It was now time to enter Namibia, one of the least densely populated countries in the world. They have about one person per square kilometer! We started by crossing the Orange river not far from our last campsite in South Africa, and headed to Fish River Canyon, most of us saying goodbye to internet connection. We’d have Wi-Fi at some campsites but e-sims don’t work in Namibia, and we couldn’t pick up a hard sim until the first city, but it was a nice break to be more disconnected. We all climbed dunes and visited petrified forests before reaching the coast in the city of Swakopmund, and the group managed to surprise two members of our group for their Birthday!
Crossing to the Canyon
This morning we were up early to get all packed up and get to the border as early as we could. We had been warned a few times that it could take a long time, and depending on who was checking the Lando, they might take all the meat she had purchased for our meals over the next few days. Thankfully we were luck, as one woman was working that day that has notoriously made everything faster. We managed to all get through in about an hour, which was great considering all but 2 of us required visas, granted most of us did their version of an E-Visa.
We all made it through, and as they don’t always consider chicken to be “meat” they did not confiscate it which was good as there wasn’t many options for a full grocery store for a few days. Since they budget so much extra time for this border crossing, we didn’t have too far to go to get into our campsite for the afternoon. After lunch, most of us enjoyed the cool water in the shade and some fairly nice showers. I washed a few items since the sun was so bright I knew it would dry quickly. We picked up a few beers from the shop on site to share with our new friends from Bristol, as it was his birthday!
Later in the afternoon we all boarded the lando to a nearby canyon where we had a little hike along the rim to a viewpoint. It was about a mile, and we thankfully didn’t see any scorpions or snakes on the route but we did see a lizard and a giant grasshopper!
While hiking I was struggling holding our 360 camera selfie stick, as one of my wrists were hurting. I thought it was just sore from the kayaking but my left wrist was not nearly as sore. I still enjoyed watching the beautiful canyon, especially with the sun starting heading towards the horizon, it even had a hairpin curve like by the Colorado river in Arizona. Funnily enough my sister and BIL were visiting that area this same weekend!
There was also this labrynth created with stones set along the hiking trail.
At the end of our hike we met up with Demi, Altus, and Kwagga who were making our dinner while we headed up to the big picnic table to sit with the group to watch the sun set and enjoy appetizers of cheese and crackers, and then a delicious dinner of curry stew.
We helped clean up and we got back to the camp a little after full darkness.
Sneakily, our guide worked with the camp to bake a cake for us so we all surprised our friend R and had a bit of dessert. Some of us were hanging out by the fire and caught a few jackals walking right through our campsite.
They apparently like shoes, so there was a rule you could not leave your shoes outside the tent. They also have a tendency to just take one shoe according to Demi’s experience with other clients. I tried to get a picture but it was pretty dark and didn’t sit still for long exposure to work. We were pretty tired and headed to bed not long after.
Making our Way to Sossusvlei
Today we only had a long drive on the schedule, about 10 hours in total. After breakfast we made our way towards Soussusvlei National Park (maybe?). We stopped on the way and Demi shared some local snacks with us, Niknaks and ghost pops, which are both maize snacks, as are many dishes or snacks made with maize. They were both pretty good but I think we both preferred the cheese flavor on the Niknaks.
We stopped along the way for bushy bushy next to a Sociable Weaver nest which can fit several families, and are built with protections against snakes, such as entry from underneath and thorns on the outside. It is nicknamed the Holiday Inn of Namibia because other birds will use them too. For lunch we found one of the few trees we could access with the Lando so we could have a little shade with our lunch.
That evening when we arrived to the campsite it was so windy! Everyone rushed to set up their tents instead of getting the bags unpacked. Mr. Wander convinced me to wait, which was smart since one of the tents started to fly away! We waited until most of the bags were unloaded and started to get our tent set up. When we were able to get the door open we popped in our bags to help hold it down. Usually we didn’t have to stake the tents, and the ground is too hard to really try so we did find ourselves some rocks for the straps and even unhooked the top few hooks to make the sail a bit smaller and lower to catch less wind.
We relaxed in the shade of the lando with some local beers we put in the coolers with R & M from Bristol while chatting with a few people. Most headed towards the gas station, or “engin” as it’s known in both South Africa and Namibia, about 5-10 minute walk away to get some Wi-Fi. We learned about this cool beetle walking around from Altus that will hang upside down in the desert overnight so when water condenses in the morning on their bodies, it runs right into their mouth. They were pretty fast but they don’t bite or hurt humans at all.
