Giraffe and elephant

Leaving Twyfelfontain towards the north, I started heading into the more remote areas of the Damaraland. For quite a while I just drove through the beautiful landscape, when I suddenly saw them. Three giraffes standing right next to the road, eating. One of them was a bit scared of my car and quickly ran to hide behind a tree (not very successful), the other two didn't really care. When I decided I had taken enough pictures of my first giraffes, I continued hearing towards the Palmwag lodge. Shortly before the lodge, I had to pass the veterinary fence, separating the parts with and without foot-and-mouth disease (at least the parts where it used to be a problem). Took quite some complicated paperwork (as often), but finally I was allowed to pass through. What I had originally considered as clouds in the area, arriving at the lodge u found out, that the whole area was covered in smoke, you couldn't really see very far. Due to the strong winds, the smoke from a bush fire quite far away in the western part of the Etosha park had made it this far. The lodge was in the middle if nowhere, and due to missing fences, I wad told not to walk around on my own after dark. Well, that was the official version I had to sign. In reality no one really cared and saw it as a risk, ad long as I stayed in the lodge area. Next morning all the smoke was gone again, and I went on my first game drives (one for sunrise, one for sunset). Sitting in an open landrover (very cold especially in the morning and with the wind), we went on some tracks through the bushland, looking for animals. And we found: lots of zebra, springbock, oryx, a few giraffe, jackal, ostrich, stenbock, one kudu, and even some eagles. Unfortunately, mist of them were quite far away, but I guess that's normal for wild animals. And no elephants. The elephants here in this area are specially adopted desert elephants, but therefore also quite rare and shy, so I wasn't too surprised that we didn't find any. But one can hope... After the second night at Palmwag I made my way to the next destination, further east, close to the western part of the Etosha park. On the way down the Grootberg pass (driving a pass like this and through the mountains on gravel roads is a quite interesting experience), I finally saw them (after some help from other tourists): a group of desert elephants, slowly making their way along the hill and eating. They even had two young ones with them. My first elephants! (And shorty afterwards I passed a 'cautions elephants' sign, which looked run over by an elephant.)

The area of the doubtful spring

I arrived in my lodge in Twyfelfontain in the early afternoon. (The name, doubtful spring, describes the spring in this area, which doesn't always give water). It was nicely situated in the typical rock formations. It's a quite big lodge (compared to what I have seen here before), and somehow I met almost everyone I came in contact with in my last accommodations. (Apparently this was the place to be.) As it was still early I went to visit the famous rock carvings of elephants, rhinos, etc, dating from 2000-6000 years ago. Amazing how well preserved at least some of them still were. Going back to the lodge, the surrounding rocks were lit up in the afternoon sun. After dinner I took some time to try out star photography, as the night sky here was quite clear and amazing. (I think I still have to try out more, but I might've gotten a nice pic of the southern cross.) Next morning I spent visiting the living museum of the Damara people. They are the people, that originally come from this area. In the museum they show their traditional way of live to the tourists, which help them to earn some money, but also to keep their traditions alive, as their are hardly any Damaras living traditionally any more. Therefore this is also used as a school for their kids to learn about their roots. After this I made a short detour to also see the petrified forest, before I would leave the Twyfelfontain area. The petrified trees don't originate in this area, but were brought here by the river. Therefore I find it even more amazing, how big some of these trees were. Definatly worth the detour.

Leaving the Namib

Leaving Swakopmund this morning, I finally understood why they were always talking about the fog along the coast. It was there. Apparently I had been white lucky the days before, but now it was all foggy. Looking at the water condensed on my car, I also understood, how the plants and animals in the desert can survive. So I left Swakopmund in the fog and headed up north. Only when I started turning east, away from the coast, after about 25 km the fog was suddenly gone. The further north I then got, the more the landscape changed. Suddenly trees started emerging, a lot of dips were on the steet, which would be full of water in the raining season (but it hasn't rained here for more that a year now). Also more people lived around here, I could see huts not far from the street, or Herero women trying to sell their handcrafts along the street. So finally, it started feeling like really being in Africa. Hills emerged, stones everywhere, it looked a bit like a giant hadn't cleaned up after playing. I was finally reaching the area of Twyfelfontain (the doubtful spring) in the Damaraland.

