Russell's 2007 holiday to Namibia Day 1 - Saturday Left Cape Town in light rain which continued most of the way to Lamberts Bay. Turned off at Algeria to look at the Olifants River which was fairly full. The low level bridge was completely underwater - glad I was not going that way. Stopped to look at the Clanwilliam dam - very full and all sluices open - quite a sight. Lamberts Bay was quiet as usual. Spent the night with the folks. Day 2 - Sunday From Lamberts Bay it was back to the N7 and then head north. From Vanryhnsdorp, the rain stopped and it was much better driving. I was quite surprised at all the flowers that are already out. Very pretty! The border crossing was painless - probably less than 30 minutes for both sides. When the end of the tar was in sight, I stopped to deflate tyres to 1.6 and carried on to Norotshama. The place looked great. I was shown to my campsite - between 2 bungalows with a view of the river and a power point. Other campers did not get the great view I had. Setting up camp was unreal - tent and bed ready in less than 5 minutes - thanks Johann Tyres for the loan of the roof top tent. Got some firewood, just for the atmosphere as I had decided to have a bully-beef pot for supper. The only problem with Norotshama is the damn dogs. They did not stop barking until about 9pm. I was very tempted to test the catapult but thought better of it. Day 3 - Monday Woke up early and hit the shower before the other campers were awake. Packing up was just as easy as setting up, I was finished less than 5 minutes after starting. Have to get myself one of these tents. The drive along the river is beautiful. Pity about the mess left by some of the mining operators. There are also some active mining operations. With all the warning boards to stay on the road, I decided not to go to the Octha mine. Carried on to Rosh Pinah which has grown since I was last here in 2001. Pumped the tyres again as it was to be tar all the way to Aus. In Aus the Bahnhof hotel did not have any Tafel Lager, so I had to go back to the garage to buy beer. From there - off to the wild horses. Saw plenty, but most of them were too far for my little camera. Also saw some Gemsbok. From there I backtracked to Klein-Aus Vista - what a stunning place. The campsite is brilliant, each campsite is centred around a tree, tap, fireplace and wind shield. The birds (LBJ's) are very entertaining - feeding them with bread and biscuits and they come real close. A couple of field mice were competing for the food and ran off with the whole biscuits. Day 4 - Tuesday Kids *&^%$##$%^&*&^%$ Why can parents not control their offspring!!!!! Damn kids shouting and screaming at 6am - enough to drive a person insane. Once again, I was very tempted to use the catapult. Anyway, I kept my mouth shut and packed up. After ablutions, I left the campsite quite early. Went back to Aus to fill up and popped into the visitors centre. From there I stopped off at the old cemetery to look at some of the old war graves. Spooky that so many from both sides died at the same time - seems like a 2 week period. Back on the road, and as soon as I hit the gravel, I deflated again. To me the scenery is fantastic, but to others it could be boring. The first big bird nest - sociable weavers, I think - was exciting, but then I started to see lots more. Then came the Gemsbok. First few were far away, but then I came across 2 in the road. They were running just ahead of me, but we were not moving too fast. As I went passed they could not decide which way to move, but luckily did not run into me. The D707 is not in the best condition, but the scenery is definitely worth it. Red sand dunes close to the road. Even these little dunes make Atlantis Dunes look flat! The going was slow - soft sand with a long uphill and the Cruiser was battling a bit. Over the top and I could pick up speed again to a scary 60km/h. Suddenly 4 Kudu cows jumped out of the bush and ran across in front of me. Once the nerves settled, I maintained a more relaxed speed. At Betta, there were 3 gyrocopters that were about to leave, 1 of them was just ahead of me and when he paused on the cattle grid, he had to give stick and that big fan at that back sent up a dust storm in my face. Luckily I managed to get past before they took off. Duwiseb was a major disappointment. I had been here about 10 years ago. The first thing I noticed, as the eagles were no longer on the gate posts. I am also certain that the interior is not as full as it used to be. There were too many empty rooms. From Duwiseb, it was back to Betta to refuel. This is when I suddenly remembered I had not drawn extra cash! Had to pay for fuel in cash, which left me with only about R200. Anyway, I made it to Tsauchab, what an amazing place. This one deserves another visit and for more than 1 night. I was given a choice of 2 campsites, and chose the one closer to the bathroom - also got my own private ablutions - don't have to share. Just before it got