The following morning we had a very early wakeup so we could get to the park when it opened at 6am, but thankfully we were camped almost right next to the park. We were headed directly to Dune 45, which are counted from the ocean, but is one of the most popular as it is very picturesque from the top.
Some opted to just hangout at the bottom but most of us hiked up to the top of the dune and had a little water break. Then several decided to run down the side instead of walking back down the path. It was so fun to just dig in your heels and go for it! Needless to say I had sand in my shoes for weeks after this.
We made it back down in time to head to our next hike which was to deadvlei. The lando couldn’t make it all the way because the sand was too soft so they took us on safari vehicles where we had a bit of a hike though dune type sand but we didn’t have to climb too high.
After about 20 minutes we made it to deadvlei, which is a clay pan area created when the Tsauchab river flooded. Camelthorn trees grew here for many years until drought came, and dunes grew and cut off the river. The area dried up, the trees died, and it is so dry they have not decayed in 900 years. It is thought that where the river is now might eventually get cut off by new dunes creating new deadvlei-like areas.
Other groups decided to climb the larger dune next to here which is known as Big Daddy, one of the tallest dunes in the world behind those in Argentina, China, and Peru. If you do that you can descend directly into the deadvlei area, and it was fun to see from afar, Mr. Wander caught a few running down with his zoom lens.
After walking around taking pictures for awhile, and observing some influencers in the wild who had packed flowy dresses for their photoshoot, we made it back to the lando for a delicious lunch, which was something like a build your own burrito but with some different fillings including coleslaw.
We headed next to Sesriem Canyon just inside the edge of the park. We hiked down to the bottom and along it for awhile enjoying some of the rock formations before we had to turn around to make it back out.
We were all ready to relax in the lando after a morning full of hikes and hills and especially since our lando had fairly good AC if you gave it a little time.
A few hours into the drive we stopped at a bakery to get some locally reknown apple crumble. It was pretty delicious but soon were on our way to our campsite for the night.
This was Demi’s favorite campsite because it has a mini watering hole and the man running the camp is one of her favorite people in the entire country. Several of us opted to join him on a drive through their area to see animals but mostly hear stories.
He was so funny the way he would describe some things, while also sharing some tips for desert survival. His main advice was to stay calm, as just because a spider crawls on you, doesn’t mean it will bite you, as you could just be something tall to create a web. But if you jump suddenly or try to swat at it, he will bite you. There is a spider that’s known as a last cigarette spider. Because if it bites you, that’s all you have time before before you die.
He told us of a story of how he was sleeping in the dune and had covered himself in sand for warmth, and a bullfighter snake curled up on him, probably because he was warm. He moved slowly to hopefully get out from under and the snake followed and curled back up on him. Finally he managed to move enough the snake didn’t follow him and he was able to get away without getting bitten.
He did show us a spider nest that looked like a hoof. He was driving in a pickup and he stopped to show us this spider next, I have no idea how he saw it but he even dug it out a bit (while he was barefoot standing next to it!) and we saw a few of the legs sticking out to try and grab the sand to cover himself back up. Then he tells us the spider is very poisonous, but it was afraid and would rather try to get away than bite if it can.
It was such an enjoyable evening riding in the back of the truck seeing the scenery as the sun was starting to go down, and stopping along the way for different stories, plants, or animals. We arrived at a ridge where we all got out onto an area with dune sand. This sand is more red than I was used to with black specks, especially on the top. Our guide took a magnet inside of a bag and showed how all the black specks are picked up by the magnet, and they are in fact pieces of iron. This causes the dunes to turn red as the iron oxidizes. The farther inland you go the more red it is as the sand comes in from the ocean, so there it has had considerably less time with the iron.
Then the sun started to go down and we all just stopped talking and watched it dip below the horizon, taking a few pictures. Only once it was down did we realize we all had gotten quiet to watch, it was a cool moment. Then we headed back to the truck and back to the campsite just in time for dinner. After dinner we sneakily convinced Demi to get down to the bar area and some of the group had gotten balloons and hats for a little birthday surprise for her!
