13 December 2010 - Namibia

It feels like I have been riding for an eternity on dusty gravel and sand roads across the vast barren wildernesses of this astonishingly beautiful country. Daytime (shade) temperatures reach 42-45 deg C. I don't even want to know what the temperature is out in the desert sun! Criss-crossing through the Namibian Desert over the last week has been quite physically demanding. The sandy stretches of these dirt roads in particular send the back wheel into wild swerves like a fish flapping its tail. You feel like you're continuously about to be thrown off, and requires intense concentration and balance to counter each wobble. And then there's the Namibian sun frying your skull within the helmet. It can be quite unnerving but I seem to have developed the knack of it by now. I recall from Ewan McGregor on Long Way Down how difficult it is dealing with the dreaded soft sand.

Namibian Desert

On Saturday, I got to Sossusvlai, which is easily Namibia's greatest attraction. The world's tallest sand dunes (380m!) over lap in massive red waves, against the backdrop of a deep blue sky. This 'red sea' stretches for 55km all the way to the real sea (the wet blue one!). There's not a lot more to add other than check out the images on google.....

Sossusvlai, Namibia - Tallest sand dunes

Yesterday, I left Sossusvlai, generally aiming south along the country's single North-South tarmac road. As adventurous as the dirt roads are, I was getting quite tired of them. Also, there's always the fear that if I did have a big wipe out and got injured, it could be a day before another person comes along. This country is vast and the population is less than 1.8m; roads are very quite out here! I've concluded that you really want to be riding with a mate out in the deserts! Anyway, I made it as far as Keetmanshoop where I camped amidst a forest of the amazing 'quiver tree'. Like the baobab 'tree', it's actually a large cacti/aloe. I was the only person there. At night I could hear several creatures coming over to my tent to check me out. It was a tad unnerving, but I was fairly sure there were no big cats in that area. In the morning I awoke to discover several different hoof and paw prints all around my tent!

Keetmanshoop, Namibia

This morning I was heading down towards Fish River Canyon, (world's 2nd largest) when I made another of my last minute changes at a fork on the road...(If anyone was with me on this trip, I would have driven them berserk by now!).

Fish River Canyon, Namibia

Anyway, I decided to head over to Luderitz on the coast. It's another exceedingly German seaside town. 

Luderitz, Namibia

The special draw here is Kolmanskop -  a former diamond mine complete with a staff complex. Ever since the diamonds dried up around WW1, It has been a ghost town over run by the encroaching desert...eary place! The other big draw for me was the stunning scenery desert scenery, albeit from the comfort of a tarmac road! You're not allowed to even step away from the access road as you get closer to Luderitz, as the surrounding countryside is still littered with diamonds!

Kolmanskop, Namibia - Deserted diamong mining town

Kolmanskop, Namibia - Open door filled with sand

Tomorrow morning I will head back towards the Fish River Canyon. Plan is to spend one night there and then cross over to SA. From there's it's a straight dash to Cape Town, ETA pm 16th Dec.... That's only 1 day behind schedule. 

I've been surprised my number of 'coloured' folk down in southern Namibia. That's what we call 'mixed race'. The majority of poor rural folk here seem to be of this ethnic group. I'm told that there are many colored people also in the western side of SA. By contrast, in Eastern SA, there were comparably few coloured people. I wonder whether this had anything to do with the much more acrimonious relations with the Zulu in those parts?! Going back, the normal African observation on my travels that 'fair skinned = wealthy' breaks down here. There's much more to add here, but I'm running out of time... United play Arsenal soon, and I still need to get showered and changed... Ahhh, that might also have factored into why I wanted to be in a town tonight and not out by some canyon... !!!!