8 July 2011 - Swakopmund Day 3 - Whales in Walvis

We made an early trip through to Walvis Bay this morning, and enjoyed a cruise in the Bay on a Catamaran. On our way out we saw seals and Benguella dolphins. The seal colony in Walvis is now about 50,000 strong, though it did not exist 15 years ago. We spent some time among the dolphins. They love to swim along near the bows of the boat. They were not very active today, so they were not jumping a lot, but we managed to catch them in the air a few times.



We went out beyond the bay in search of whales which have been spotted in the area recently. But paradoxically two hump-back whales were spotted by other boats in the bay, so we made a mad dash back. We were able to sail alongside the whales for about half an hour before we had to turn for home.


We finished the cruise with oysters and other snacks en route to the harbor. Some days I'm really glad that no one else in the family enjoys oysters. All the more for me. I had to fight Clinton off of course, but we both had more than we needed.


In the afternoon the guys visited the Reptile park in Swakop, owned by Stuart Hebbard. We were able to see a huge variety of reptiles, including snakes, lizards, geckos, chameleons, etc. The girls were souvenir hunting instead - reptiles give them the creeps.

Finally we went to the beach at Mile 8 in search of pretty pebbles, and it was already time for sunset. We found a lot of round stones, and a dusky beach.

7 July 2011 - Swakopmund Day 2 - Sand Dunes

Off to the dunes again, except this time we wanted to get really covered in sand, so we decided to go dune-boarding. The general idea is to walk up the dunes, and then slide down, and then walk up and then slide down, and so on... The dunes are huge, and the sand slips away under your feet, so after a few trips you tend to give up out of sheer exhaustion. We all went the easy way, except for Damon. The easy way means you lie on your stomach on a piece of masonite, and let gravity do its thing. A few seconds later you start climbing up the dune again. The sensation of speed is incredible because yo are traveling with your belly 3 mm of the ground, and your face is only about 5 cm off the sand. One slip and "another one bites the dust" - literally. You eat dune sand - in mouthfulls. The hard way is standing up, like snow-boarding. Damon did it the hard way, out was quite successful at it. By the end of the day we had sand everywhere - it was coming out of places in our clothes and from our bodies that we did not even know existed. Ears, nostrils, hair, finger nails, mouth, shoes, pockets, underwear, and other unmentionable places.


In the afternoon the girls went shopping, and the guys washed the cars (or rather - had the cars washed) and then went go-karting outside Swakomund near the airport. The karting is a good setup, and we had a great time. I let Clinton win (because I know what a sore loser he is), and Damon, Kevin and Curtis brought up the rear.

We wrapped up with a meal at "Napolitana" in town - huge and tasty portions - good value if you need a big meal at a good price!

Then we came home to update the blog for the first time in a number of days. We are having difficulty getting internet access as we travel in Namibia, so we apologize for the sporadic updates - bear with us please...

6 July 2011 - Swakopmund Day 1 - Quad Bikes

We went quad biking on the dunes this morning. What a total blast. We rode about half way to Walvis bay, and back again. We were up and down the faces of the dunes like ninjas! The ride included breakfast at the Swakopmund golf course club house. By the end of this excursion we were covered in sand and dust.


In the afternoon we headed north up the skeleton coast. we found a wreck to take photos of. I managed to get the Fortuner stuck in the sea sand, even though I thought I had stayed off the soft stuff. Some local fishermen on their way home in a 4x4 stopped and threw a rope over my tow-bar and unceremoniously hauled me out of trouble. Thanks guys! The only good news ais that I was rescued by another Toyota - saved face for Toyota just a little bit.


We continued up past Henties bay to Cape Cross where we first smelled, then saw 10 000 Cape fur seals on the beach. En route we also saw vast salt flats where salt is "mined". Shelby bought a nice large set of salt crystals that were on sale on an oil drum next to the road. Interesting concept - the local put little drums next to the road with various salt crystals and their prices, and a jar. you stop, choose, pay and go. It's a bit like an honesty bar for salt.


