Benzine

Bit of a mundane posting this, but I'd welcome any advice.

I'm looking for a reliable place to buy benzine in one of the following towns:
Warden, Villiers, Harrismith, Bergville, Winterton.

The reason is to enable me to fly into Joburg airport, not go in to Joburg and pick up some fuel along the road into the Berg. One can't fly with benzine in one's bags.

In December I did get the last bottle in 'DIY Hardware' Harrismith, but couldn't find any in other towns. It was listed on the shelf at the supermarket on the northwest side of Winterton (near the fuel station closest to the Little Tugela bridge) but they were out of stock. The supermarket next to the other fuel station on the east side of the road was selling 100ml bottles but they only had 3 in stock.

If it were me i would rather just make a detour to one of the hardware stores in Kemptonpark or Boksburg on route,as i would not put money on it on finding benzine in one of those small towns.

anthony wrote:

If it were me i would rather just make a detour to one of the hardware stores in Kemptonpark or Boksburg on route,as i would not put money on it on finding benzine in one of those small towns.

many thanks Anthony. Could you recommend a specific hardware shop closest to the airport? I don't know my way round Jhb or nearby towns very well and would look to 'learn the route' before I got there.

mnt_tiska,
Any update on this question? I'm planning the same trip later this year, so I have the same question.
Thanks,
Tim

Hi Tim -
no progress on this one. I got as far as looking round Google Earth at Kempton Park (following Anthony's advice) to see if there were any likely shops but drew a blank in the end. I think I would take a risk on Harrismith again (it was DIY Hardware where I bought the last bottle). Perhaps the more people that buy there, the more likely they are to keep benzine in stock.

I've heard some funny stories about people trying to buy benzine after flying in to various countries. One of the problems is that it gets called different things in different places. In Kenya it is 'dry-cleaning fluid'. In Agentina some guys I know did the sniff-test on a whole lot of similar looking clear fluid in various shops before finding something volatile enough to use.

Thanks for the P&P tip Intrepid. I have bought at P&P before and fully expected to in Harrismith P&P. The P&P near Jhb airport will no doubt have stock.

Meanwhile,

DIY hardware
21 Southey St
Harrismith
9880
058 622 2928
Very much a non-chain store this one!

It took me a few months after my hike, but here's some useful info for people flying into Jo'burg.
We found a great outdoors store called Outdoor World on North Rand Road (GPS: -26.1795622455,28.2311072561). A link to a map here:
maps.google.com/maps?q=loc:-26.1795622455%2C28.2311072561

It's really, really close to the airport, so we just made a quick stop on our way out of Jo'burg. They had lots of options for canister-style fuel, so we bought the MSR brand that we've used before. (This is the type of canister compatible with most canister stoves, including the Pocket Rocket.)
There is also a giant super market (I think Spar) really close by for loading up on food and things.

In response to the benzine that people wrote about above, this is really common in South Africa, and I noticed a wide selection at grocery stores. But, I didn't personally try it with a refillable stove (such as an MSR Whisperlite).

--Tim

Benzene and benzine is not the same.

Any other addresses in or near Jo'burg (Eastgate) for benzine?
Thanks!