|
|||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||
Day 1: Guest Farm. We arrive in Windhoek and depart in the direction of the Namib Naukluft Mountains. There are a number of gorges with running water that lead to a plateau above, a wonderful place to walk. On our first night we overnight at a lovely Guest Farm in the area and make sure we are well rested for the trekking and camping days ahead. Day
2: Naukluft Camp Site. Our first walking day. We depart for the
Naukluft Camp Site, the starting point for the Waterkloof Trail, a trail
that takes us up one of the most scenic gorges in the Naukluft Mountains.
Day
3: Campsite. We depart for the massive red sand dunes of the
famous Sossusvlei. The vegetation quickly disappears and within an hour
we find ourselves in the true Namib Desert, wide open plains with fields
of yellow grass with the crisp blue sky as a backdrop…. We should
see the Springbok and Oryx antelope along the way, not to mention the
graceful Ostriches, bounding off at high speed at the faintest notice.
We set up camp under beautiful old Camelthorn Trees and take in the lovely
views from our secure campsite. After lunch and Siesta, we depart on foot
for the distant Elim dune, an easy walk and once on top of this easily
climbable dune, we celebrate a beautiful sunset with a sundowner of your
choice.
Day 5: Camping. We travel in a parallel line to the dunes in a northwesterly direction, to a granite inselberg, which reflects the rays of the setting desert sun, thus the name “blood hill”. We break at Solitaire for a famous apple pie and coffee, a welcome refueling oasis, and reach our camp for a fine picnic lunch between the granites. A place where the Black Eagles soar, and their staple diet, the Rock Hyrax, screech warning calls on the approach of this fearsome raptor. Horny the helmeted Guinea Fowl will hopefully be there to receive us…. The Rock Sculpture Trail beckons. The granites are a remnant of the volcanic activity when the continent South America broke away from Africa. Our walk takes us into a fascinating area of rock formations and distant views of the desert moon landscape. (2-4 hours) Day
6: Beach Lodge. We travel towards the characteristic colonial
town of Swakopmund, via the Swakop River moon landscape. We see the famous
Welwitschia Mirablis and other interesting desert succulents. The Swakop
River has over time, carved a barren moon landscape terrain out of the
ancient Damara schists and granites, creating an amazing landscape, in
a relatively cool environment. Due to the cold southwesterly winds that
blow in from the Atlantic Ocean, our sightseeing walks are pleasantly
cool. We arrive in Swakopmund for some late shopping and settle into our
comfortable Guesthouse, only to wonder out later for some delicious seafood,
for which this coast is well known.
Day
8: Spitzkoppe Camping. We travel via Cape Cross to Spitzkop.
Cape Cross, home to over 100 000 seals, was the first landing spot for
Diego Cao, the Portuguese explorer in 1482, on a journey to find the sea
route around the Cape. He was unsuccessful, but left a stone Padrao, of
which a replica still stands. We Lunch at Henties Bay and head inland
to the Matterhorn of Namibia, the majestic granite inselberg called Spitzkop,
standing 1728 metres above the surrounding plains. We set up camp and
enjoy a pleasant walk through a hidden valley, called Bushman’s
Paradise, with its’ granite structures and beautiful views. Our
campfire beckons and we settle down to a fireside dinner in one of the
most picturesque campsites on our journey. Day
9: Camp site, Brandberg(White Lady). Early start at Spitzkop,
we proceed on a walk, which will take us round the Spitzkop Mountain.
We find a variety of animal tracks, including Leopard, and see a variety
of bird life and interesting plants and trees, which make the granites
their home. We end off for lunch at the Granite “Bridge”,
an easily accessible, photographers dream. We depart via Uis, a near deserted
Tin mining village, for our next camp, which lies next to the mighty Ugab
River, in the shadow of the imposing Brandberg Massif. The mountain plateau
boasts the 2573 meter high Konigstein, the highest peak in Namibia. We
camp under huge Camelthorn trees in this birds’ paradise, along
the Ugab River.
Day
11: Camp site, Damaraland. Today is the walk on the plateau above
the Twyfelfontein engravings. Above and away from the bustle of mass tourism,
we have this beautiful area to ourselves. Fresh air, sandstone formations
and the strange Commiphora Anacardifolia tree, one of 6 endemic Commiphoras
of the Namib Desert. The whistle of the Long-billed Lark and the bark
of a lone Chacma baboon may be the only sounds of life up here, although
we should see many spoor of the antelope that travel the ancient paths
to the waterholes at that doubtful fountain, called “Twyfelfontein”.
After lunch we leave this area of the ancient Karoo times and enter the
Etendeka Lava territory, where the only visible evidence of large lava
flows can be seen in Namibia. Our camp is in the heart of Damaraland,
where the free ranging Black Rhino still runs free.
