Photos: Namibian Roadtrip: Solitaire, Walvis Bay, Sandwich Harbour, Swakopmund, Cape Cross (Honeymoon in Southern Africa Part 4)
Leaving Sossusvlei we ventured North through the Namib desert. After a short stop for fuel and padkos in the very aptly named Solitaire, we hit the long dirt road.
En route, a dry river bed provided a welcome tea break where we enjoyed some of our remaining wedding cake, which the heat turned into a spectacular gooey chocolate mess.
The Namib Desert is both stunning and truly terrifying. As out fuel gauge gently slid down I mused over how the Namibian Mafia (if they exist) must have an easy time dumping bodies that no-one will find. These thoughts were accompanied by the realisation that we should have filled up our spare Jerrycans with emergency fuel. Fortunately we made it out of the desert before the fuel light appeared, but the lesson was learnt and we promptly filled the car along with two emergency cans.
We settled into a lovely B&B in Swakopmund where we would appreciate our last night sleeping in a real bed for the next 10 days. Enjoying an epic seafood platter in a local German restaurant, represented Swakopmund quite well. It is a fascinating place where the desert meets the cold Atlantic Ocean and the town’s identity is a strange mix of post-colonial German and South African rule in a relatively young independent country.
One of the areas we really wanted to see was Sandwich Harbour, where the beach sand becomes massive sand dunes which stretch into the desert well beyond the horizon. We decided that the skilled driving to navigate the dunes was best left to a professional and joined an excursion lead by Ernest, a wonderful character with an abundance of local knowledge.
From Swakopmund we drove up the Skeleton Coast to visit the seal colony at Cape Cross. The stench was unreal but it was very entertaining to watch the seals and their pups cover the beaches, flop all over each other and jump in the the waves.