What Four Weeks, Four Countries and 6,000km Taught Us
When people ask me how our four-week overland trip was, I normally answer like this:
In the first week, Candice and I got divorced three times, we were sending the kids to boarding school, and I was selling the Bush Lapa.
On the last day, as we were heading home after more than 6,000km through South Africa, Botswana, Zambia and Zimbabwe, I asked the family one final question:
“So… would we do this again, or should we sell everything?”
The answer was unanimous and immediate.
Do it again.
That probably sums up family overlanding better than anything else I could write.
The reality of family overlanding
We went into the trip looking for adventure, connection and family memories. We found all of those things, but we also found exhaustion, frustration, different expectations and the reality of living very closely together for a month.
The hardest part wasn’t the border crossings, bad roads or long days in the car. It was learning that four people can be on exactly the same trip and experience it completely differently.
I had spent months planning the route and building up an idea of what this adventure should be. I wanted the kids to appreciate where they were. I wanted every destination to feel special. I wanted us to connect as a family.
But the kids weren’t experiencing my trip. They were experiencing theirs.
Where I saw Mana Pools and thought, “How incredible is this?”, they might have been hot, tired or wanting to swim. Where I saw another beautiful campsite, Candice might have seen another round of unpacking, cooking and packing everything up again.
Neither perspective was wrong.
That was probably my biggest lesson.
Family travel isn’t about getting everyone to enjoy the same experience in the same way.
Five-hour driving days and essential rest stops
There were practical lessons too. Five hours in the vehicle was about our limit before patience started running thin. One-night stops looked sensible on the itinerary but felt very different when you’re setting up and packing down an entire family camp for a few hours of sleep. Rest days became essential rather than optional.
There is no medal for camping every night
We also learnt there is no medal for camping every night.
After a long day from Mana Pools to Antelope Park, we upgraded to rooms. At Gonarezhou we stayed in tented accommodation rather than setting up camp ourselves.
Both were excellent decisions.
The objective isn’t to prove how tough you are. It’s to enjoy being there.
Why joining a convoy reduced the pressure
Travelling in convoy with Sebata 4×4 also taught me something I hadn’t expected. Yes, groups move slower and come with their own frustrations, but having the route, camps and most of the decisions already taken care of removed a huge amount of pressure.
It allowed me to stop being the tour operator for my own family and actually enjoy the trip.
And enjoy it we did.
There were elephants wandering around camp, sunsets over Lake Kariba, Victoria Falls, the Lower Zambezi, Mana Pools and the incredible landscapes of Gonarezhou.
There were campfires, new friendships and moments with our children that simply wouldn’t have happened at home.
But there were also arguments, tired mornings and times when somebody simply wasn’t interested in the incredible thing I thought they should be appreciating.
And I’ve realised that’s okay.
What four weeks on the road taught our family
Before the trip we’d even entertained the romantic idea of taking this lifestyle much further. Sell up. Homeschool. Travel for longer.
Four weeks gave us a useful reality check.
We love travelling.
But we also like home.
We like space, routine and having roots.
Perhaps we don’t want to escape normal life. We just want to make sure normal life has enough room in it for adventures like this.
I left believing a successful family trip meant creating incredible memories.
I came home realising you can’t manufacture them.
You simply put yourselves somewhere different, spend enough time together and let the good, bad and ridiculous moments become part of the same story.
And apparently, despite three divorces, boarding school and nearly selling the Bush Lapa…
we’re doing it again.
Planning your own Southern African adventure?
Our practical beginner’s guide to family overlanding in Southern Africa covers realistic driving days, campsites, packing, safety, borders and keeping children happy on the road.