Saturday 17/06/2017 - Roy's Camp & San Bushmen

We had a good nights sleep and were quite happy that we didn't have to pack away tents and move on. We had a relaxing breakfast then we set off on the 180km round trip to visit the San Bushmen at their living museum. 

We were greeted by Elias who was our guide and translator for the morning. First up he and the chief showed us how to light a fire using sticks.

The chief, who only speaks the clicking tongue language, then led us on a walk through the bush to show us the different bush food and medicines that were once used when the Bushmen were nomadic. It was amazing to see how they were able to survive off the land.

He also showed us how they used to hunt and where to get the poison to put on the end of the arrows.

At the end of the walk we browsed through the outdoor gift shop to purchase some of their handy crafts, Catriona purchased a bracelet which is better than just giving them a tip.

Back at the camp we had lunch then relaxed by the pool bar area as it was quite warm and it was good to have a rest off the truck as tomorrow we have a long days drive.

Friday 16/06/2017 - Etosha N.P. to Roy's camp

We set off from Etosha at 7:30am and had our last little game drive. We were lucky enough to see a group of dikdik's which are the smallest of the antelope. They looked so cute as they frolicked around by the side of the road. 

We then headed off to Tsumeb and the truck spare parts shop to see if we could get a new transmission. It ended up that they didn't have the part and it may have just been an airlock in the transmission fluid as the gears worked today. They decided to just top it up with oil and see how things go. We had a stop for an hour in this small mining town to do some shopping and for Dan to resupply the mobile kitchen.

As we didn't need to spend the time having the new part fitted we were able to go and visit the Hoba Meteorite. This stop is not in the itinerary but as it was relatively close to Grootfonte, our next destination Victor organised for us to stop. The Hoba Meteorite is believed to have fallen 80,000 years ago and was discovered in 1920 and is the worlds largest. It was declared a national monument in 1955. We had lunch there then set off for our camp for the next 2 nights arriving around 4pm.

We had a relaxing afternoon / evening as we had free time. Everyone was eager to use the free wifi to check emails etc. we were able to upload the last 3 days of our blog.

Thursday 15/06/2017 - Etosha National Park

We woke at 5am this morning even though breakfast wasn't till 6:30am. We packed the tent and headed down to the waterhole to see if there was anything going on. We saw a lone zebra and a jackal on the opposite side of the waterhole and as we turned to head back to camp a jackal passed right behind us.

After breakfast we left the Okaukejo camp site and set off on our all day game drive heading for the Namutoni camp site at the opposite end of Etosha. We saw many birds over the course of the day including the pale chanting goshawk and many ostrich.

We also saw many herds of zebra throughout the day and took many photos of them.

At one stage we had stopped to watch a lioness and it even crossed the road in front of the truck. Everyone in the truck was clambering to get a good shot or view through binoculars. 

We stopped off at Etosha lookout and were able to get out of the truck for a group photo and a bit of fun. The Etosha Pan covers 4731km2 and reminded us of the Salt flats in Bolivia.

After lunch we were able to spot another rhino lying in the shade of a tree. We also came upon an elephant that was in the shade of a tree in the distance (roughly 400m) and when we stopped to take photos it slowly made its way towards us and passed the front of the truck stopping in the roadway. We were amazed it came towards us as most of the other animals walk in the opposite direction.

We ended the day seeing a couple of groups of giraffes one having a cute baby.

At the end of each day Victor our tour guide gives us a briefing on the next day. Tonight he advised there was a problem with the trucks transmission and they can't get 5th or 6th gear. This was not a problem when we were doing a slow game drive but as we are travelling further tomorrow and the next few days they need to get it fixed in a town tomorrow. He will keep us posted, fingers crossed all will be rectified.

Wednesday 14/06/2017 - Spitzkoppe to Etosha N.P.

We awoke at 5.30 before the sun rose over the horizon. As we descended the giant rock the sun came up. Had breakfast and then boarded the truck for another full driving day to Ethosha National Park.

The gravel roads were quite rough and it was slow going early on. We had a quick pit stop a couple of hours into the journey for the toilet, girls on the right of the truck, guys on the left. A truck went past in the opposite direction as we were doing our thing, I don't think anyone cared.

