Orange River to Cape Town, South Africa 17-23 August 2008

South Africa was so incredibly different scenery-wise to Namibia. SO much green! Rolling hills, normal looking sheep that I don’t think would last a day in the desert, proper fences, paddocks, crops and massive irrigation units. It was strange to see wild ostrich grazing with the sheep – I guess they just jump the fences?




We briefly visited Springbok (a food stop only - it was a pretty quite place but to be fair it was a Sunday) and saw the amazing wildflowers that apparently have visitors flocking to see over the months of Aug/Sep. Another good timing visit and this photo doesn’t do them justice but they were pretty and so plentiful along the roadside.



We had our last night in a camp ground a few hours drive from Springbok before hitting Cape Town the next day and, with it being the final night, someone had the brilliant idea of a tent pitching competition. We’d been having another quiet (yeah right!) celebration on the truck so some were pretty happy when we got there and as soon as the tent locker on the truck was unlocked, it was all out war. The chap who ran the camp took one look at the scene that was unfolding and said “Oh my God, I need a beer for this” and headed off to get one. It was absolute carnage and very funny to watch with some folk genuinely trying to pitch tents, others headed off, leaving their poor tent partners fending off others who were pinching gear, to sabotage someone elses attempt and some gave up all together and just generally created havoc. Tent poles were being ripped out of peoples hands, run off with, flung into the bushes, tents were being swept out from under peoples feet as they stood on them and there was general wrangling going on in other corners. The Kiwis took on the Aussies with one of the Kiwi girls (not me) doing a flying tackle on the Aussie chap who had part of her tent and, full credit, she took him right out, through the thorny hedge that he was standing in front off and off a 2ft drop. They emerged back through the (new) hole in the hedge with slightly dazed looks and I noticed that she was still absentmindedly picking thorns out of her hair some time later. He was shocked and dazed and still in disbelief at the tackle hours later. Quality. Pure quality. Slight problem is, I think most of the others on the truck now think all Kiwi girls have a drinking problem and turn a bit native once they’ve had a bit to drink. We don’t. I’ve kept most gory details from the blog but there have been some pretty classy injuries thus far but we are all still in one piece.

Cape Town was the last point for most of those on the truck and 18 people leave us here and four new folk join. We’ll be rattling round in the truck for the next 12 days but it will be quite nice to be a smaller group. We’re in Cape Town (CT) for four nights and it is so nice to be here. The weather is brilliant, we’ve had one overcast day and the rest of the time its been brilliant blue sky and so warm.

Unfortunately Euan and I have had to spend a lot of our time here planning the next leg as once we hit Jo’burg we’re off to Japan via Hong Kong and there will be no more stopping in one place for more than two nights between now and then and we cannot take chances on there being ready internet/fax/phone access.

We’ve both been to CT before so there are some things that we’ve skipped this time but it is a beautiful city and you wouldn’t believe that it can be so dangerous. We haven’t had any major problems, no different to what you might get in London, but two of the new recruits who had just arrived in the country were robbed at knife point on their first morning in the city. I really felt for them as they’re quite young and I’m not sure how much travel they’ve done.

We’ve made a major change to our itinerary that has seen us drop the Nepal loop (sob!), via India but it does give us more time to make our way overland from Beijing to Singapore. Once we’d done the admin we ventured down to the Waterfront, a rather touristy and posh area with quite a bit of tat although I’d hardly count what looked like a swashed zebra as tat. I think its in a category all of its own.



On a good day, you can’t beat the view and when its misty or cloudy, you’d never know Table Mountain was there



One of the days was spent driving when seven of us hired two tiny cars and bombed off down the Cape of Good Hope. We had a brilliant time, did countless U turns and nearly got blown off the cape – no joke. The beaches are wild and beautiful



and we had to take the inevitable group pic in the incredibly windy conditions



the wind was so strong..



