Later that day we headed out for Luderitz. Luderitz is located on the Atlantic coast of Namibia at the very edge of the Namib desert. When one approaches Luderitz from the west, one must wonder what ever possessed any one to settle here until he reads all of the signs warning drivers to stay out of the restricted diamond areas. Diamonds, diamonds, diamonds brought the Germans here originally and it’s got a lot to do with what keeps people here.
We got our two car caravan on its way out of the Miller’s Farm, Aubures. Had a stopover under a camelthorn tree on the side of the road for a light lunch and proceeded to undertake the next leg of our journey to Luderitz when Reid began to hear a strange noise emanating from the right rear wheel. Stopping to check it out was of course a requirement but our friends who were leading the way obviously didn’t notice, what with all the dust a vehicle churns up on these gravel roads, and appeared to be long gone by the time we determined what the problem was. The possibility of phoning them to tell of our predicament was nil given that we hadn’t had cell phone coverage since leaving the tar. Fortunately for us the part that had broken loose from the inside of our back wheel didn’t appear to be vital to its functioning, some sort of protective plate over the brake however it still needed to be removed lest it sever the brake line. That meant removing the back tire, no small feat with all of the camping gear stacked on top of the jack implements. Still no sign of our friends at this point……Well, the plate came right off after we removed the tire just as our friends drove up wondering about our whereabouts. Disaster had been averted---but only momentarily.
Along the route to Luderitz there is a turn off called Garub, it’s not even indicated on the map, where one encounters the wild horses of Namibia. Garub consists basically of a trough where the horses can water themselves. They have roamed wild in the desert for over a century and are the subject of many a coffee table book here in Namibia. Emma of course had been fascinated with them since our arrival and we wouldn’t have heard the end of it had we not stopped to view them. They were indeed a curious sight to see out in the middle of the desert and we got quite a few nice photos. Additionally, on our way back down the “track” to the main road, we encountered a swarm of locusts of biblical proportions. Augustus filmed it and we’ll try to post it because it is an amazing thing to witness. We were yet again running late given our tribulations with ole Bess, but fortunately the rest of the way was on tar.
On the approach to Luderitz one gets the impression he’s visiting another planet. The landscape is indeed reminiscent of the moon. There’s absolutely nothing for miles and miles—not a tree, not a blade of grass. Luderitz itself is frequently buffeted by extremely strong southwesterly winds. People have to lean into the wind virtually doubled over to get up the streets when it’s blowing at its best. Such was the case when we arrived there in the late evening. There was to be no camping in this kind of a gale so we set ourselves to the task of finding accommodations for our two families.
After being turned away several times, we stumbled upon Hansa Haus Guesthouse where we were shown to the top floor of this 1909 building. It was to be all ours for the night for about $70 Am. We were given a set of four rooms with two baths, living area and completely equipped kitchen. The place also had a deck that overlooked the habor area complete with braaii equipment, deck chairs, umbrellas and loungers. Had the wind cooperated, we’d have eaten on the deck. Unfortunately, it howled most of the night blowing in sand from the neighboring desert through any unsecured crevice. We had to improvise on dinner that evening and made our hobos in the oven instead of in the open fire. The kids had a blast running down the lengthy corridor connecting all of the rooms. We woke the next day to a magnificent, calm view of the ocean in all of its splendor. Reid cooked bacon out on the deck on this cool braaii contraption and Larkin made the hugest pancakes we’ve ever eaten. We packed up and set out on our next leg with an exquisitely blue sky and ocean as our backdrop.
We got our two car caravan on its way out of the Miller’s Farm, Aubures. Had a stopover under a camelthorn tree on the side of the road for a light lunch and proceeded to undertake the next leg of our journey to Luderitz when Reid began to hear a strange noise emanating from the right rear wheel. Stopping to check it out was of course a requirement but our friends who were leading the way obviously didn’t notice, what with all the dust a vehicle churns up on these gravel roads, and appeared to be long gone by the time we determined what the problem was. The possibility of phoning them to tell of our predicament was nil given that we hadn’t had cell phone coverage since leaving the tar. Fortunately for us the part that had broken loose from the inside of our back wheel didn’t appear to be vital to its functioning, some sort of protective plate over the brake however it still needed to be removed lest it sever the brake line. That meant removing the back tire, no small feat with all of the camping gear stacked on top of the jack implements. Still no sign of our friends at this point……Well, the plate came right off after we removed the tire just as our friends drove up wondering about our whereabouts. Disaster had been averted---but only momentarily.
Along the route to Luderitz there is a turn off called Garub, it’s not even indicated on the map, where one encounters the wild horses of Namibia. Garub consists basically of a trough where the horses can water themselves. They have roamed wild in the desert for over a century and are the subject of many a coffee table book here in Namibia. Emma of course had been fascinated with them since our arrival and we wouldn’t have heard the end of it had we not stopped to view them. They were indeed a curious sight to see out in the middle of the desert and we got quite a few nice photos. Additionally, on our way back down the “track” to the main road, we encountered a swarm of locusts of biblical proportions. Augustus filmed it and we’ll try to post it because it is an amazing thing to witness. We were yet again running late given our tribulations with ole Bess, but fortunately the rest of the way was on tar.
On the approach to Luderitz one gets the impression he’s visiting another planet. The landscape is indeed reminiscent of the moon. There’s absolutely nothing for miles and miles—not a tree, not a blade of grass. Luderitz itself is frequently buffeted by extremely strong southwesterly winds. People have to lean into the wind virtually doubled over to get up the streets when it’s blowing at its best. Such was the case when we arrived there in the late evening. There was to be no camping in this kind of a gale so we set ourselves to the task of finding accommodations for our two families.
After being turned away several times, we stumbled upon Hansa Haus Guesthouse where we were shown to the top floor of this 1909 building. It was to be all ours for the night for about $70 Am. We were given a set of four rooms with two baths, living area and completely equipped kitchen. The place also had a deck that overlooked the habor area complete with braaii equipment, deck chairs, umbrellas and loungers. Had the wind cooperated, we’d have eaten on the deck. Unfortunately, it howled most of the night blowing in sand from the neighboring desert through any unsecured crevice. We had to improvise on dinner that evening and made our hobos in the oven instead of in the open fire. The kids had a blast running down the lengthy corridor connecting all of the rooms. We woke the next day to a magnificent, calm view of the ocean in all of its splendor. Reid cooked bacon out on the deck on this cool braaii contraption and Larkin made the hugest pancakes we’ve ever eaten. We packed up and set out on our next leg with an exquisitely blue sky and ocean as our backdrop.
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