Drive through changing landscapes

Back to the gravel

As we started our 300 kilometres drive to Swakopmund from the Namib Desert Lodge, we made sure that our five litres water container was full along with our smaller water bottles. It was day four of our trip and by now we had understood the importance of carrying enough water with us. Thus equipped, we set out on the gravel roads again.

Thirty kilometres on we passed by Solitaire. It stood as a lonesome entity boasting of one petrol station; there was a motley collection of vintage cars strewn in the sand with cacti growing out of them,and one or two stores selling essential items. We topped up our petrol as we had been told that there were no more petrol pumps between here and Walvis Bay, which was about 250 kilometres away.

Tropic of Capricorn

The high point of the drive to Swakopmund was crossing the Tropic of Capricorn about 50 kilometres from Solitaire. Signages stood on two sides of the road announcing the grand phenomenon. IB could not resist posing at the signboard. Another car coming from the opposite direction also stopped, this was the first car that had crossed our path in about the one hour that we had been driving. 

We moved on after the photo op as we still had about 200 kilometres to drive before we reached our destination. The unending stretch of gravel ahead and behind sometimes tend to make you feel a bit lonely and lost.

Mountain Zebra

The landscape turned rockier as we drove along. Driving on gravel roads can be like a roller coaster ride. Gravel roads tend to get ‘washboarding’ in places – their surfaces develop ripples. As the car skipped along these patches of ripples, I increased the strength of my grip on to the steering. Deep ripples gave me a clammy feel in the pit of the stomach – I felt that the car may skid.

Suddenly, we saw a zebra standing still at the side of the road and watching us. It blended so well with the surrounding landscape that we had not seen it until it was right abreast our car. We stopped and peered around, sure enough there was a mate a little distance away. They started walking away from the road as we tried to take photos; seemed like they did not like human company.

Of towns and metaled roads

By mid-afternoon we were in Walvis Bay. We could feel a change as we rounded the turn towards Swakopmund. There were cars on the road, people walking around and a general busyness in the air. The third largest city of Namibia in terms of population, Walvis Bay has more than 50,000 people living there. A beautiful metaled stretch of road, running alongside the sea, connects Walvis Bay to Swakopmund. I never knew I would celebrate driving on a tar road, but then one learns to count one’s blessings.

Dolphins at play

The Swakopmund Guesthouse , where we were staying for the next two nights, was a welcoming looking single storey cluster of rooms bounded by white fencing. IB was fascinated by the swing in front of our room.

We started our exploring after putting our things in our room and booking a dolphin watching tour for the next morning. Then we headed towards beach which was a short walk from the guesthouse. Our host had told us that it was quite safe to walk around in the town. The sea was a welcome change for the eyes after the past few days of endless sands.

What a surprise we got as we came up to the beach! There was a pod of dolphins frolicking in the water near the jetty. We stood and watched, fascinated by the cetaceans. They kept bobbing up and down in the water as we walked along the beach and up the jetty.

Sunset from the jetty

A gorgeous sunset awaited us on the jetty; we did not know which way to look – a pod of playful dolphins on one side and a flaming sun going down in to the sea on the other side. As the sun went down and it grew dark, the dolphins also gave up their games to retire for the night; it was time to go for dinner. Later we realised that we had been so engrossed in watching the dolphins that we had forgotten to take photos of them. We had enjoyed the moment but missed creating a piece of memory from it.

One of the recommended restaurants was Jetty 1905 which sat on the jetty pier. But on the day that we were there, the restaurant was closed, so our choice got limited to either The Tug at the edge of the beach or the one near our guesthouse.

A relaxing dinner

We decided on Altstadt Restaurant, which was half a block away from our guesthouse, for the first night keeping the more illustrious The Tug for the next one. We sat in the garden at a canopy covered table with heaters for warmth. When we sat down and looked at the menu, we suddenly realised that we had not eaten since breakfast and were ravenous.

As we walked the half block length back after dinner, we noticed that there were people who stood guard at the cars that were parked along the street. I wondered whether they would be up the whole night.