Seriously though, it was. The wind on the cape was so strong there were a couple of times it caught me off balance and I nearly fell over.





you can see the waves blowing away when they break



We didn’t expect to see ostriches there and it did look weird to see them nibbling on grass with the sea as a backdrop. I wanted to see how close I could get but was a wee bit worried as she looked kind of staunch and might have had my eye out. Her wings were flapping too but it was so windy I think it was the wind.



then one held us up by ambling along the road



before joining his girlfriend



We also saw an Eland, the largest of the antelope and I was stoked. We’d not seen one (live) yet and the partially dismembered one in the Serengeti didn’t really count. We were pretty lucky as the National Park Guide says that large animals are a rare site.

The place we’re staying at in CT is brilliant – it’s a hostel but the beds are so comfy and the linen so nice. Maybe it feels nicer than it is because we’ve slept on the ground so often but I can honestly say I sleep better in a tent now than I do in a bed, no matter how comfy. I guess its whatever you get used to.

Namib-Naukluft National Park, Namibia to Orange River, South Africa 15-17 August 2008

Today was our last day in Namibia and we certainly covered some distance in the two weeks we were here. A total of 3,800kms and most of that was in the desert on dirt roads that were actually better than the Tanzanian tarmac roads. As long as we had at least one of the tarps up, the dust was bearable but the cold got a bit much at times. I think I likened being in the truck with the tarps up to being in a convertible but with less style (?) but things got so chilly that the sleeping bags and blankets came out and this is what it was like – people wrapped up like mummies, hidden under blankets and jackets or whatever was handy.



Euan and I didn’t get the sleeping bags as there was huge potential for sleeping bags to get trashed and we need ours to last so opted for the bank robber look instead



After a few hours of driving through the desert and a minor hiccup where we got stuck in the soft sand, we were into the hills that were a bit of a surprise after all the flat sandy unchanging scenery

The road was so wide and there was stuff all traffic so we weren't entirely sure why we pulled off the road in the first place (a very polite driver). Out came the sand grid thingys (I am sure there is a technical term but basically they're big grids that are put under the wheels to give traction and you keep doing this, driving the truck forwards, pulling them out and putting them back until the wheels are on firm ground) and there was a lot of digging going on.

Once on our way again, I felt the truck going uphill so looked up from my book (I’ve read 13 books in about 7 weeks) and had a mad scramble for my camera. We’d gone from dry, bare, off-white flat desert to rolling hills that were black rock covered with a straw-yellow grass. The contrast was incredible and I missed the best bit but hopefully the below gives an idea of what it was like



We weren’t long in this sort of scenery before it flattened out again into more desert but this time a reddish sand. We were heading towards Sossusvlie, a field of red sand dunes in the Namib-Naukluft National Park. We didn’t go into the Park as we were running late and we wouldn’t have had enough time to explore the dunes so opted to camp up on the side of this road (below) and head in early the next morning



We had a lovely but chilly night under the stars and nearly full moon (albeit on the side of the road with jackals on the scrounge).



It was an 0445 rise for an 0600 start for reasons that weren’t clear until we were through the Park gates and saw the dunes in the early morning light



The sun caught the dunes and turned them a deep red colour but the bits that were in shadow were black and the contrast was stunning



We got to one of the larger, more accessible dunes, creatively named Dune 45 (because it’s the 45th dune from the dune field of Sossusvlei) and headed straight up it after a few ground shots. This is my one attempt at semi-creative photography (sorry).




Dune 45 is 150m high and the wind was blowing the sand rather viciously over its ridge.





This is the view from one side of the dune (the road runs straight down between the dunes)



The dune isn’t high but you do feel like you’re on top of the world for some reason that I can’t explain



I thought I could lean into the wind but it wasn’t that strong (or I’m too heavy) and I headed down the slop instead



It was great fun running down and you could get a kind of ungainly moon-jump going on until…



the crocs filled with sand and weighed about 3kg each and dragged my leg down, down, down until I ground to a halt



Sossusvlei was more dunes but a field of them this time. Unfortunately the sun had risen and the shadows were just a slightly darker shade of the sand rather than the dramatic black and red contrast of the early morning.