We ended the day with supper at the Tiger Beach restaurant on the beach in Swakopmund. A casual but hearty meal to end the day.

5 July 2011 - Damara Land to Swakopmund

We turned south today in the direction of Swakopmund.

First stop - White Lady. But en route we found some Herero selling traditional dolls alongside the road. What a colorful sight.


We arrived at the site for the White Lady in the Brandberg. OF course it is not that easy - you have a walk of 2.5 km from where the vehicle park to tshe actual site. Due to my poor planning we arrived in the mid-day heat. So after an hour of clambering though the valley, and crossing the river 20 times (Robyn kept count) we finally laid eyes on the White Lady. Well it is actually a black medicine man, but was probably painted white for ritual dancing. The white lady is the central figure in a set of bushman paintings on the wall of an overhang in the valley. After walking an hour there, and an hour back, we headed further south toward the Spitzkoppe.


We hit closed roads and had to detour, so we arrived at Spitzkoppe just before sunset. We found the stone bridge at Spitzkoppe, and used this stop to call our 4000 km mark (we were in fact at 4003 km - close enough!) This scenery makes for impressive pictures, and Damon was spitting mad that he had such limited time because we got there so late.


Moving on, we arrived at our accomodation (Sandfields guest house) in Swakopmund at about 8pm.

4 July 2011 - Damara Land

This day was supposed to be a relatively short day, with a few stops at interesting places. But we underestimated the traveling time, and at every opportunity (like large ant hills or random road-side shebeens) the kids demanded a stop and dance, so it became a very long day.


We started with Fuel in Outjo - but ended up emptying a local craft shop too.

Next stop was the Vingerklip. This is a sandstone spire 60 meters tall. We climbed up the small hill to the base of the spire for pictures. The view from there is great as it is surrounded by vast plains, and in the distance mountains rising to the same level as the Vingerklip.


The Namibian roads are generally very good, but when you follow Garmin, and ignore the fact that you are using so-called "D" routes, you do sometimes hit some pretty rough patches. All we can say is that we are glad it is winter - and thus dry - because these roads in wet times must be impassable for normal vehicles.


Next stop - Petrified Forest. We never understood what gave the wood such a fright, but it all turned to stone. There are some petrified logs that are more than 10 meters long, and the largest is claimed to be over 40 meters in length. Rock that looks like wood is strange indeed. While viewing the petrified forest we also saw the very weird welwitzia plant, which seems to grow well in that area. It grows so slowly that a plant with leaves a meter long may be 200 years old. They apparently live for anything up to 2000 years.


Next stop was to be the Twyfelontein rock engraving, but we were too late for the guided tour. We moved swiftly along to see the organ pipes. These are rocks that split and break in such a way that they look a bit like banks of organ pipes. These are found along the two sides of a small ravine. It was dry when we were there, but looks like a strong stream rushes through it after good rains.


By this time it as dark, we had to make our way home along unfamiliar dirt roads in the Damara desert. Damon made us stop for a roadside dusk photograph which you can see here. This is becoming a real adventure. We finally found the Damara Mopani Camp at about 8pm.


After dinner Damon decide to try his Camera in telescope mode. He had surprisingly good results in the dark Damara desert with crystal clear skies.

3 July 2011 - Etosha Pan - Day 2

We started a little slower today, and made our first stop at the Otjikoto Lake. Very interesting. It was a sub-terrainian cave formed by an underground river, and then the roof collapsed. Now there is this round hole in the ground, 100 meters across, and between 60 and 100 meters deep. It is the strangest thing to see a lake sitting in a round hole in the ground in the middle of a flat plain! At a time in the early 20th century this was the main water source for the town of Tsumeb. They used a specially made steam engine to pump water up from the lake and along to Tsumeb about 20 km away. Once, during the 1st World War, a group of German soldiers who were about to surrender to the Allies first dumped their last munitions over the cliffs into the lake in an effort to prevent the British from getting their hands on the weapons. A number of cannons and other arms have been recovered by divers recently and are now in museums in various places. Apparently there are still a lot more weapons down in the depths of the lake.