Ocean and dunes

Already back home, I had booked this day, to enjoy the special conditions of sand dunes in the desert right next to the ocean. The plan was to go on a catamaran in the morning for the dolphin and seal cruise, then after about half the normal cruise to be dropped off on the other side if the lagoon, at Pelican Point, where I then would be picked up for a jeep tour to Sandwich Harbour, where the dunes and ocean meet. It turned out that not all would go to plan, but at the end would be a nice day after all. It all started well, I found the right place, got on the boat, where the show started right away with a seal (which actually was a sea lion, as they are all here) hopping on board. It seemed to enjoy itself very much, of course also got a fish, which then also attracted the pelican, which came to visit us. Another bird, black, and if I understood correctly, coming from Antarctica joined us for a while. Then the next highlight, they spotted a Mola-Mola, a very odd looking fish (also called sunfish or moonfish). That was quite exciting, as usually this time of ghetto year the water is too cold for them. (The water was still too cold, just this particular one didn't care...). We came closer to Pelican Point, spotting several seal colonies on the beach, starting to look out for dolphins. We looked and looked, but only saw ocean, and from tome to time a seal. We came back to Pelican Point, had a closer look at the seal colonies, and then went on to the other side if the lagoon for dolphins. Again nothing. By now the time I was told for being dropped of was already over, and we were in the wrong side of the lagoon anyway. Didn't really know what was going on. We watched two seals hunting and eating, but again no dolphins. Then we were all called to the back of the boat for lunch. Again I wad wondering what was going on, as I wasn't supposed to get food on the boat. But they had champagne, oysters from around the corner, and lots of other delicious food. As they were right in front of me, I decided to try oysters one last time (I had only tried them once, and that wad very strange). They didn't only have raw oysters, but also baked ones, which were actually quite good. And even the raw ones, eaten in the namibian style with pepper and Tabasco were quite nice, they felt more like normal mussels than what I had as oysters before. During lunch we had another seal following us for a while, and then came on board for the last 10 minutes of the cruise. And then we were back at the jetty, without any dolphins, but also without my drop off. What had happened? They guy who came to pick me up broke down with his jeep on the way. Therefore they had to organize another car, which took a while, so they left me on the cruise till the end. We therefore started the jeep tour a but late, which meant we had to hurry down to Sandwich Harbour before the tide would come in. The scenery was amazing, but we had to get back before the tide as well, so we couldn't really stay very long. Then on the way back we saw them: a group of dolphins playing in the waves. We tried to follow them for a bit, but then, suddenly, flat tire. Changing a tire in the sand didn't look like much fun, but our guide, Paul, handled it white well. Meanwhile we enjoyed the time between the dunes and the ocean, the dolphins came by again, and took lots of pics. Then, when I already thought the tour is basically over (also because of the time), we started driving into the dunes, up and down, like on a rollercoster, through the great scenery. With me were 4 frech girls, who started screaming every time we went down the dunes, especially when he took the steep side down. Was great fun! Then he set up a restaurant for us in the middle of the dunes (as it was originally planned to eat on this part if the tour), so again I got champagne and very delicious food (i didn't really need much for dinner after this). We really had lots of fun there in the dunes. The French girls started to scream even more and also giggle more on the rest of the drive through the dunes after all the champagne the had. We actually came back more than two hours later than was planned, but had a really good time after all. As it was already that late, the parking was basically empty already. But the guy looking after my car (that's typical here) was still there. That's why they get paid at the end.

Back to civilisation

Having basically been almost alone in the desert since arriving in Namibia, and therefore out in the nature almost the whole time, Swakopmund came as quite a cultural shock for me. I arrived in the late afternoon at the nice little guesthouse, owned and run by Sam, who came to Namibia from the Emmental in Switzerland, and built up his little paradise here in Swakopmund. All he needs seems to be good food, good wine, good books and his dog, Beethoven, a huge Bernersennen dog. The preference of good food and wine was quickly obvious, in the five course meal for dinner, in the breakfasts selection, in the wine tasting offered, ... Don't get me wrong, the food in the previous places was delicious, and also really nicely presented, but the is a difference in style to getting the correct wine glasses, perfect set-up of the tables, a cheese collection for breakfast as if you were in Switzerland, candles on the table, classical music in the background, and the right wine to each course. The first night, it therefore all felt a little surreal for me. But I adjusted slowly, next night I went out for dinner, again with perfect waiters and set up, and as I was at the coast I had very delicious fish and, of course, wine.  Even on the next day where I went on another guided tour, I was offered champagne in the desert, oysters and champagne on the boat, ...(more about that later). Swakopmund itself has a similar feeling of being a bit surreal to me. There are the rich white people's houses, sometimes like little villas, all shiny and new,  with a big wall around them, in an unpaved, dusty street, as only the main roads are paved here. You have the pedestrian zone (the arcade), which look as artificial as Ingolstatt Village, some old big fancy buildings with German names, but at the same time, just around the corner, the simpler buildings typical for poor areas, an African street market, then again flower beds as if there wasn't desert all around. Apparently Germans really like this town because it is supposed to be so typically German. I don't really know a place in Germany that look like the 'german' part of the town. It just looks too artificial to me. Of course they are nice buildings, they just don't really fit. But all in all, it's a nice place to visit, especially subversive there is so much to do there. And it will be the last 'modern style' town for me for a while. So at the end, on my last night there, I enjoyed my last crab cocktail and very delicious red wine very much.