We also got to do the Springboki shot as she had picked up Amarula (a cream liqueur made from a local fruit) and Peppermint liqueur which is a dark green. You layer the Amarula over the peppermint to make the shot but then you have to do the dance, which is pretending to be a sprinkbok approaching a waterhole. You have to hold your hands like antlers and approach cautiously, checking for predators left, then right, then “pronk”, which is a jump back and turn around, look left, and right, pronk and turn again then approach slowly, and take the shot, picking up the glass with your mouth since springboks don’t have hands. It was fun and a little crazy to do all crowded around a big table but it tasted pretty good.
We returned back to the fire with R & M for awhile until I decided to go take a quick shower before the water had cooled off now the sun was down. Meanwhile, Altus took a few people on a walk to point out some of the stars since we were in an area with zero light pollution and Mr. Wander joined them for a bit, and then met me back in the tent since we were tired from the long day!
Crossing the Tropic of Capricorn
This morning, after a beautiful sunrise we had a few stops of interest along the way, the first was the Tropic of Capricorn! Demi explained that the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn are 30 degrees latitude from the Equator, and located along them are all the major deserts of the world, Gobi (in China), Sahara in northern Africa, and here the Kalahari desert. The equator on the other hand is home to the major jungles and rainforests due to the pressure systems that keep moisture there and out of the Tropics. I honestly did not realize that all these deserts were on the Tropics! I may have learned this at one point but most school subjects become more interesting when you travel to these places.
We took some pictures with the sign and of course with Kwagga. Then nearby we stopped at a unique geology area they referred to it as the moon landing, since it does feel a bit otherworldly. We took pictures, some stacked stones, and of course took advantage of an opportunity for bushy-bushy! We had another hour or more to the coast on the south end of Walvis Bay. Then we headed north about a half hour to Swakopmund, one of the largest cities in all of Namibia and very tourist friendly.
The group was pretty excited because Swakopmund also meant we would get two nights in beds instead of tents! Also, since my wrist had been getting worse ever since after the Kayaking, Demi helped me get an appointment with a doctor nearby! So at the time of our appointment we went over to their office but it was locked and no one showed up until about 10 minutes after my appointment time. We were not surprised though, because Demi had been warning us to be aware of “Africa time”.
In any case, after a few minutes with the doctor, he found a little divot in my wrist and thought I might have a slight muscle tear. He sent us over to the hospital for some images to confirm, but as we didn’t have service to get a taxi, another patient in the lobby actually called one with the local rideshare app, people here were so nice and accommodating!
The woman performing the ultrasound confirmed a tear and then we rushed back to the office using the hospital’s taxi. Our driver was quite talkative and once we told him we were with GAdventures it was good to hear he had positive views of the company and also shared a story with us. Apparently a man on a prior G tour had been climbing on rocks in Spitzkoppe (our next destination) and fell, badly injuring his leg and had to be transported to the hospital in Swakopmund for treatment. He was released in just a day or two and wanted to join back up with the tour, so the hospital asked our driver if he wanted a long transfer. He was trying to catch up with the Lando as it moved across the country and only caught up thanks to a broken axle. We made it back to the clinic before the Doctor left, thankfully and he was able to get me some topical anti-inflammatory gel which really helped, in addition to normal pain killers, and after paying we headed back to the hotel.
That evening we all went to dinner together and I got a tasty steak and M and I decided to split a bottle of wine while the guys (Mr. Wander & R) got some local beer. After dinner we headed to another area where they have Karaoke, and we were excited to see Eddie again! He had gotten his Visa a few days before and he flew in to relieve Altus so then he could take his scheduled tour that was to start in Victoria falls in a few more days. The timing really worked out!
Before Karaoke there was a local performing group that sang what might have been the national anthem, but their voices were so beautiful and created some lovely chords. Afterwards the bar played a Shakira song about Africa and several of us did a sort of line dance to it. The first Karaoke song was “Africa” by Toto, which we all got really into and is a favorite of mine, but after that the 18-30 something GAdventure group who was also there that day were a bit loud, so we headed back to the hotel in a taxi. Once we were back we found some of our group playing a rousing game of UNO Flip, so I decided to join, which was very fun, especially with a few extra house rules.
Next Time
We had another full day in Swakopmund where we spent the morning driving all over the dunes and taking pictures by the ocean. Then we left the comfort of indoor plumbing and headed north to Spitzkoppe to a remote campground by cool rock features and amazing stars. We had two days in Etosha National Park and got to complete our Big 5 with rhinos, seen sometimes a bit too close. Until next time, Totsiens!
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