Table of contents for 2021 in go! Namibia

If there’s one country I wouldn’t mind spending a lockdown in, it’s Namibia. In the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic last year, I couldn’t help but think that Namibia would be just the place to maintain a social distance. Sparsely populated and with huge, empty spaces and lots of fresh air, Namibia is a great destination now that we can travel again. I had a lump in my throat while working on this guide – I thought about all the Namibians whom I’d met over the years, whose main source of income was tourism. How desperate do you feel when you only see a handful of tourists for six months? The chalets, rooms, campsites… all empty. But even though some places closed their doors during the pandemic, most are…

SESRIEM CANYON ADRI BRUWER, WINDHOEK My husband Gerhard and I were both born in northern Namibia – in Otavi and Tsumeb. We live in Windhoek these days, close to the popular restaurant, Joe’s Beerhouse. The river at the bottom of our street came down in spate several times this year. Big trucks use this street to drive through Windhoek from east to west – they couldn’t get through the river. By now we know that if we hear trucks reversing and turning around, the river is in flood! The easing of Covid-19 travel restrictions coincided with the summer rain and made it so much more enjoyable to hit the road. It was the first time in my life that I’d seen Namibia so lush and green. On 16 January 2021,…

PARK FEES For years, there has been talk of a substantial increase to national park entry fees. The new fees were announced by the Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism in February: The daily park fee for SADC residents is R100 per adult and R50 per child under 16, plus R50 per vehicle. This is for Ai-Ais, Etosha, Namib-Naukluft, Dorob, the Waterberg Plateau, Skeleton Coast, Sperrgebiet and Cape Cross. Entrance to the other parks: R70 per adult and R30 per child, plus R50 per vehicle (or more, depending on vehicle size). Remember to budget for park fees if you plan to stay over in a national park GET DISCOUNTS WITH THESE CARDS NamLeisure. With a NamLeisure Card in your wallet, you get 25 % discount on all formal accommodation (camping…

Rosh Pinah – Sendelingsdrift 8 am – 4.30 pm 027 831 1506 There is no bridge over the Orange River here – you use a pont. Call ahead to find out if it is operational. Cost: One-way R160 per vehicle (R220 with a trailer); return R270 per vehicle (R320 with a trailer). If you spent the previous night in the |Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier Park, you qualify for a R50 discount. Oranjemund – Alexander Bay 6 am – 10 pm 027 831 1662 00 264 63 233 552 Noordoewer – Vioolsdrif 24 hours 00 264 63 297 147 027 761 8760 Velloorsdrif – Onseepkans 8 am – 5 pm 00 264 63 269 008 054 951 0014 Klein-Menasse – Rietfontein 8 am – 4.30 pm 00 264 63 280 682 054 531…

Rain is imminent as I leave Windhoek. I pass through a police control point and the C26 becomes a dirt road, which eventually starts to tilt upward along the Kupferberg Pass. I pull over to take a photo and thunder rumbles in the distance, away to the north-west, where a grey sheet is moving across the landscape. The rain catches up to me five minutes later. Fat drops splat on the bakkie’s windscreen. Then the sun comes out and the grass next to the road shimmers in golden light. The Khomas Hochland has seen good rains over the last few weeks, and it looks like I’ll get to experience a shower or two as well. The pass climbs up Namibia’s Great Escarpment, a long wall between the interior and the…

My dad didn’t teach me everything he should have, but he did make sure to impart practical wisdom: I know how to make a fire without a firelighter, I know how to read a map and follow my nose, and I can travel without fancy camping gear. I was always sceptical when he tried to give me advice about relationships, but he taught me to love the veld. My dad was happiest next to a fire in the bush, where he was able to shrug off the dark despondency that often shrouded him in the parsonages where we lived. He told stories about Namibia, his favourite place on earth. After four years of studying theology, he had taken a break to ramble about – he visited Namibia on hunting trips…

Two pale people lie floating in a splash of green, surrounded by desert. This is what a Damara tern would see if it flew over. The people are me and my girlfriend Sam – we’re about 50 km north of Henties Bay, swimming in a pool called Soutgat, Namibia’s answer to the Dead Sea. I close my eyes against the sun and feel the rays warming my skin. It has been a dusty drive so far and the water is refreshing. The water is said to have healing properties, but that remains to be seen. One thing is certain: Spending time in the magnificent landscapes of Damaraland is good for the soul. Sam and I left Swakopmund early this morning to drive a circular route. We plan to see well-known…

It’s dark. Three vehicles drive out of the parking area of Brandberg Rest Camp in Uis and follow the C35 towards Henties Bay. Uis is tiny but it’s the nearest “town” to base yourself in if you want to climb Brandberg, Namibia’s highest mountain. The famous White Lady rock painting is on the eastern edge of the massif – you only have to walk one kilometre up a small ravine to see it, but it can be a challenge, especially if you’re unfit and the sun is burning a hole in your neck. I’ve seen this painting more than once, and I’ve always had a thing for Brandberg. Maybe it’s because I’m interested in rock art. I also love climbing a mountain, fostered during my childhood on a mountainous farm.…

