March 14th - 17th, Namibia

Saturday March 14th: Swakopmund to Sossousvlei (Replaced the bearing on the prop shaft)
Driving through deserts of Namibia is quite amazing but to do it at a time when Namibia has received the most rain they’ve had in a decade is spectacular. Instead of rocks, sand and gravel of all different hues we are constantly surrounded by green pastures of grasses that will only live for a couple of weeks. Brendan, our driver who has been to Namibia many times since 1994, says he’s never seen the desert like it. Which all sounds very nice and relaxing until the bearing holding up our prop shaft breaks.....? in the middle of the green desert in the middle of the day. We’re hundreds of kilometres from any town but as luck would have it we have a spare. The next 3 hours are spent by the 4 guys lying on the gravel under the truck dismantling the drive shaft (which I can assure you did not want to be dismantled), replacing the bearing and reassembling the whole thing. We eventually make it to a campsite in the desert and see the most spectacular sunset but everyone is ready to crash as we’ve got to be up at 5am.

Sunday March 15th: Sossousvlei to Bethanie
One of the major reasons why I wanted to come to Namibia was to see the largest sand dunes in the world ..... And they don’t disappoint. The fiery orange red of the dunes is a beautiful contrast to the bright blue of the cloudless morning sky. Climbing up one of the dunes takes about 35 minutes but the views from the top are spectacular. The trip down is a lot quicker and a lot more fun! After a late breakfast at the base of the dunes it’s back in the truck for another 6 hour day on the road, rewarded with beautiful desert vistas and a cold pool at our campsite for the night.
Monday March 16th: Bethanie to Orange River
Namibia is a big country and driving the length of it means another day of driving in the truck through some of the most barren and inhospitable terrain in the world. We stopped for lunch at Fish River Canyon, the world’s second largest canyon. We’re lucky today as it’s a relatively cool 37° c and at the end of the day we all pile straight into the bar at our campsite right on the Orange river for some liquid refreshment. It Caroline’s 30th birthday (our tour leader) and needless to say we ensure we celebrate it in style (not sure which style actually) with numerous jaigermaister shots!
Tuesday March 17th: Orange River Namibia
A lazy day nursing hangovers... The backdrop to the campsite is beautiful - the Orange River is high after a lot of rainfall and its current is strong. On the other side of the river is South Africa and in the background you can see the rocky Namibian desert. For dinner we try Springbok. They taste as good as they look!