dark, a gent on a bicycle came round to light candles to light up the path to the bathroom. I was told here that permits for Naukluft are only available at Sesriem, so I would have to backtrack to get my permit. Day 5 - Wednesday Woke up a bit too early, but decided to get up anyway. While having coffee - still fairly dark but enough light from the full moon - and a strange rabbit appeared. Long legs and seriously big ears. (And no, he did not have a fob watch and tophat) I had a glorious hot shower - nice to not have to share the hot water. After giving back the ablutions keys and saying goodbye, I took a moment to take pics of the interesting signs in the driveway. Then it was off to Sesriem. I managed to get cash from the Sossusvlei Lodge, got my permit from the NWR office and filled up with petrol. Stopped in Solitaire for the piece of apple pie and coffee - even got somebody to take a pic! Then it was back on the road. Much to my confusion the signs for the Tropic of Capricorn don't match the GPS. For the sake of the photo's, I decided to use the signs. (Kingsly Holgate did his world trip around the tropic. He is also the Captain Morgan man) So in honour of his trip, every time I crossed the tropic, I stopped to have a Captain Morgan and coke. The first place was just before the Gaub Pass. Amazing how many folk stop to take photo's of the sign. They must have all thought I was a real piss cat. The drink was divine! After my dop, it was time for the Gamadoelas. Quite an amazing feature. This is also where the Henno Martin shelter is located. I started reading "The Sheltering Desert", his account of the time spent hiding in the Namib during the 2nd World War. Amazing how they survived. The walk to the cave was damn far, and I nearly had a heart attack on the way back (must try and get fitter!!) From there it was a short drive to where I turned off the C14 to Mirabib. Much nicer to be on a narrow road with no traffic. When I got next to Bokenkop (S23.35365 E15.55838) I checked the cell phone and was surprised to see I had a signal. Funny enough this was the one stretch I thought there would be no comms at all. Just before the turn off to Mirabib, there was another Tropic of Capricorn sign, so that meant another drink. (I could get to like this game!) Got to Mirabib and drove around deciding which campsite to use. Saw a real nice familiar looking feature in one of the rocks and decided this would be a good campsite. When a swarm of bees arrived, I nearly packed up and left. Luckily they did not stay for too long. The rock formations are pretty awesome, and my little campsite looked perfect. What a pleasure sitting here in the middle of nowhere (S23.45390 E15.35221) with a campfire burning and other than the crackling of the fire - not a single sound. Day 6 - Thursday In the morning I packed up very quickly to get out of there before the bees could return. Managed to stick around long enough for the sunrise and then I hit the road. Even though this area looks totally inhospitable, I was pleased to see a few Gemsbok close by. Once back on the main track, I nearly bust a gut laughing - in the middle of nowhere stands a rain gauge! Rain out here - somebody must be a comedian. When I got close to Gobabeb, I could see the mist on the dunes. The temperature had also dropped down to 8deg C. Then it happened! Another crossing of the Tropic, and it was only 9 am (8am Namibian time). Oh well, a promise is a promise even if it was only to myself. I pulled over and poured a Captain and Coke. Great for breakfast! Walvis was close by and it was quite chilly. As I turned into the street my sister lives in, the phone rang - Theo S - wanting to meet in Walvis, but I would be leaving before he arrived, so we agreed to meet in Windhoek (unfortunately that didn't happen either). My brother-in-law is a serious Sharks supporter, and his whole pub is dedicated to the Sharks. Any Sharks supporters visiting Walvis are welcome to pop in (call me for the address). We ended up chatting till after midnight and then crashed. Day 7 - Friday to Day 10 - Monday Got woken by the dogs at 3am but just rolled over and slept more. My sister got up and checked what was happening. Some £$%^&* had scaled the wall, come right round the house and were trying to get into the Cruiser. Scared my niece as the power lead was in her window and they were pulling on that too. Luckily nothing was taken or damaged. After that, there were no more hassles with uninvited guests. We had a few party evenings, went to Swakop a few times, basically just spent time with the family. Day 11 - Tuesday Left early on Tuesday - Theo S passed me at Langstrand. We had a brief chat on vhf until he was out of range. Stopped in Swakop for some biltong at the Namaqua butchery then hit the road. I could not believe how much Henties had grown since I was last there. As this was the last available fuel for a few days, I also filled the jerry cans. From there it was not far to Cape Cross. Looked