Tracks in the sand

After being in the Namib for quite a while now, I wanted to learn more about the desert, and especially who or what can actually live in these conditions. So I joined the Living Desert Adventure tour, showing us around the sand dunes just outside Swakopmund. The guy leading the tour, Chris, had made it his task to try and save the desert. As I learned the Namib desert is the most destroyed desert in the world. Mainly due to the extensive use of quad bikes. Due to their weight, they have crashed the top cover layer of the so-called gravel planes, leaving them open for erosion from now on forever. That's also why you can still see the trails of the ox wagons of the first German settlers around. So Chris tries to save as much of what is left untouched, by making people aware of how vulnerable the desert is, and also showing its beauty. And that's where the tour actually started. We were to see the small five today, five small animal living on the sand dunes just outside town, which you usually would never spot. So we learned all about the good chain in the desert, where the water comes from (the typical fog in this area is the main source, ad it hardly ever rains), and how to read the trails we found I'm the sand. At first we found a chameleon, sitting in one of the bushes. Since it was still foggy, and therefore quite cold, it only moved very slow, which gave us the possibility to observe it very closely, especially also it's tongue when catching food. Then we were shown how to spot the home of the White Lady spider (a little poisonous), the desert gekko, the skunk (lizard without feet), a lizard (with feet) and the Side Winder snake (quite poisonous, but probably not deadly). Of course we (Chris) than also dug out all of the above, told us interesting/funny stories about them, and gave us the opportunity for some great fotos (at least I hope they turned out great). The tour ended with a wonderful drive and view through the dunes (we learned all the different colors of the sand: in Sossusvlei they are red, here they are white, yellow, violet and black), ending with an amazing view of the dunes in front of the ocean. And what have I learned? I learned: you're never alone in the desert.

Special: Stuck in the sand

I always joked about these modern cars with 4WD, these wanna-be offroaders. No, I'm not even talking about the SUVs, I'm talking about the standard station wagons, which now have all-wheel drive. I think Audi for example calls the quattro. I vaguely remember commercials selling them in the spirit of freedom, possible to drive anywhere... Why am I telling this? Well, on the way to Sossusvlei, the last 5km are strickly 4WD only. Although I do have a 'real' 4WD here, due to the lack of experience in deep sand, I, as several others, decided to rather take the shuttle. On the way back to the parking, in the shuttle, we passed the following situation. A car (wanna-be 4WD), of course full of (german) tourists, had tried to go on this road. Of course, at some point with especially deep sand, they got stuck. Don't know if the wheels first started turning and the dug themselves even deeper, or if they first got stuck on the sand in the middle of the car. Anyway, when we arrived, the wheels were deep in the sand, but spinning, the middle of the car was also touching the sand, two more cars had stopped (so losts of people trying to help), and they were trying to free the car with shovels, floor mats, lowering the tire pressure. The shuttle driver, knowing the conditions pretty well, offered his help, but at first there were too many people around, knowing exactly what to do. However, after all their good advice didn't help, and the car was still stuck, they started listening to our guy. The solution was: Shake it! That way some sand was put undetermined the tires, and away from the middle of the car. And after less than 5 min, they managed to drive out the car!