On to Etosha pan. At a water hole about 15 km inside the gate we found the largest collection of game we have ever seen together. There were Kudu, Oryx, Impala, Springbok, Zebra, Wildebeest, Giraffe, Warthog. We watched for at least half an hour before moving on. Through the rest of the day we saw a huge variety, but never all together in these large numbers.


Around mid-day we hit our 3000 km from home mark and stopped at a rest stop to mark it. The kids did their usual ritual, and then we moved on as the rest stop was really not well equipped!


In the afternoon we stopped at a water hole named "OlifantsBad" and found another GeoCache. We dropped one Travel bug, and found another.


We ended the day at Etosha Safari Camp. This place has a very unusual theme, and is strangely built. It is deliberately skew and made from scrap vehicles, and all sorts of other junk-yard bits and pieces. But it is interesting. There is a lot of history of the African struggle for freedom recorded all around the dining area, where we had dinner, and then breakfast in the morning.

2 July 2011 - Etosha Pan - Day 1

We spent the day in the Etosha Park today, which includes Etosha Pan.

Wow!

The pan is full of water because of the fantastic rainy season this year. The pan is so huge that it looks like the ocean as it disappears over the horizon. And there are vast plains of grass or sun-baked mud alongside the pan where animals seem so tiny against the vastness of open space. I can't describe it, and even photos do not do it justice. Like Victoria Falls, you really have to see this yourself to appreciate it.


We met up with a rather grumpy elephant. He came walking down the road toward us. We backed up into the intersection of a side road so that he had space to pass by - plenty space - he could continue straight and come no closer than about 30 meters. But for some reason he decided at the last moment to turn on us and charged right toward us. Seriously - we have evidence on video! Well - no pictures, but Shelby's frightened voice and chaotic random filming tells the story. Janette was, um, stressed, and Damon did what he always does when exciting things happen and he has a camera in his hands - nothing! We have decided he may be a photographer, but he is no ACTION photographer. I did a ninja move with the Fortuner, and got out of harm's way. It was too close for comfort is all I will say! For the rest of the day we stayed well clear of Elephants.


Alongside the road we found a Springbok hanging in a tree. So we expected a leopard, but he was not home. There was a Hyena keeping a watching brief below the tree, but he was unable to steal the Springbok for himself. When we returned later in the day the Springbok was still draped in the tree, but the Hyena was gone, and there was still no sign of the Leopard. Double-grrr.


We saw Springbok, Impala, Oryx (Gemsbok), Red Hartebees, Kudu, Giraffe, Wildebeest, Warthog, Zebra, Elephant, Hyena, Flamingo, Ostrich, Eagle (don't ask), and numerous other species of birds.

The Etosha Park is amazing, but we do not recommend the facilities at the rest stops. Doing your business outside the facilities is better than going inside - really!

A great day, and back to the luxury of Kupferquelle.

1 July 2011 - On the Road again

An early start for a long run. Today was all about travelling, so there were not many adventures, but here goes... Up at 4, on the road at 5, filling with fuel before 6, and on the road Westward down the Caprivi strip. The Namibian roads are really excellent - smooth, open, and well maintained. We made faster progress than we planned. Somewhere before Rundu we hit the 2000 km mark, so we made another random middle-of-nowhere stop for pictures. The terain is flat, really flat, and the road is straight - really straight.


Rundu was the mid-way fuel stop. It was about time for lunch, so we used the Wimpy. hmmm. The food was OK, as Wimpy food goes, but the service was lacking. Their excuse was that they are new, but the poor waiter had no clue what he was doing, and they only told us after eating that they have no facilities for electronic payment. Anyway - moving swiftly along...

From Rundu we turned South West. More straight, flat, endless road. We passed through numerous small villages where the locals subsist in very friendly looking small communities of about 200 to 500 people. They are dry and bland, but very neat - every one of them. And as we were travelling in the early afternoon we saw hundreds of kids walking home from school. The Namibians value their education - something all of Africa should imitate.

