In which we go on safari.
Another beautiful day dawned on us at Spitzkoppe. We spent the night in a tented camp which was fantastic. The rooms were big canvas tents, but they had very comfortable beds and ensuites. It was COLD last night but the doona and blanket kept me warm. Thanks to Dave M who was up early for the beautiful dawn timelapse.
It was day of two halves again today… we had a short gravel ride back out from our camp, then it was a long highway blast for several hours toward Windhoek. We had lunch at a sports club there, the pushed onwards toward our destination, the Auas Safari Lodge, about another 50 kms away – 30 kms tarmac and 20 kms pretty easy dirt.
Arriving into Auas, we had time to change and for some quick bathroom sink clothes washing, before we hopped into some safari vehicles and headed out to find some animals.
The safari park is a huge, scrubby territory that at first glance seems empty, but it took no time until we were seeing wildlife. I kept note of what we saw:
| Seen: | Giraffe Springbok (common, white, black, copper) Waterbuck Warthog Sable Antelope Ostrich Wildebeest (Gnu) Bat Eared Fox Oryx Weaver birds Kudu Elan – largest antelope Dassie (Rock Hyrax) Zebra Steenbok (2nd smallest antelope) |
| Not Seen: | Jackal Leopard Cheetah Hyena Caracal Monkey Impala |
The tour stopped for some sundowner drinks and nibbles before heading back to the lodge.
Dinner was served on the patio overlooking the lodge waterhole and while we were eating animals were coming in to drink. We moved jackals and impala to the “seen” column during dinner.
Tomorrow is a HUGE day – the biggest of the tour. We have about 550 kms to cover as we leave Namibia and cross the border into Botswana. Start early, ride fast, and hope for friendly border staff.
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