We had another days driving after the dunes but really it seemed just down the road as the landscape didn’t seem to change much. We weren’t overly impressed with the choice of campsite and it was almost like we were camping on the moon had it not been for the prickly bushes, cacti and small trees. This was what we were camping on:



It was just rocks and more rocks and if you needed to pee, you had to brave getting trapped in thorny trees that held you prisoner for a bit until you patiently untangled yourself. I’m clearly not very patient and ripped my pants.



The great thing was that we were treated to a lunar eclipse that night – what are the chances? In the middle of nowhere in Namibia and seeing what turned out to be very nearly a full lunar eclipse?! The awful thing was were were sleeping on rocks but the funniest thing was that the next morning, up drove a 4x4 with a seemingly grumpy Namibian man and lady (and their happy dog) wanting to know what we were doing on their land and why weren’t we staying in their campsite just down the road. Brilliant. We’d already made many jokes about “Oasis’ fiscal policy” but this capped it all off. I think we had a total of 10 or 11 bush camps in Namibia, mainly because the cost of camping had increased so much. Pass, whatever the reason, it kept us occupied and made us appreciate power, running water and other things we take for granted.

It was today that we were heading for the South Africa border and had a long drive before we reached Fish River Canyon. The canyon is apparently the second largest canyon in the world behind the Grand Canyon in the States. I’ve not been to the latter but Euan assured me that this was similar and it did seem impressive.





We hit the border on sundown and were stuck there for two hours due to some papers for the truck not coming through. Luckily we all had beer or some other drinkable substance on board so started a mini truck party and amused ourselves while trying not to create too much of a disturbance. It was a late night by the time we’d got to the campsite (a proper one this time), got all our gear off the truck and pitched tents, helped with dinner and eaten it.

Swakopmund, Namibia 12-15 August 2008

When we camped in the sand/rocks close to the Skeleton Coast, we were actually ridiculously close to Swakopmund but didn’t realise it and no-one told us in case (I presume) we clamoured to be taken to a camp ground!! We arrived in Swakopmund early the next morning and we’d been warned that is was a bit of an odd town with odd people and it didn’t disappoint. Swakopmund is large (in area) for its population of 25,000 and has few trees (apart from the odd Norfolk pine growing at an angle), wide one way streets, loads of shops and is very very German. Its right on the Skeleton Coast surrounded by desert and can be, as it proved to us, a very desolate and dreary place. The day we arrived the cloud had rolled in from the sea and it was grey, damp, quiet and kind of eerie.



The people running the hostel we stayed in were at first humourless and seemingly without personality but I know for a fact that if you smile at someone long enough, they’ll smile back. Doesn’t matter whether they’re smiling at you (for looking like an idiot) or with you (for being friendly), they will smile. It worked. There was a rather odd chap staying there who got chatting to us and told us how he’d already written off two rental cars. One was totalled when he hit an Oryx that jumped out in front of him and while the car died, the Oryx didn’t and headed to the side of the road where it lay down. He called the ranger who came with a small hand gun and stood, arm shaking, in front of the Oryx to try and shoot it. The horns on the Oryx are super long, so its not like you can get too close. Apparently they managed to put it down but it didn’t sound pleasant. I never got to hear how he wrote off the second car as he got started on racism and that was the end of any other conversation! We heard of another chap had been sleeping out by the camp fire and had been attacked by an old hyena that went for his head. He managed to fight it off but had it been a younger animal, he wouldn’t have stood much chance. Some of the other trucks and 4x4’s that we run into had lost passengers along the way. One woman broke three ribs quad biking and that was the end of her, her husband and daughters trip. Another few just hadn’t realised that the going would be so rough (its not really) and weren’t expecting to be bush camping, sleeping on the ground in tents. Not any other option most of the time!