at the cross and the seals, but did not stick around - the stink is bad. Headed north for about 5 km's and turned off at (S21.71305 E13.97943). This is the track to the Messum Crater. Saw a few Springbok, but not much else. Was quite excited when I saw the first Welwitchia. As far as I know, they only grow in the Namib. Each time I saw a bigger specimen, I got more excited, then after a while it was actually boring stopping to take a picture. The Messum Crater is awesome. Miles and miles of nothing! To me it was just spectacular. Stopped for a bite at a neat little cave - did the mountain climbing thing again. Then I got to a road sign that said "Moer Toe" - quite appropriate. I chose the direction to "Moer Toe" and it ended up the right way. Found another cave at (S21.39435 E14.20293 ) marked "Bakkrans" with a sign that it is a historical area. I followed a small track for about 3km and then chickened out. On T4A it does not go through to the main track, just ends at (S21.09770 E14.23504) and it was really slow, so I turned around. Wasted a bit of time, but in the end it was ok. I got to the "Save The Rhino Ugab River Camp" an hour and a half later. This was the expensive place - R35 for the night - I paid for 2 nights - just in case! Cooked the first steak of the trip. Was delicious! When I packed up and went to bed, heard something creeping around the campsite. After the signs warning about elephants and lions, I was not getting up to investigate. The wind started howling during the night - didn't get too much sleep. Day 12 - Wednesday Woke up in time for sunrise. Looked for animal spoor, but not even the tyre tracks were visible - the wind had cleared everything. Saw a lady lighting the donkey for hot water, so looked forward to a hot shower. Transferred the fuel from the Jerry cans to the truck. Then had a shower and after that a cup of coffee. Went for a drive up the canyon to a spring at (S20.94968 E14.12344). Looked like a lot of salt, so I was not going to taste it. The track was wet with this salt solution, so I took it really easy, trying not to splash. Turned around and took a drive up the river bed. Went for about 10km and then turned off to head to the old Brandberg West mine. First time on the outing I had to use low range. It was very slow going all the way to the mine. Pity about the mess left behind, but some of the ruins look pretty cool. The pool at the bottom of the pit looks great, but the road has been blocked by landslides so I could not get down. Decided it was far too windy to stay there another night - headed for the Brandberg campsite. Turned off at (S20.94968 E14.12344 ) onto a small track again - much nicer than the main roads. This brought me out almost at the white lady parking area. I am too old for that long hike, so headed off to the campsite - via another track - this one in a river bed. After booking in, I was told the elephants are about 20km down river. I went looking but gave up after 26km. Saw 2 cruiser safari vehicles with a group of students, the guides said they had seen the elephants closer to the Ugab campsite which was now on the other side of the swamp. Oh well, some you lose! I went back to set up camp and have a cold one. Day 13 - Thursday Left camp after a cold shower - as I left, they lit the donkey for hot water. The drive to Uis was uneventful. At the turn-off to town, I got accosted by the stone sellers. I bought a few for fun. At what looks like an old garage, I was amused to see the old SA flag painted next to the current flag. The local "Bad Boy" monster 4x4 was at the filling station. Damn*&^%$#@ Damn @#$%^&. Spoke to folks I met in the river at the point I turned around. They saw a herd of elephant about 1km further. Next time I am going all the way from The Rhino Ugab Camp to Brandberg camp, including the section through the swamp Then Spitzkoppe beckoned. I got carried away with photo's before I even entered the area. At the gate, I bought a few trinkets, and could not resist a photo of 2 little kids that came running at full speed. All they wanted was some food. I gave them a loaf of bread and some other food (no sweets) for which I got big smiles. The fee for camping was not too bad N$45 plus N$10 for the vehicle - N$55. Then the trouble - what to look at next. At "Bushmans Paradise" I declined the walk - remember this from 1983 when I was last here, and it was tough then - would kill me now. I drove all the way round and eventually found what I think was the campsite we used then - not that there was any control in those days. Went back to the gate to buy some firewood and stopped at the first vacant campsite. Was surprised when another Cruiser pulled up - one from "Just Done It". Two women and a guy. They asked if they could join the fire and we had a fine evening. Antonella, Marianna and Marco are from Italy and were touring Namibia. They have also toured extensively in North Africa. It was great listening to some of their stories. We polished