NO MEAT CROSSES THE RED LINE! The Red Line, which runs across the breadth of Namibia, dates from the 1960s when buffalo in the northern parts of the country were infected with foot-and-mouth disease and it spread to other livestock. This veterinary cordon fence is still in place and prevents meat and other animal products from travelling from north to south and also west to east in places. There are checkpoints where the Red Line crosses main routes; should you go through one of these roadblocks you’ll be required to open your Coleman. You may also have to drive your vehicle through a dip trough filled with disinfectant, and dip the soles of your shoes in a shallow bath. It’s the law so don’t try to convince the officials to…

Ispent hours poring over maps and reading articles about the Fish River Canyon – studying the dos and don’ts, the tips and tricks, survival guides and personal stories of triumph and trial. That is, after I got home from my first attempt at hiking it… Rewind three months: My friend Hayley had booked four spots on the trail. The crew consisted of me, her, her colleague Jenny, and Jenny’s fiancé, Max. I feel comfortable in the wilderness but none of the other hikers were particularly fit, and none had done a multiday hike before. I was concerned about their abilities but I’m always up for a new adventure, so I agreed. The next two months blitzed by. No training and minimal planning had been done. After some lastminute gear shopping,…

COMPULSORY STUFF PASSPORT. It needs to be valid for six months or more from the date you plan to leave Namibia, and it should have at least two blank pages. BIRTH CERTIFICATES. All children under 18 need an unabridged birth certificate to cross the border unless they have a new passport with their parents’ names listed in the back. DRIVING LICENCE. Your South African licence is valid in Namibia – keep it at hand. VEHICLE REGISTRATION DOCUMENTS. Bring the original or certified copies of these documents. Remember the papers for the trailer or caravan. LETTER OF AUTHORISATION. If you’re still paying off your car, you need a letter of authorisation from the bank. If the car you’re travelling in doesn’t belong to you, you need a letter written by the…

Iwalk through the back door of the farmhouse on Kosos near Helmeringhausen. Mariëtte de Klerk and her daughter Anrie are busy packing dates on the kitchen counter. Their Jack Russel Bella puts a wet tennis ball down at my feet. Mariëtte’s husband Boeta walks in with a pair of pliers – he gives me a firm handshake and looks at the clouds outside. “Ja nee, the wind has turned,” he says. “It looks like rain. Let’s take a drive and I’ll show you the cattle.” If this isn’t the perfect picture of farm life, I don’t know what is. I cling to the rails on the back of Boeta’s Land Cruiser bakkie as we bounce through the veld. I jump down to herd a few lost cows closer. We pull…

1 See dolphins in Walvis Bay On a morning boat trip in the bay – sparkling wine and oysters included – you’ll see a lighthouse and the seal colony at Pelican Point. You might also spot dolphins and even a whale if you’re lucky. Pelicans might also come and beg for scraps of food… Mola Mola (mola-namibia.com) has a tour called the Marine Dolphin Cruise, which costs R700 per adult and R420 per child aged 4 – 12. Laramon Tours (laramontours.com) offer a Dolphin Cruise and Catamaran Charters (namibiancharters.com) offer a Dolphin & Seal Cruise – both cost R950 per adult and R520 per child aged 4 – 12. 2 Visit Sossusvlei and Dead Vlei If you want to take photos of this spectacular desert landscape early morning or late…

Skeleton Bay is not just any old surf spot. It is widely considered to be one of the most spectacular waves on earth. Surfers fly in from as far afield as Hawaii and Australia to pit themselves against the seemingly never-ending wall of water. On a good day, the wave is up to 2 km long! In fact, it’s so perfect and cylindrical that it allows surfers to ride deep inside the barrel from start to finish. An experienced surfer could ride a wave here for more than three minutes – almost unheard of. For a while, the location of the surf spot was known only to Namibians, until it was put on the map in 2008 by Surfing magazine, an American publication. The magazine held an annual Google Earth…

Apair of blacksmith lapwings usually arrive before us at the Onkolo Hide. My wife, Di, and I get settled in the hide and set up all the camera gear. As the sun starts rising at about 6.45, the first finches and waxbills with their beautiful colours fly in: blue, black-faced and violeteared waxbills, green-winged pytilia, golden-breasted bunting, scaly-feathered finch and red-billed quelea, to mention a few. Soon afterwards, Cape turtle doves and emerald-spotted wood-doves make themselves heard, as well as noisy helmeted guineafowls and grey go-away birds. Throughout the day, kori bustards come and go. They have the most peculiar way of drinking, by bending their legs forward… Other game, including the shy grey duiker, also arrives early morning. As the day warms, herds of springbok, zebra, wildebeest, impala, giraffe,…