MODUON

It is hard to grasp the sheer scale of this place until you are standing right in the middle of it. Covering a massive 57 km in length and 11 km wide, it makes you feel wonderfully small. There is no cell reception, no modern distractions, and no noise. We came here for the complete lack of amenities, and the pan gave us an experience none of us will ever forget.

Here is how our maiden voyage on the pan unfolded. The adventure continued the moment the tires left the tar. Turning onto the first gravel stretch, the landscape immediately opened up into that wide, barren Northern Cape expanse.

The main gravel road leading toward the reception area was surprisingly good quality. Driving along these quiet dirt roads builds a quiet anticipation, knowing you are heading somewhere truly remote.

Before arriving, the owner sent us a message on WhatsApp warning us about a water logged section of road near the reception. They mentioned a 4x4 was not strictly necessary, so I made sure to pack the gum boots in an easily accessible spot just in case.

When we arrived at the crossing, it turned out to be around 100 meters long and far too deep for gum boots anyway. Walking it beforehand did not make much sense, so we simply engaged the drive, kept our momentum, and pushed straight through without any trouble.

At reception, we met the welcoming owner, received our official Verneukpan sticker, and chatted about where to set up camp. They mentioned that if the wind got too aggressive, we could shelter in a dried up river bed nearby. We then took the final gravel track leading straight out to the salt flat.

We passed the dried up river bed on our way in. The trees inside the river bed offer great natural protection against the elements, but no matter what the weather was planning to do, we were fully determined to camp on the open pan itself.

Passing through the final gate onto the pan is a surreal feeling. The horizon simply opens up into infinite flat ground. When we first drove out, the wind was howling, which was the strongest wind we had experienced over two weeks of overlanding.

We drove out to find a spot far away from everything. There was only one other family on the entire pan, visible as a tiny white speck on the horizon. We drove for another 2 km to get even further away, though it is almost impossible to gauge distance out here because everything looks the same. You also have to keep an eye out for places where sharp rocks protrude through the surface.

Standing on the mudguard of the trailer to unclip the tent cover, the sense of isolation was incredible, endless flat ground in every direction.

As if on cue, right after we finished setting up camp, the strong wind died down to absolute zero. We were treated to pristine, dead still weather without a single breath of wind to disturb the absolute silence. My wife wanted to sleep outside directly under the stars. I was a bit concerned the wind might pick up in the middle of the night and force us inside, as I was not up for the hassle of moving camp at 2 AM, but next time we will definitely do it.

We lit a fire and cooked a potjie on my foldable stainless steel braaier. It is a compact design, but it is ideal for holding a potjie pot or cooking meat for a family of four. It uses very little wood, feels incredibly efficient, and there is nothing quite like watching fire light up the dark pan.

When night fell, the sky turned into an endless blanket of stars. Aside from us, that single family was still camped kilometers away. In the pitch black, their campfire looked exactly like a low hanging, bright orange star resting right on the edge of the earth.

Star watching was unbelievable. Your eyes would constantly catch satellites moving across the sky. After a while, I found myself hunting for satellites, which felt a bit ironic since we came to enjoy pure nature and ended up searching for man made objects in the sky. I stopped counting after spotting 20 satellites.

The sunsets and sunrises on Verneukpan are spectacular, painted in deep orange hues with sharp black silhouettes. The kids absolutely loved the freedom of the open space, playing as the sun dipped below the flat horizon

The morning while packing up, we lifted the PVC ground floor of the tent and discovered a tiny desert pygmy mouse underneath. It was quite sluggish, likely because it is nocturnal.

My wife and the kids immediately wanted to bring it home, but I did not want another animal to care for, let alone a mouse. More importantly, it felt right to respect the wildlife and leave the environment as we found it. It is always strange being in places with no cell reception, as you cannot just Google what kind of mouse it is or what it eats. The kids carefully moved the little mouse over to a small nearby shrub to give it some shelter against predators like owls.

The trailer handled every kilometer of the journey effortlessly, proving itself as a comfortable, capable home base in the middle of nowhere.

We would have loved to stay longer, but our next reservation at another nature reserve was already locked in, and without cell signal, we could not call ahead to shift our dates. The owner also mentioned an alternative route from Onderste Doorns that passes through local farms with several gates to open, which we will definitely explore next time.

Verneukpan was an unforgettable maiden voyage for the Moduon trailer. We will definitely be back.

What do you think about taking a trailer into completely self sufficient places like Verneukpan? Have you ever camped somewhere where the silence was this absolute? Drop a comment below, I would love to hear your thoughts and experiences.