The Skeleton Coast, Shipwrecks, Seals and Spitzkoppe - Namibia

 Another browse through my diary of the trip I took to Africa a few years ago.

A late start out of Swakopmund today as we wait for a spare part for the truck.  At last, repairs done, we are on our way travelling through vast, flat and featureless golden sands. There's not much to see so we spend the time chatting, dozing and joking. We are a happy, companiable bunch.

We travelled across this sand for hours

We stop at the lower reaches of the Skeleton Coast and walk across the sand to view a shipwrecked trawler.  It is a recent wreck and looks eerie wallowing on its side at the edge of the breakers.  The Skeleton Coast is named for the bleached whale and seal bones scattered along its length but it is also infamous for the number of ship wrecks that have occurred there over the years.  The combination of an inhospitable climate, constant rolling surf and regular sea fogs have made the coast fearsome for sailors and the subject of myth and legend.

An abandoned, shipwrecked trawler wallowing in the waves makes an eerie sight

We can smell our next stop before we can see it.  This is the Cape Cross seal colony, home to approximately 80,000 seals.  At first it is hard to discern them but as we get closer they become a seething mass crammed together on the rocks. A walkway takes us over and around them.  It is quite a sight but the smell is putrid and I am pleased I have a perfumed wipe to hold over my nose.

Cape Cross was named by Diego Cao, a Portuguese explorer who landed there in 1486 and planted a cross on his landing spot.

We are happy to leave the seal colony and have a picnic lunch further up the coast beside great crashing waves. Several of us run into the icy water to refresh ourselves and have a paddle, at least, in the Atlantic.

Hientjes Bay

After lunch we head inland again, passing through the strange little settlement of Hientjes Bay, built entirely on sand, we wonder who lives there and why. Our guide tells us it is a fishing village, After a while the scenery begins to change.  There is now some vegetation and in the distance we can see large red mountain peaks rising out of the Namib desert.  We are heading to Spitzkoppe, at 1728 metres it is the highest in the range.  We will camp overnight there. Spitzkoppe, like all the mountains in this area is more than 120 million years old, solid granite and is referred to as the Matterhorn of Namibia because of its similar shape to the Swiss mountain. 

As we arrive at the entrance to the camp site our truck becomes bogged down in the deep sand. We all climb out and the men in our group start digging the truck out.  After several attempts and with a good push from everyone the truck is finally free and we continue on to the camp.

Uh oh!  Our bogged truck, a fact of life in Africa

We  drive between the giant red mountains and into a canyon to our stunning camp site.  There are no facilities here, no water or showers and just a long drop toilet but we are awe struck by the setting and after pitching our tents set out to explore.

We entertain ourselves making photographed rock drawings

We clamber about over the rocks and pose to photograph our own version of rock drawings.  We sit on the warm red rock and watch the sun go down behind the mountains.  The sun is always a bright red ball as it goes down in this part of Africa but we have noticed the colour doesn't really spread across the sky.

Our truck in the stunning granite Spitzkoppe mountains

We spend the most magical evening sitting around the camp fire, chatting, singing and telling stories under a spectacular starry sky. 

We are way out in the wilderness and it is absolutely wonderful.