The Southern Africa Adventure: Day 5 Sossusvlei Dunes

Day 5 Sossusvlei Dunes - Namib-Naukluft National Park
This is our earliest morning as we prepare for our hike up Dune 45 to marvel at the sunrise. After our hike, we will have the chance to visit Sossusvlei. Later, we join a local expert on a guided hike and learn more about the unique desert ecosystem and how the Bushmen survived in the harsh desert conditions.
Optional activity: Transfer into Deadvlei
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

29th December 2013
Today was a really early start so we could get to Dune 45 to see the sunrise. Lisa and I got up around 4:10am emptied the tent and then packed the tent up in about 5 minutes. Everyone else decided that they would pack up their tents when they got back from Dune 45 and the Sossusvlei walks, I thought this would be a dumb idea as it would be at around lunch time, the hottest part of the day .

At 4:50 am there was a queue at the park entrance, we had a running start when the gates to the park opened and Zenzo gunned Marilyn passed all the slower vehicles and got us to the front in no time. As we drove the 60klm's we could see our competitors fall by the wayside. Then when we arrived at Dune 45 we began the climb, I can say that my fitness level helped as I powered past the herd, eventually I caught up with Juram and Annabell.

They had picked a spot so we marked our territory and waited for the team to arrive, eventually the baby gazelle arrived looking a little worse for wear but in her defence it was a tough climb up a great big sandy hill. We watched the sunrise but the best views and photo opportunities were looking away from the sun. The Dunes are a redish colour as a result of the oxidising process (rusting) of the iron, The flat ground inbetween the two sets of Dunes was once a river or sea, it would have been great to see when it had water in it.

When we came down a cooked breakfast awaited us, bacon and eggs good times. From there we had the walk to see the Deadvlei, this was one of my main reasons to want to see Namibia. It was amazing to see trees that have died over 900 years ago that are still standing, they are very eerie.

Next we headed to Sossussvlei, when we got there I asked the guide where we were suppose to go he pointed to the highest Dune around and said we needed to climb it and we would see the Sossusvlei. We looked at the size of the Dune and decided that given the temperature we would just head back to Marilyn.

We got back to camp and the rest of the campers had to pack up their tents whilst Lisa and I headed for the showers. I got my shower in but the water ran out and Lisa, Annabell and Iris started complaining, I had to laugh they were complaining about they had soaped up in the shower but there was no water... It sounds like a script from a great movie doesn't it.

Our final destination was a desert camp and I was wondering who and why you would live there, we got the answer to both soon enough.
When we arrived we had the option of putting up our tents or using the camp pool it was a really great pool, it was small but the water was warm I guessed about 28 degrees. Lisa and I spent the next few hours sitting in it chillaxing whilst some of the others put up their tents in the heat of the day, clearly they hadn't learnt from the day before.

The gent that owned and run the desert camp was Boesman, he was awesome he should have his own TV show. His stories were entertaining, educational and confronting at times, one of the entertaining stories was the one about the Ice plant, it opened with one drop of water. However the Ice plant doesn't release their seeds on the first rainfall it only releases on the second rainfall.

The educational stories is about the Gemsbok (the South African Orix), now it might like sound like I have an obsession with Chuck Norris but the Gemsbok is the Chuck Norris of Antelope, trust me this is true. When the Gemsbok goes to drink the Zebras step aside and let the Gemsbok drink, the reason is that the Gemsbok doesn't false charge, when he charges he aims to kill. Legend has it that the Gemsbok will not move when anything approaches, it will wait until your within a couple of meters and then attack and kill with its razor sharp horns.

The confronting story was about what happened to the San / Bushman because the Westerners were afraid of them and didn't understand their culture they hunted the San / Bushman until 1918. Their heads were used for trohpys, womens breasts for tobacco holders etc...The San got the name Bushman from the Dutch settlers because they would either use bushes to sneak up on the Dutch or hide behind the bushes to attack the settlers. The San people also had no possessions so were true nomads who lived a simple life from day to day. They would leave the sick and weak behind if they couldn't keep up, brutal but necessary to survive. So it appears that I would survive easily.

Interesting things we learnt from Boesman.
1: The sand dunes, windside will only have an incline of 17 degrees and 35 degrees for opposite side.
2: If you want to survive in the dessert, have small groups, search through Jackal poo for a berry seed. (it tastes like a pumpkin seed)
3: Don't sleep under a lonely tree because it will have blood sucking ticks under it and they will drain your blood.
4: Some beetles have grooves on their exo-skeletons to channel water to their mouths.
5: Above the sand the temperature can be over 60 degrees a meter under the sand will be 25 degrees. (I knew that from watching the original TV series of Shaft)
5: Don't work in the heat of the day, conserve your energy. Only work during the cool of the morning or evening.

We then watched the Sunset over the Namibian landscape, that means that we watched a Namibian Sunrise and Sunset all in one day. Spending time with Boesman was a highlight of this trip.