Day 13: Etosha Pans. Okakuejo Camp. In the morning we travel up the Grootberg Pass into the Central highlands to arrive at the famous Etosha Pans. The word means “great white place”, a massive inland saltpan that is filled with water every few years. About 4000 km/2, the pan makes up the northern edge of Etosha Game Reserve (about 24000 km/2). We settle into our comfortable bungalows and watch a beautiful African sunset over the Okakuejo waterhole, where Springbok, zebra, Giraffe, Kudu, Oryx, Elephant, Lion, Rhinoceros and many other animals come to drink almost every night of the year. We have an armchair view of the unfolding scene, often within meters of the mighty African elephant. The bird life within the camp is an excursion on it’s own. Grab a field guide and binoculars and were off…. Day 14: Etosha Pans. Namutoni Camp. Even though the waterhole has probably been teeming with wildlife, we depart in the direction of Namutoni, for a full day of leisurely game viewing from the comfort of our own vehicles. The distance is not more than 140 km, therefore we are able to take our time and stop at the many waterholes and wide open spaces along the way. We lunch at Halali Camp, we may just be lucky enough to see a herd of elephants at the Moringa waterhole here, but then again, we don’t want to see too many animals, or do we…? Namutoni is an old colonial fort that was built over 100 years ago, by the Germans, as a police station to try and contain the people of Ovamboland. It now makes up the heart of a beautiful rest camp on the eastern edge of Etosha. Day
15: Waterberg Plateau park. We drive via Otjiwarongo to our lunch
destination. After an hours drive, we arrive at the Waterberg, another
geological wonder of Namibia. The top of the plateau is of the same sandstone
found at Twyfelfontein, remnant of an ancient desert that covered the
ancient Gondwana continent about 300 million years ago. Rainwater passes
through this sandstone and comes up against a shale stone that forces
it out of the mountain sides, onto its’ slopes, creating a moist,
forest like environment. The vegetation is dense and unique, creating
a haven for many birds and larger mammals, including the endemic Damara
Dik Dik antelope. There are number of interesting trails and we end our
final walk at the top of this plateau, with a view to the Northeast, over
the vast flats of the Kalahari Basin. We dine in a grand old German building,
which used to be a police station over 100 years ago. We retire to our
comfortable bungalows, those bags need to be packed, one more time….
Day
16: Early departure to Windhoek International Airport, back home.
|
|||||||||||||||
 |
|||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
| |
|||||||||||||||
The
best time to go on walking tours in Namibia is between March and December,
our cooler months. Namibia is a large country and we travel to various
interesting areas to be able to walk in locations, scenically, most spectacular.
We usually depart early in the morning for 3-5 hour walks to return to
base by lunchtime. We also sometimes take evening walks, depending on
the time of year and area we are in. The sample itinerary below will give
you a guideline of the type of walking tour we offer.
Day
4: Campsite. After an early start, we drive the 60km to the parking
area 5km away from Sossusvlei and Dead Vlei. We set out on foot and walk
as the sun rises in the distance behind us. The colors are beautiful,
as the light of the rising sun dances across the slip faces and life begins
to stir in this desolate paradise, the ancient Namib Desert. We see the
Tok-tokkie beatles, Geckos and lizards, a variety of desert birds, including
Raptors and hopefully a Horned Adder basking in the morning sun. The area
is a pleasure to walk and view from the silent heights of surrounding
dunes, which form amphitheatres around the Sossusvlei and Dead Vlei. (3-4
hours)
Day
7: Beach Lodge. A 30km trip to Walvis Bay where we transfer to
special Jeeps that will take us for and adventure beach drive to the mysterious
Sandwich Harbour. In the 1700’s, Sandwich was a busy natural harbour
for whalers of old. The massive sand dunes, which lie directly against
the wild Atlantic Ocean, have covered almost all signs of human intrusion.
It is a beautiful beach to walk, the lagoon providing a wonderful variety
of bird life, “sandwiched’ between the imposing dunes and
the Atlantic Ocean. The fresh water seepage from an ancient riverbed,
the Ephemeral Kuiseb, provides the water that allows the possibility of
habitation. The Springbok antelope, Brown Hyenas and Black backed jackal
also wonder into this area in search of food. 
Day
10: Camp site, Twyfelfontein. We break camp ant depart for the
Tsaisab Gorge, home of the famous White Lady and part of over 45 000 different
rock paintings in the Brandberg Mountains. A beautiful walk takes us up
this gorge; massive granite boulders on either side indicate a time of
aggressive volcanic intrusion 130 million years ago. Weathering and erosion
have removed all signs of basaltic lava, only the underlying granite remains.
Home to the endemic Acacia Montis Utsi(Brandberg Acacia) and many different
plant species. If there has rain, we will find beautiful flowers dotting
our path and a gurgling mountain stream, to refresh us along the way.
After visiting the “Louvre” of the Brandberg, we depart for
Twyfelfontein. That evening, we have the opportunity to visit the rock
engravings in the sandstone boulders of Twyfelfontein, remnants of an
ancient desert that has turned into stone, over time. Before settling
down at our campfire, we visit Burnt Mountain and the Organ Pipes….
Day
12: Camp site. Sunrise under the Makalani Palm trees, we depart
for a walking experience with a difference; we track Rhino…. With
the assistance of an experienced guide we set out on foot between towering
basalt hilltops, in search of a clover trail, the shape of the print left
by a Black Rhinoceros. There are plenty of tracks, yet it is very difficult
to find these beasts, as large as they may seem. The area is not far from
the Skeleton Coast and our walk may be pleasantly cool from the sea breeze
that blows in from the Atlantic Ocean. There are many Oryx and Springbok
antelope and even though we will probably find Lion and Hyena tracks,
we need not be afraid, as they are terrified of humans, and our guides
are equipped for any challenge that may arise…. 
.... 
....
