Cape Town to Victoria Falls (Part 3)

Where the desert mets the ocean

Day 8…. Swakopmund Today was a ‘free/rest’ day, but no rest was had by me, although I did have a little lie-in. Starting to get low on clean clothes, I headed into town to the laundrette. Within minutes I had upset the girl in there by just sticking my stuff into a washing machine without consulting her first ☹️. This is not the way things are done. When I realised my mistake, I tried to apologise but she wasn’t having any of it……if looks could kill, my blog would have got no further!!! Clothes all clean, I took them back to the hotel and then treated myself to an eyebrow wax ?. It had been a while since they had been done and I looked great afterwards…it’s the little things ?

Next was meeting up with some of my group for a bit of quad biking through the desert. David, my new BFF, 80 year old retired farmer, had a quad when he was farming. He was a bit put out to find he had to wear a crash helmet on the tour ?‍?. I managed to get my GoPro to work and the company we went with had some crash helmets with mounts on.

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Quad biking in Swakopmund

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We were out for an hour and a half altogether. Had a great time. Big grins all round.

  • David ??

That evening, most of the gang got back together for dinner at a really nice place called The Tug. It was right on the seafront with magnificent views and the food was great too. The restaurant also puts on minibuses to get you home safely ?

Photos stolen from Steve S, because I forgot to take any.

Day 9…….Swakopmund to Brandberg. As we left Swakopmund we drove along the Skelton Coast, so named because so many ships were wreaked here in the rough seas.

  • Look at those lovely eyebrows!!!

We turned away from the coast and headed east. The last time I am going to see the ocean for a while ?

Our next stop was to visit The Brandberg White Lady. This is a famous rock painting. We had been warned that it was a tough walk to see the painting and as it was nearing 40 degree heat, I opted out straight away. Quite a few of the others did to. Us ‘lazy’ lot sat in the shade (still steaming hot) played cards and dominos. It was actually a really nice time. When the others got back looking very red faced and hot, I knew I had definitely made the right decision. Another lovely lodge in the desert and a very welcome cooling swim in the pool when we arrived.

Day 10….. Brandberg to Kamanjab. The next morning only 5 of us got up to go to see the Twyfelfontein Rock Engravings. As I had missed the White Lady, I felt I must go. The walk to the rocks/engraving apparently wasn’t as hard as the day before and we were going early so not as hot. There was a degree of clambering over rocks/boulders etc, but with the odd helping hand, I managed ok. The engravings were fascinating. They are thought to be between 2000-6000 years old. They were a ‘map’ to show other bushman where animals were, or to teach the young men what footprint went with what animal.

  • Penguin (the bush people travelled long distances)
  • The circles represent where the water holes are

After the walk we collected the rest of the group, who had had a hard morning by the pool and headed to our next destination. Really nice accommodation again that night.

Day 11…….Kamanjab to Etosha National Park Up and out early, as per and on our way to Etosha NP to see animals in the wild. Etosha was quite different from Kruger in that it had much more open spaces and very dry. I still got to see loads of animals, especially Black Rhino and elephants ?????

Day 12……..Etosha National Park Full day exploring the NP on the hunt for animals. More of the same, still no sign of the elusive leopard, but a lovely herd of elephants heading to the water hole.

My favourite bit of information concerning rhino, is on how to tell the difference between the black or white rhino. Black rhino are like black women, the calf is protected behind her, like black women carry their babies on their backs. White rhino are like white women, the calf is protected in front of them, the same as white women pushing their babies in prams in front of them ?? Of course there is much more scientific ways, shape of head/lips etc…but the baby analogy is perfect for me.

And finally if a forest is petrified would you go into it???? I didn’t ?

Cape Town to Victoria Falls (Part 2)

Day 5….Keetmanshoop to Namibia Naukluft National Park. Today was mainly a transit day as we needed to get further into the desert to see all the wonderful dunes and life that Namibia had to offer. We did have several stops for lunch and bathroom breaks etc, and to take photos of the wild animals we saw, mainly zebra, oryx, impala. When we finally reached our accommodation for the next 2 nights, we realised we REALLY were in the desert…..hot hot hot and sand everywhere ?