We had three days in Swakopmund and we had our first bath for months and months – bliss! The dirt that came off was embarrassing but not unsurprising given the dirt and dust that had been flying round the last few days. Swakopmund has loads to offer anyone who is into adventure sports and we were all well up for quad biking in the amazing dunes along the coast and skydiving if the weather allowed. We also went sand boarding which was actually more enjoyable than I thought it would be and sand is, I think, far more forgiving than snow – thankfully as I seemed to hit it a lot. The different styles of different people were entertaining to watch. I was fine with balance, stood up on the board and went for it (albeit at great speed and mainly out of control) and managed to turn before spectacularly wiping out. Euan on the other hand, was a bit wobbly on the board but mastered the speed control and stuck with going down the slope on an angle before attempting to (slowly) turn. He fell over but didn’t hurt himself or get absolutely covered in sand. I, on the other hand, crashed a lot and with great gusto. I did one face plant after turning at speed, winded myself and copped a mouthful of sand – so much sand was in my mouth that I couldn’t talk, honestly as I tried to answer someone who was shouting was I OK, and it took two full days before my eyes were cleared properly.

The quad biking was far more my thing and while there was a huge group that went out into the dunes, there were about five of us who were super quick and hooned off as a group. We were out there going full blast for at least two hours and to be honest, there wasn’t much chance of looking at the scenery as we were going too fast but when we stopped there was plenty of time for posing on the bikes



looking at the dunes



before rushing back for more biking at speed (“Come on Euan!!!”)



They were great bikes and you had a choice of full manual 250cc (me) and 250cc semi-auto (Euan), 125 full manual and some 350cc bikes that they insisted you had to be over 80kg to ride. Thankfully I'm not quite that heavy so stuck with the 250cc. Throughout the afternoon I was reminded exactly why I bought a dirt bike in the first place years ago and it wouldn't take much to get me back on one.

The mist rolled in for the next day and spoiled our chances of a skydive but the upside was that we had a day to look round Swakopmund and visited the crystal gallery (far less exciting than a sky dive!). Depends on what you’re into but they did had some incredible rocks in there



and what was claimed to be the largest mined quartz cluster in the world at 14 tonnes and 3.5m high.



Swakopmund was pretty geared up for tourism and its proximity to the sea meant that eating at a place that served up seafood was a given win. The best place we at was called Kuckis Pub and we went there expecting typical pub-grub but it was actually a seafood place and the seafood platter was to die for, and a bargin at about £12 equivalent. Four different types of fish (swordfish, kingclip, shark and one other that I can’t remember), lightly floured and pan fried, three giant king prawns, one baby crayfish (that should still be in the sea and I felt guilty eating it), two mussels, two oysters and a whole pile of crumbed calamari - the freshest I’ve ever had. Divine. It was so good we went there for dinner twice.

We could easily have stayed another two or so days in Swakopmund as there were some interesting people to talk to but there was a schedule of sorts to maintain and the Namib-Naukluft National Park was next on our agenda.

Outjo to Skeleton Coast, Namibia, 10-11 August 2008

I’m fast thinking that Namibia might overtake Tanzania as my favourite country for a number of reasons but mainly the dramatic and diverse scenery. We had a big drive day heading into the Brandburg Mountains across some fairly desolate desert roads that were a bit hairy in places. We had to ford a stream and the drop off on the left hand side of the truck (out of the sight of the driver) was rather high, higher than our driver realised I think. Myself and the other two kiwi girls were kneeling on the seats at the back looking out the open tarp and Jen said “s*it, that’s a big drop” then BANG, the truck slammed down the drop then Pat accelerated to get out of the dip and sand. All our legs took a massive crack on the hard wood edge of the seat and Jen thought she’d done some serious damage to her kneecap which had been slammed upwards. My shins copped it but while bone on wood is awfully painful there was minimal bruising to show for it. As it turned out, we continued driving to the Tsisab Ravine (about an hour away) only to find that the grid used for cooking and is stored in brackets under the rear of the truck, had been ripped from the back when we went down the bank.

The Brandberg mountains reminded us a bit of some of the mountains in Jordan. Red red rocks (they are really, even if they don't look red in the pic below) of immense size and great slabs of granite and dolerite.



