We travel through Namibia in a Hilux with two roof tents. We started in the north, then went south to Sossusvlei in Namib – Naukluft National Park, and now head north-east through the mountains towards Windhoek.
All posts about the Namibia tour here: overlanding namibia
Cold in Sesriem
We stay over another day in Sesriem after going into the desert at Sossusvlei. Read here: xxx.
In the morning it is4 degrees, cloudy and an icy wind. Breakfast is eaten in down jackets and sleeping bags. Not exactly what one thinks of Africa. But we’re far south, and it’s midwinter here. A meager consolation is that everyone we talk to says the temperature is unusually low, and the next day it is fortunately sunny and a little warmer again. But it is plundered to pack down the tent with blue-frozen fingers.
Naukluft
The original plan was to drive further south towards Lüderlitz and Kolmanskop, the abandoned mining town that is slowly buried in sand. But there is 400 km of gravel road each way, and we only have little over a week left, so the plan is changed. Instead, we set course for a small national park, Naukluft Mountain Zebra National Park. There NWR, Namibia Wildlife Resorts has a small camp. It is located alone up in the mountains. There are a total of 28 places at the camp, in addition to some cabins. But we are the only guests in addition to a South African who travels solo through Africa.
There are many hiking opportunities here. We go for a walk in a canyon, but find it a bit cold and boring up here and move on. Luckily we see a herd of zebras on their way down again, so it was not completely wasted. It was expensive too. At the camp, they wanted 385 NAD for camping, plus 150 NAD in park fee, per person. So 130 Euro for 4 people to camp one night. NWR has by far the most expensive camps we have ever been to.
Apple Pie in Solitaire
We where becoming a bit low on diesel and food, but luckily the road passes Solitaire, a tiny place best known for its good apple pie. They also have diesel, and some very basic foods. Such small places usually have only a little canned and dry food, but a good selection of wine. One must prioritize…
Gamsberg
From Solitaire, the C26 goes east through the Gamsberg mountain area over a pass of 1800 meters. Gamsberg itself is a large “table mountain”, not unlike the more famous in South Africa. The road here is known as the most scenic road in Namibia, and can offer a great view of a wavy mountain landscape sparsely clad with green bushes.
Rooisland Lodge
There are a couple of camps / lodges in Gamsberg, and we stop at Rooisland which is about 1200 meters. Here it is hilly with hills clad in yellow grass, surrounded by mountains in the distance. The lodge is the nicest we have been to, with rooms encircling a lovely green garden with pool and bar. Dinner is served outdoors in the garden under a roof. 2 of us who are tired of life in a roof tent rent a slightly expensive room for 1635 NAD including breakfast.
Covid has increased prices
We experience that the prices have risen a lot after 2 years without tourists due to Covid, and this must be taken in again. Hope prices fall again when things have normalized. The rest of us live in tents barely two kilometers from the lodge, in a nice camp with the necessary facilities. There are a good number of small roads into the area, and we use the opportunity for a nice hike in the beautiful landscape.
In addition to beautiful nature, Gamsberg is known for its good conditions for astronomy. The air is very clear and there is no light pollution. We get to know 5 Germans who have traveled here only to look at stars and planets. One of them is very interested in the Milky Way and explains that this is especially nice to observe from here as it is so high in the sky. Further north it is lower on the horizon and it is difficult to see the whole.
Stargazing at Hakos Lodge
After a couple of days we continue up the mountain, to the lodge Hakos at 1800 meters. Here there are even more astronomers and many small observatories. The owner, a German who has lived here for 22 years, says that he has about 50 telescopes. He rents these to hobby astronomers who come here from all over the world. The original plan was to camp, but it is quite cold so we treat ourselves to a little luxury and rent a room. It is relatively affordable and includes breakfast and dinner for 1460 NAD for a twin room.
How warm it is to live indoors can be discussed. The rooms do not have heating so we have dinner in down jackets and spend the evening with a book under the duvet dressed in woolen underwear and fleece. But at least it’s not windy. However, in November it was 40 degrees here so you should carefully pick your time for when to come.
Panoramic views
After a couple of days we continue up the mountain, to the lodge Hakos at 1800 meters. Here there are even more astronomers and many small observatories. The owner, a German who has lived here for 22 years, says that he has about 50 telescopes. He rents these to hobby astronomers who come here from all over the world. The original plan was to camp, but it is quite cold so we treat ourselves to a little luxury and rent a room. It is relatively affordable and includes breakfast and dinner for 1460 NAD per person.
How warm it is to stay indoors can be discussed. The rooms do not have heating so we have dinner in down jackets and spend the evening with a book under the duvet, dressed in woolen underwear and fleece. But at least it’s not windy.
It’s cold to be an astronomer right now. They hire themselves into countless layers of clothing and start the nights star gazing after dinner at about 8 o’clock, and keep on until 3-4 o’clock at night. It’s 3-4 degrees at night, and there is not much an astronomer can move around to stay warm. Around the house there are countless small red lights where they work with the telescopes. Red light does not spoil the night vision. We were strictly instructed not to use white light, and dim the light in the room. Some telescopes are so large that they have to climb up stairs to reach the eyepiece.
Hiking
There can be a lot of sitting still during a trip like this. Many hours by car, and afterwards when we camp is settled. So we like to have some rest days where we stay in the same place. Then we avoid all the packing and unpacking, and have time to move around a bit.
In most places we have camped it has been possible to find places to go hiking. Some places with a guide because it is a requirement in some national parks, but for the most part we could go where we wanted. Especially in the mountain areas it was nice to walk, best at Spitzkoppe, in Gamsberg and Naukluft. In Naukluft there are many trails, including an 8-day round trip. In Gamsberg, there are many “roads” that are nice and follow. Roads in quotation marks for this are off-road trails that are like two parallel paths in the terrain.
I must admit that I was a bit tense at first and kept looking for snakes, especially after the visit to the “snake camp”. See: Kaokoland and Damaraland. But eventually we relaxed and thought little about it. The snakes are admittedly very poisonous, but the chance of encountering one is minimal. Even less is the chance of encountering lions and leopards. Antelopes and zebras, on the other hand, we could see from time to time.
All about Namibia here: overlanding namibia