  • My little hut in the desert (with air conditioning)

Dinner that night was at a very swanky lodge that was linked with our slightly less swanky lodges. The meal was just amazing. We were sat outside, wonderful clear skies and the odd wild animal wandering by. My fellow travellers felt it was ok to eat the animals that we had been in awe of all day…I stuck to chicken ?

  • Chose your meat
  • And get it BBQ’d
  • Or pick your ingredients for a stir fry
  • Dinner

Day 6…..Namib-Naukluft National Park

Today ended up being quite emotional for me??? I’m going to blame it on being tired!! My day started at 4:15am. We needed to be up and out, breakfast and in the queue to get into the NP by 6am. It was going to be a busy day in the desert and Norman wanted us to do the main bits before the temperature got up to 40 degrees. As a group we had agreed to do the walk/climb to Deadvlei first. Deadvlei is a white clay pan located near the more famous salt pan of Sossusvlei. We set off, and once again I was starting to struggle with my fitness and knee….blah blah blah. I again starting falling behind the rest of the group. Although it was only day 6 of knowing this group of people, some of them were really showing their kindness and support towards me. As I approached yet another sand dune that needed walking up to see Deadvlei, I made the decision that it wasn’t fair on the group to be held back by me, I felt I was ruining their experience. I told Norman I was going to turn round and go back to the truck and wait for them there. At this point, Norman said that he wasn’t going to let me give up. He sent Steve S ahead to tell the others to carry on, enjoy the pans and be back to the truck by a certain time. Norman told me that I would have such a sense of achievement if I got to the top, that he would stay by my side and it would take as long as it took. He also said we would stop as often as I needed……Not going to lie….I cried by this act of kindness…not just Norman but by my fellow travellers.

Head down, teeth gritted….I did it. Even a complete stranger congratulated me when I got to the top….My face was so red ??Norman was right. I felt brilliant

And of course what goes up must come down. Norman said sliding down the dune would be the quickest route, so myself, Pat and David did exactly that.

  • Norman my hero

Next stop Dune 45, so named because it is 45km from the entrance to the NP. This was definitely a step too far for me and opted out straight away. Several of the others opted out as well, because although it was only about 10:30am it was really steaming hot. Lots of respect for the gang that did walk up the Dune.

  • Up they go
  • We stayed and fed the birds.

Norman still wasn’t finished with us…onto the Sesriem Canyon. I wasn’t allowed to get out of this one. Down I went, climbing over boulders etc helping hands from Norman and the 2 Steve’s ?. Another sense of achievement gained.

Finally back to my little hut in the desert, cold shower and a nap in the air conditioning made everything all ok again. Another lovely dinner at the main lodge and early night. Back at my hut I tried to do some long exposure shots of the night sky because it was amazing and there is no light pollution in the desert. I wasn’t very successful, and then all sorts of animals noises started and something trotted pass in the dark that I couldn’t see. I quickly returned to my room.

Day 7….. Naukluft Area to Swakopmund. Another early start as we were to do a guided desert walk with a local expert. The walk really turned out to be a drive (very relieved) and the guide was so entertaining. He told us about the language and the life the desert people used to live. Interestingly, if a member of the tribe couldn’t keep up (children included) as they moved around looking for food or water, they got left behind. I definitely would have been a goner!!

The drive continued, and we saw more great sights, animals and stopped for photo opportunity at the Tropic of Capricorn.

Finally, back by the Ocean (Atlantic) and lunch at Walvis Bay Lagoon, which was very green and had flamingo and seagulls.

Our hotel for the next 2 nights was a bit of a disappointment. My room overlooked a large sports hall and had no fresh air, just the aircon. It was also a bit out of the town, so taxis needed to get anywhere. The next day was to be a ‘day off’ and everyone was very excited by this, finally a lie-in ??

And finally, I just wanted to mention again, the kindness of people. I still feel a little emotional when I think about my time on the dunes. So much love for my ’Nomad Family’ ??