Some of us hiked up into the ravine to see the White Lady painting underneath this rock and others went back in the truck to retrieve the lost grill.



We were held up that afternoon by a missing truck and spent a few hours lying round in the sun (and man, was it hot! I can’t believe this is winter). The truck had disappeared in search of the missing grill and it turned out that they well stuck in a river bed and had a bit of trouble digging the truck out.

The desert roads around the Brandburg mountains were just straight and flat and went on for hours and hours….. and hours…



We could smell the sea miles before we hit the Skeleton Coast and, when we got off the truck we could hear the roaring but I’m not sure now if it was the sea or the wind in the dunes. It really was in the middle of nowhere, incredibly barren and the wind was pretty gusty. We lost our tent (we weren’t in it obviously) but thankfully someone next door to us grabbed it but the person on the end of the line lost theirs and had to run like mad to catch it. The photo below makes it all look quite peaceful but it wasn't. The wind was blowing, tempers in the truck were flaring and some were getting a bit sick of others so not all was harmonious! I'll never forget friends of ours saying "be prepared for high school all over again". They weren't wrong there!!



The tents are pretty basic to put up and are usually quite stable and stationary so this was the first time we had needed to use pegs



While we actually weren’t that far from the coast I think the roaring I’d heard was the dunes and the wind. We headed to Cape Cross seal colony after an incredibly windy night where out tent was blown inwards and shifted sideways, forwards etc until the only part on the ground was that we were lying on. On the way to the seal colony we were flying along in the truck and all of a sudden we went through this kind of temperature barrier where, within a second (no exaggeration), the temperature went from really warm and almost humid, to chilly ice cold wind. I’ve never experienced anything like it and the look on all of our faces was priceless – absolute surprise before we scurried for our jackets and fleeces. Cape Cross colony was, as are all seal colonies I’ve experienced, very noisy and pongy. What made this one different to others I’d seen were the jackals that were sleeping and wandering among the seals, clearly waiting to get their teeth around some new pups.



We headed a bit further up the coast and a brave few swam, rather unintentionally (got bowled fully clothed by the huge waves), in the Atlantic. Neither Euan or I swam (might have considered it were we not bush camping again that night) but were entertained hugely by those who did.

Strangely enough (we suspect there may have been a navigation c*ck up?) we headed inland from the coast to our next bush camp which was well over 100km into the desert. It was a spectacular setting and well worth the drive inland down the long dusty bumpy roads to Spitzkoppe which is a massive cluster of rocks that rise in the middle of the Namib desert.



It was a brilliant place to camp and, like all mountains or clusters of rock, they’re deceptively high! I got stuck taking what I thought was a shortcut and I can safely say that crocs (footwear not the reptile) might rock but they’re next to useless when you’re stuck hanging over a ledge with sweaty feet. I was rather worried to say the least but made it up after holding still for a while. These are the views (you can just see the truck down the middle bottom of the photo).

For the below, Euan was saying to me "move right, move left, move back" and I thought he was talking me off the edge as I was quite close. He was persuaded that it was much easier for the photographer to move than the subject. More so when the subject is close to a vertical drop-off but he might have had ulterior motives!

Watching the sun go down in a wonderful setting



Getting bored with watching the sun go down (two Kiwi girls being a bit silly on one leg too near the edge for comfort on hindsight)



Some of the guys set out to climb as high as they could up this rock pile and returned hours and hours later and hadn’t reached the top.



There is something about camping in the middle of nowhere. The stars are so bright and the air is so clear here. Having said that, I’ve not slept out under the stars yet. Partly because its too cold and partly because of the animals that are around. A chap we spoke to had been sleeping out by the fire and had an old hyena grab his head and try to drag him away. He fought it off and was OK but had it been a younger stronger hyena they reckoned he wouldn’t have had much chance. We had another incredibly windy night by the rocks and thought we’d made a mistake by not pitching our tent up against the rock. One glance at tents up against the rock the next morning indicated otherwise as they were just as crushed by the wind as ours was.