some red wine, I gave them some "Duine koffie" and we only went to sleep late. Day 14 - Friday What a sunrise! Spitzkoppe is quite amazing. Packed up early and headed off to Windhoek. Dropped off my laundry at Gerrit's shop and then booked in at Arrebush. After unpacking everything from the truck, and having a hot shower, I was about to go into town, and then found the lock on the door did not work. They put somebody outside the room until the lock was replaced - Pretty good service. I went for a drive down memory lane - visited the houses I used to live in and a few other places. Could not believe how bad the school is - looks like a derelict abandoned school, but I believe it is still in use. Even the Alte Feste is looking run down. Friday night was a small B&B - Only Gerrit, David and myself. Later on Cobus and a friend joined us for a quick drink. Day 15 - Saturday Spent the day being a tourist. Then while driving around I noticed the aux battery was not holding it's charge. Damn thing died on me. I phoned Gerrit to find out where to buy a new battery and he phoned around to find out. After a short wait Gerrit phoned me back with directions. He got hold of Ken from Battery Centre who waited at his store to help me. We had to go out to the other shop, and I had to buy a new battery. Popped in to Joe's Beer house for a quick beer. Had to force myself to leave - live music and a great atmosphere - will have to come back for a decent session next time. Day 16 - Sunday Got going nice and early - left about 7.30. I was initially shocked to see the battery monitor showing a low charge. Visions of a dud battery had me worried. When I stopped to fill up, I checked the connections on the solenoid, but they were fine. Then I saw it, Neither the pos nor neg cables were attached to the new battery, only the buzz bars. I connected them up and hey presto! Much relieved, it was time to leave Windhoek. The road from Windhoek to Dordabis was all tar and quite uneventful. A short way past Dordabis at (S23.32543 E17.84188) was an old fort or just a watch tower. More to investigate. Didn't see anything else of interest up to Mariental. Refuelled and hit the road for Gibeon. Not much in Gibeon either. There was a narrow bridge over the Fish River - good for a photo. Between Gibeon and Berseba, dunes were creeping over the road making it quite dangerous if traveling at speed. Even moving slowly, the truck swerved violently to the right. I went up to the Burkkaros Crater gate, but they could not help with fire wood and I had none with me. Decided to head into Keetmanshoop. Tried to call Brayn, but I had the wrong number (*264 instead of +264). Spent the night at Lafenis Lodge - bit dodgy, but better than nothing. Met 2 lady botanists returning to Windhoek from Aus. Spent some time chatting to the one woman. She has some fascinating stories to tell. Told me she met the nephew of Baron Von Wolf of Duwiseb Castle. "He drove one of the wagons bringing the furniture from Luderitz to the castle. The main wardrobe fell off the wagon and one door broke. They brought in craftsmen from Italy to fix it. They removed the back of the wardrobe and carved a new door. Replaced the back with local timber." At the time of telling, the man was over 90 years old and has unfortunately since passed on. Pity all his old stories were never documented. Day 17 - Monday Went into Keetmans to meet Brayn and get one of his huge Chelsea buns (I could not finish it!) We had a cup of coffee and a chat. After saying goodbye for the umpteenth time, I left with a nice Springbok boud in the freezer - thanks Brayn! Went to The Fish River Canyon, took quite a few pics and went to all the lookout points. I was a bit annoyed at seeing a "4xForum" sticker on one of the signboards at the Fish River Canyon. Why can't people leave things unmarked. I wonder what idiot decided the notice board would look better with this sign. After the canyon, I went back to Canon Roadhouse where I spent my last night in Namibia. This was also the coldest night - minus 1.   Total kms - 5158 Total Fuel - 1181.43 litres Total fuel cost - R 8393.35 Best consumption - 5.6 km/litre - between Windhoek & Marienthal via Dordabis & Bitterwasser. Worst consumption - 2.65 km/litre - between Henties & Uis which included about 100km in river beds. Average consumption - 4.36 km/litre - not too bad - my average for the year is 4.06km/litre. Punctures - none (obviously not - I was running on Goodyear MTR's) THANKS The biggest thanks go to Johann Viljoen for all his help and for lending me his rooftop tent. It really made my holiday so much more comfortable. Johan Meyer - making sure the truck was ok for the trip. Greg Van Der Reis - for lending me an HF radio for the long distance comms. George Warren - for lending me a laptop to download photo's, tracklogs and to write up my trip report along the way. The Namibian guys for their hospitality. PHOTO'S There are a lot more photo's at More Namibia 2007 Photo's