Cape Town to Victoria Falls (Part 1)

Last look back at Table Mountain and Cape Town

Day 1…. Cape Town to Cederberg Region. Thursday 21st November had me up early and in an Uber on the way to meet my fellow ‘camp mates’ for the next 20 days. 7am saw 12 strangers being very polite with each other on the streets of Cape Town, probably all a bit nervous about what was in store for us. Our ages range from 51-80+ years. There is a Danish couple, a Dutch couple, an Australian solo man and 7 Brits…..3 couples and solo me ? Our Guide for the next 20 days is a SA man called Norman (he’s young despite the name) and our driver is Chrispin (Chris), from Zimbabwe. We loaded up the trunk with our belongings, choose our seats and were on the way. After leaving Cape Town, we stopped briefly at Table Bay to have on last look at Table Mountain.

We travelled for a while to the Cederberg region in SA. This part of the country is called the ‘bread basket’ of SA because of the amount of wheat and other crops that are grown here. It is also the home of the Rooibos bush and we visited a working Rooibos Tea farm. We saw the plants of the Rooibos and Buchu that grow naturally in the wild but are farmed here for exporting. These plants are indigenous to the mountain slopes of Cederberg and are unable to grow anywhere else in the world. Rooibos has earned an international reputation as a healthy and refreshing alternative to regular tea. Not being a tea drinking I felt I had to try some…not for me I’m afraid. Buchu is used as a herbal remedy for aches and pains as well as a ‘tea’ drink.

Accommodation for that night was very comfortable, much better than I was expecting.

Day 2 Cederberg to Gariep (Orange) River, Namibia.   Another 5am start had us heading towards the Namibian boarder. On route we happened to pass near where Norman’s family live, Bitterfontein. Some of the teenagers from the village are off soon to Cape Town for the final of a ‘traditional’ dance competition, having won all their local heats. Norman very kindly arranged with the kids to show us their dance. What an amazing treat, something that I’m sure very few people get to witness. The young people were brilliant. The dance represents how tribe people would have communicated with each other before ‘language’. I feel so privileged to have seen this.

Good luck in Cape Town. I hope you win ??
Best enjoyed with the sound on.

We continued north until we got to the boarder with Namibia. I may have mentioned before ‘I love a boarder’ ?. Nice easy process saw us 1 minute in South Africa, then on a bridge over Orange River (The boarder line) and into Namibia. 

A short drive from the boarder and we were at our accommodation for the night. Really lovely ‘huts’ on the river bank, with great views etc. 

Day 3….Gariep (Orange) River to Fish River Canyon.                                            We were allowed a bit of a lie in today as no one wanted to get up early to do canoeing on the river ??.  Back on the road and we were really getting into the desert now.

  • Spot the mountain zebra?

We continued travelling until we reached Ai-Ais National Park where we were going to spend the night at a hotel where there was a hot spring (a little underwhelming). Nice big out door swimming pool though, and baboons that were quite happy to go onto balconies and steal food from guests ?

Day 4…….River Fish Canyon to Keetmanshoop                                                   Back to an early start, and a ’gentle’ walk around the rim of the canyon. This was the 1st real test of the ‘state’ I had let myself get into since my bike accident. What should have been an easy walk saw me at the back, behind the 80 year olds, struggling, puffing and panting. But I didn’t give up and made it very red faced to the end, even though I had the choice to get a lift in the truck at the half way point. The group is now starting to really bond, and these ‘strangers’ were very encouraging to me and extremely supportive. Small achievement met ??

Lunch that day was at a really unusual ‘Roadhouse’. It was so quirky and unique (the food was ok too)

Our next stop was Quiver Tree Forest and Giants Playground. We also visited a place that looks after orphaned cheetahs and we saw them being fed. The Quiver Trees are amazingly beautiful and we watched the sun set through them. 

  • Yep I am in the enclosure with real cheetahs!!!

Finally, I am actually on day 16 of my trip, but due to long, tiring days and poor WiFi in most places, I’m a little behind with my blog. But lots of exciting things to write about as soon as I can ??