The big vast nothing

Started at sunrise this morning (still early for me) as I wanted to go all the way to Swakopmund today, and was told that the road there is in quite bad condition. Sunrise over the Naukluft Mountains was quite beautiful again, and I managed the first kilometers quite well. Made a short refueling break, and suddenly was in the middle of the mountains. Crossed two rivers in these mountains. Of course you have to go down all the way to the bottom and back up. Just don't ask me, why the would pave the small bit at the bottom, while leaving the steep parts as especially bumpy gravel roads. After the mountains, on a about a third of the way, a still very bumpy road, started leading me onto a big, vast, empty nothing. Two last ostriches, and then that was it. A little lizard, and only very few bird were the only living things I saw for the next 2-3 hours. Now I was really in the deserted part of the Namib desert. No more sand dunes, trees, anything... The road started to get better again, the closer I got to the coast, and to Swakopmund. Then, at the horizon, I saw something, there were the dunes again. Apparently the desert reaches right to the city (or little town, as I later found out). As it was still early in the day, I didn't go right into town, but made a detour through another part of the Namib, called Moon Landscape and Welwitschia Plane. Still very deserted, the first bit or the drive went through a quite hilly area, apparently like on the moon. Then it went to some mountains, containing of different materials and having on top a layer from previous volcanic activities. This layer is more robust towards embodiment, leaving the mountains with a kind of black iroquais on top. It then went down the mountains, through a (dried out river) into the Welwitschia Plane. Welwitschia is a plant growing in this extreme conditions, and scientists haven't yet found out exactly, how it can survive. But it does, and the oldest one they have found there so far, is considered to be 1500 years old. Finally I then made it into Swakopmund, and realised, that I first need to get used back to civilisation...

The lake in the desert

Got up really early today (at five). Why? Because you're supposed to see the dunes of the Namib at sunrise. Sunrise is at about 6.30 here at the moment, but I still had to drive around 60 km to the park entrance (gravel road). So I did what I wasn't supposed to do: drive at night. The two main reasons why you aren't supposed to drive at night in Namibia: when it's dark you don't see the dangerous parts of the street, and there are more animals around at night. Good thing was that it wasn't really dark to begin with. The moon lit up the whole area (so much for trying to get some photos of the stars at night), and twilight was starting pretty soon. As for the animal, so far it was the only time I was quite glad not to see a lot of them. Except for one Oryx Antilope, which passed the street not too far, but also not too close. But is was a really beautiful one, and I didn't know before how big they are. I reached the park entrance shortly before sunrise, and the first time since I've been here, there was a traffic jam. It's one if the main attractions, and everybody needs to buy a permit to get in. When I finally got mine, the sun was already up, so I chose not to go to the main dunes at the enf of the park right away like everybody else (another 60 km), but to stop shortly after the entrance at the first dune, to get at least some nice pics in the morning light. Then I followed to rest to the end of the normal road to the 2WD parking. Although I do have a 4WD car, I rather took the shuttle, I didn't want to get stuck in the deep sand there (as several others did, as I saw later). I then went into the Dead Vlei, a valley in between several large dunes of red sand, in which lots of old dead tree can be found. Great place for playing around with the camera. Hoped on the next shuttle to take me to the end, to the point where everybody rushes to in the morning, to Sossusvlei. By the time I managed to get there, most people had already climbed their dune and left again. Still trying to decide if I should try to climb one of the dunes (walking in the sand was already quite difficult), I realised that there was water in the vlei (valley). A huge lake, with lots and lots of birds (typical for water, not desert), in the middle if all the dunes in the desert. Apparently this happens about every ten years only. This year was even more special, since it wasn't the river getting more water and finally reaching the vlei, but it was only one night's rain last summer (our winter), which then came down into this vlei and created the lake. Would be interesting to see how long it will last. Therefore ended up walking around the lake instead of climbing a dune, the view of the the dunes mirroring in the water was too amazing.

From desert to desert - My first game

One day, 350 km, half of which on gravel road, starting in the Kalahari dessert, ending in the Namib dessert. And in between? I started of after a quite cold night, heading towards the coast, and quickly saw my first game, quite far from the road. Must have been some antilopes (or similar), have to check the pictures on the big screen. First stop was to see the lake with the largest dam wall in Namibia. Apparently you need a permit for almost everything, so I paid my 60 Namib Dollar. The lake and dam wall were ok, nothing spectacular though. The lodge and restaurant were closed (apparently for renovation), and all looked a little neglected and deserted. But: the scenery around the lake was really beautiful, and I did manage to see more antilopes (much closer this time), and even a couple of zebras! On the way further west, I first decided to fuel up my car. The indicator still showed a full tank, bit I had already driven 500 km, so I didn't really trust it any more. Still not sure, why it's not showing anything, but I did get 55 liter into the tank. Later on I also saw my first ostrichs, and finally also some more monkeys. It was already starting to get late when I reached the Naukluft, behind which I would find the Namib desert. Since I didn't come the typical route directly from Windhoek, I had the mountains almost to myself in this great late afternoon light. Finally reached the Weltevrede Guestfarm, where I wad welcome with a cold beer and dinner.