in sand) were enjoyable, and a good test for the bakkie.

We were glad when the owner arrived at the gate to show us to our campsite on the other side of the R31. With a lot of fine Kalahari dust having collected in our throats – dust which we knew could only be effectively removed with a cold Tafel Lager from our stash – we were keen to get settled as soon as possible.

About one kilometre into the 300 hectare section of farm, we passed the large and empty campsite which was to be our private stomping ground for the next two nights, and our hosts directed us into our own private boma, with adjacent ablutions about 500 metres away.