How They Faked the Landing on the Moon

One of the places we wanted to visit before we moved away was the Magadikgadi Pans in Central Bots.  On our way back from Kasane, we had an opportunity to stay in Gweta, near the Pans.  We booked a tour, and it turned out to be just Brenda and I.

The pans are a bit over 40 Km from our lodge, and that is a long, rough and dusty trip.  It was very, very hot when we set out around 1400, but we didn't reach the Pans until after 1600 due to our visit to the meerkat colony.

The pan is dead flat and mostly featureless.  Our driver said leaving the road was risky and told several stories of the foolish and how bad it was to be stuck where there is nothing to winch against.

It is so featureless that our guide did an interesting (to us) demonstration.  He set two markers 50 steps apart.  We blind folded Brenda and had her try to walk to the target.  She was very good missing only by a few feet.

I took up the challenge.  Over 50 steps, I was 31 steps AWAY from the target to the left.  Wow, am I imbalanced (no shock to you, eh?)

The surface of the pan was amazing.  It was white with a think crust, and not much else.  There are NO landmarks to speak of in most directions.  They say the baobab trees along the edge served as navigation aids and I can understand the need.  Heck you can hardly walk straight without a reference.

The place is so dusty and barren it could WELL have been the location for the "moon walk" that the conspiracists believe.  It was definitely different from anywhere we had ever seen including the deserts of Jordan and Israel.

It is a dried lake bed (really two) formed when the geological plates shifted and suddenly dammed three rivers.  Later, another plate shift cut off the flow of water and the lakes dried leaving the Ntwetwe and Sua (or Sowa) Pans.

Sunset was magnificent, and my vertical leap abilities astounding (note Brenda is only about 8 feet up).

The austerity of the place is part of its beauty.  It is an amazing place and we feel Blessed to get to see it.  G^d certainly had great creativity.