Special note: the roads are so good that even the live-stock likes to use them. As you drive you need to be aware that you may be sharing the road with goats, cattle, donkeys or chickens at any unexpected moment.

We stopped to see the Hoba Meteorite about 50 km south of Tsumeb. It is supposed to be the largest meteorite ever recovered on Earth, so it's a big deal. It is a lump of metal nealry 60 tons in weight, 3 meters square, and a meter thick. Souvenir hunters have hacked some bits away - grrr - but the bulk of it remains.


Then North to Tsumeb, and check in to Kupferquelle. Ah - civilization! We RECOMMEND Kupferquelle in Tsumeb! Excellent value for money - and VERY comfortable. And there's a Dros - where we ate dinner.

30 June 2011 - Fishing on the Zambezi

We spent nearly six hours fishing off a boat on the Zambezi today. We were after Tiger fish. We caught more than we actually counted. Unfortunately none were large enough to be useful as food. So it was a day of catch and release. We saw Fish eagle and numerous king fishers. We sure hope the birds had better fishing than we did, else they would be very hungry. According to Robyn, Shelby had the best variety on the day with two tiger fish, two lumps of reeds and one Clinton. Curtiss was next best with one lump of reeds and two tangles of fishing line. Kevin managed a lot of fish, and Clinton had the largest, but still too small to get the nod from our guide. Janette made the first catch of her life - to much screaching and excitement. Damon perfected "catch and release" so well that most of his fish jumped off the hook even before he landed them.

Damon and Kevin went on a photography shoot on the river in the afternoon, and shot a lot of birds (storks, various king fishers, bee eaters, etc)

The good news is that we have a fantastic location next to the river, and the afternoon was long and lazy. Due to our foresight yesterday we have enough food for tonight's meal, but it won't be tiger fish after all! Another night of wors, pork chops and chips instead of mielie pap.

We spent a little time planning tomorrow's drive to Tsumeb. It's a long haul, so we'll be up early - about 4am to be on the road at...

29 June 2011 - Maramba Lodge to Kalizo Lodge

A short run today, from Maramba near Livingstone to Kalizo near Katima Mulilo - roughly 250 km, mostly through Zambia.

Special note - when you think you have paid everything at the border, on the day you arrived and the day after - don't be too sure! We paid Carbon Tax, Insurance and Toll fees at the border. Then as we drove out of Livingstone we were stopped to pay for council tax. It never ends. And after the fact we were told that if we were properly insured (as we are) then we should not have had to pay insurance again. Tell that to the officials at the border!

Anyway, the drive was easy going. We drove through a nature reserve for the first while, but saw no wildlife. After we left the reserve we saw a few elephants on the side of the road. No picture for some reason - sorry. No one explained to the elephants that they were not actually in the reserve.

We wanted to make a turn at Sushembe to see the Ferry that crosses into Botswana, but there was a queue of trucks nearly a kilometer long, so we kept going west toward Katima. The bridge crossing the Zambezi at Katima is very impressive, and the river itself is really wide. Apparently we are not supposed to take pictures on the bridge - no idea what that is about. But I think we managed to take a few sneaky snaps before we were told to stop.

Customs were the usual drill - hurry up and wait. And pay.

Through Katima to Kalizo Lodge. Arriving at Kalizo Lodge there is no longer any doubt in our minds that we are in Africa. "Rough and ready" is one phrase that comes to mind. Then we realised we needed some meat to braai, so the "manne" went back into town to get supplies. We had a lekker meal of wors, pork chops and mielie pap, and the kids spent the evening taking strange pictures while playing with fire.




Going to bed was an experience - we were sure there were innumerable unwanted guests with us in the beds, and the nets themselves were so tattered that we were not sure that they would actually lend any protection. Repellent coils smoldering and pitch dark (so we could not see what we did not want to see) was the only solution.