Wednesday, 6 May 1987: Luckily, I Didn’t Wander All Night around Sowa Pan!

10:50 AM, just north of Serule on the Francistown-Gaborone Highway

It was around 12 hours ago last night when I finally found our campsite.  My night navigation exercise with a compass was somewhat of a flop.  I strayed off course a couple times which was just enough to cause me to walk a couple hundred meters east of the van on the way back.  After 20 minutes of walking and no van, I knew I’d blown it.  So I made for the shore of the dry lake which I could detect as a faint black band a few hundred meters in front of me.  At least I was reasonably sure of the direction in which I had strayed, so I turned left (west) at the shore line.  It was not getting chilly and the prospect of spending the night out in the elements without a sleeping bag or warm clothes did not appeal.  After another 10 minutes, I ran into the track where we dropped down from the bank.  From there it was easy.  I turned left (west) and followed the tracks out to the van with about an hour of light remaining from the half-moon before it set.

I felt rather stupid having taken such an excursion in the dark.  I’m wonder why people like me feel obliged to take risks for no reason.  I could probably have found suitable isolation and an equivalent experience by walking ½ mile instead of one mile.  Why did I have to prove to myself that I could navigate in the dark?  Or was it to show off?  Actually, I figured out that it’s easier to stay on course if you pick a compass heading, then find a distinctive star in that direction, then keep walking toward that star.    

This morning, we came upon an army road block just north of Francistown.  The soldiers were giving a couple vehicles in front of us a thorough going-over, but we got through with little trouble.  I suppose that a six-year-old doesn’t exactly fit the profile of a South African commando fighter.  Jonathan would make a good cover were we involved in anti-government activities.  So why was there a road block here?  We’ve been out of touch with the news for six days.  I wonder if South Africa has carried out another of their cross-border raids inside Botswana recently to search for “ANC terrorists.”  And could the Botswana Defense Force be looking for the South African raiders?  Elections for white South Africans are being held today, so it wouldn’t surprise me if the Pretoria government launched a raid or two recently to show voters that the National Party is being tough on communism.

 



Jesus, this highway is boring.  Miles and miles of bush with only four towns of any significant size in the 430 km between Francistown and Gaborone.  About as exciting as driving I-80 across Nebraska.  About the only animals you’ll see on this stretch of highway are goats, cattle, donkeys, and a chicken here and there.  As for people, there are groups of Batswana walking, hitching rides, or waiting for buses. 

We’ve just pulled into Palapye – time for another tank of petrol.  



 

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