Bob and us sat in the middle seats which had a table and over the course of the day played heaps of card games to pass the time - scenery was pretty ordinary just bush scrub mainly.

We made it to Etosha N.P and saw giraffes first and they were much more visible than we had seen them in Kruger N.P. due to the sparse vegetation. Victor checked us in at reception while the rest of us walked to the waterhole where we viewed a herd of zebra, a giraffe and some springboks drinking. We then had quick late lunch so we could spend some time doing an afternoon game drive.

We had an amazing afternoon spotting blue wildebeest, impala, springboks, and many different kinds of birds and finally both female and male lions along with a few cubs. On our way back to camp we also spotted a pair of black backed jackals who were very close to the road and even crossed in front of the truck.

We had another amazing dinner of butternut soup for starters and oryx, chips and red cabbage for main that we enjoyed with a glass of red wine we had bought at the winery on our first trip.

After dinner we headed back to the waterhole to watch the animals come down to drink. There were 14 elephants a giraffe and a black rhino and a white rhino all taking it in turns to drink from the waterhole. The giraffe was very tentative as it is most vulnerable when it is drinking. We also managed to get a good picture of a pair of greater spotted wildlife photographers with their huge telephoto lenses.

It was a fantastic experience watching the animals at night thinking of our yoga student Barbara who has done this before.

Tuesday 13/06/2017 - Swakopmund to Spitzkoppe

Back on the truck feeling refreshed and ready to go at 8-30am.

We travelled along the skeleton coast and after an hour or so we made our first stop of the day where we stopped to see a trawler that had run aground three years ago and is slowly being eaten by the sea. Catriona braved the cold to dip her toes in the cold Atlantic Ocean. 

More driving along bumpy dirt roads brought us to Cape Cross which is the point where a Portuguese captain was the first European to set foot in Namibia in 1648. It is now home to the Cape Cross seal colony. We walked around the boardwalk viewing area and took no time getting back into  truck because of the stench. It is apparently much worse in summer so we were lucky. Definitely not a place to stop and have lunch.

Back on the road we stopped to have lunch at a roadside rest area where there were tables set up with lumps of salt crystals and jars to collect the money to pay if you wanted to buy one.

The afternoon was a long bumpy ride to our next destination where most of us fell asleep due to the hot dusty conditions. We arrived at Spitkoppe around 4pm and most of the group went on a walk to see the bushmen rock paintings, but as we had seen them in Lesotho we opted out. Instead we walked up one of the huge granite out crops to see where we would be sleeping for the night. 

We had usual great dinner from the mobile kitchen then we went up the granite rock to view the stars. For the past week the moon has been dominating the sky but luckily for us tonight we had about 2 hours of complete darkness so we could see so many stars including the Milky Way.

Over half of the group including us had an amazing experience of sleeping under the stars and later in the night the moon. It was a very still and quiet night upon the rock except for the symphony of snoring as we all fell asleep.

Monday 12/06/2017 - Swakopmund

Second day of activities in Swakopmund and today we decided on a 2hr quad bike ride through the sand dunes. As we checked in there were 2 large colourful parrots eating seeds. We selected the automatic quad bikes with 125cc engines as we would be covered by our travel insurance if something were to happen.

A local guide just took the two of us on a journey through the sand dunes. At first we took it easy getting used to the acceleration and breaking. Also steering, cornering and keeping correct balance. As we progressed we were driving up sand drifts and sand bowls. It felt a little like snow skiing when coming off and sand bowl and cornering into the next.

We had a break then with thumbs up we got back on the bikes and picked up the pace and went into steeper and deeper sand dunes to test our ability and skills, it was great fun, the best quad biking we have done.

Our guide showed us a white lady spider that survives in the desert. He told us about all the small animals that live in the desert - spiders, snakes, jackals etc.

In the afternoon we had lunch and looked around the small town. Some lovely old buildings. Went for a walk along the jetty to view the Atlantic Ocean. A cold westerly blowing Catriona decided against the obligatory dipping of her feet in the ocean. Instead opting for a 75 minute full body massage.

Had lovely dinner at Kucki's Pub to finish off another big day on tour.