my2cents

Once again we get up early, because we are facing a long stretch to Purros. Fortunately, during breakfast we don’t know yet how difficult it will be … Last night at around 1:30am Camp Syncro suddenly came to life because a few locals left for where ever with roaring vehicles.

Hardly 400m outside the camp, we already have to insert the first photo stop, because next to the piste few skinny goats stand in the morning light – apparently a worthwhile subject for our guides. Goats, so what?, I think and stay behind the wheel of my beloved Land Rover. The same corrugated metal track that leads to Camp Syncro leads, of course, away from it – unfortunately there are no alternatives.

Since I apparently got up on the wrong side and, inexplicably, have a bad mood, the track seems to be in even worse condition than yesterday. Stefan creeps with his Landy ahead as if he was on a treasure hunt. Bombing down the track with anything below 80km/h does not seem logical, but what do I know. I’m a Namibia-rookie. So I am sitting sullenly in our hot and dusty box (aka vehicler) and sneak behind the guides. At least Akiko takes the same opinion as I.

According to our map a place called “Red Drum” must be just ahead of us and I’m looking forward to seeing a road crossing in the featureless landscape of Kaokoveld. Oh boy, how could have imagined that Red Drum is just that – a red drum in the middle of nowhere. It marks the junction (if coming from the south) for Marienfluss valley to the east and Hartmann valley to the west.

A red drum at Red Drum in Kaokoveld

Not far from Marble Camp (alt. link) we stop for lunch. The brave Swiss we met a Camp Syncro will apparently stay overnight here. Not a bad place. We wouldn’t mind either calling it quits here for the day. Off-road driving is a lot of fun but can get tiring. Stefan and Marga seem to notice this and change the route spontaneously. Instead of following the Chumib river from Orupembe south-east we follow D3707 which a grader has just finish clearing up “for us”.

On the way from Orupembe to Purros

After the slow pace the previous hours it’s a big relieve to “fly” over the even track with 100km/h. The landscape is wonderfully meager, wide and deserted. For the first time in my life I see a jackal. I’m quite surprise how small they are. I didn’t know they’re the size of a large fox. The stretch to Purros is a long haul despite the perfect track conditions. It seems to drag on forever.

When we finally get there I’m positively surprised. The guy who welcomes us at the gate speaks English, the camp is pretty, the hot water for the showers is ready and we’re the only guests at the camp tonight.

→ Namibia 2009 photos

In Namibia’s north-west it’s comfortably warm in winter – even during the night (unlike in the more central regions). Last night I used the sleeping bag as a blanket and we had the “windows” in the roof tent all rolled up. The constant exchange of fresh air inside the tent apparently works everything but detrimental for a good night’s rest. I slept like a baby.

I’m the first to get up and I use the time to heat up the donkey shower. It’s a good feeling to be up first and to do good for the group. Since I really learned to enjoy off-road driving here in Namibia I’m very much looking forward to the route today: Van Zyl’s Pass is waiting! I’m eager to find out what it’s really like. All the stories I heard and read, how much of it is true?

For breakfast we prepare “Geröstel” (fried potato chunks and onions) left-over in the fry pan. It tastes fantastic! While we have breakfast a Himba boy from the nearby village shows up to collect the campsite fee. As many other campsites in remote areas the Van Zyl’s Pass camp is a Namibia community project. Since the boy doesn’t speak English he simply hands us a brochure with the fees neatly listed. His eyes glance hungrily over our rich breakfast table and we give him some oranges and fill a plate with Geröstel for him. His bony body makes it obvious that at least part of the community lacks ample food supply.

Pumping the tires again once the vehicles are out of the river bed

As the campsite is located in the middle of a sandy river-bed we had to release some air from tires before returning to the road to Van Zyl’s pass.

The drive through the mountains to the pass is simply fantastic! The extremely rugged road and the very slow pace that results from that is responsible that at least the co-driver  can enjoy the scenery. The pass itself is less demanding than anticipated. It is very demanding for the cars obviously but with a car like the Land Rover TD4 it’s fine as long as the driver is alert. You don’t need to be an off-road super-guru. You shouldn’t attempt that route alone, though. If your car breaks down you’re lost. youtube.com has a number of videos that give you a good impression of the pass.

It's customary to tell the world that you (or your car rather) mastered Van Zyl's Pass

The sandy earth road in the Marienfluss valley on the other side of the pass is pure horror, though. It’s extremely corrugated and even if you race along with 80km/h it feels like your car is going to fall apart any minute. If you go slower it’s even worse…

The 60km to Camp Synchro seem endless. I just want this to be over, it’s most definitely the flip-side of the off-road medal. After I hit a stone while trying to navigate around particularly bad bump in the road the warning lights start flashing automatically. The respective button on the dashboard doesn’t indicate they’re flashing though and they can’t be switched off either. I’m just happy that the tires didn’t get damaged. In moments like this one realizes how heavily we depend on our vehicles in such remote areas.

Marienfluss valley between Van Zyl's Pass and Camp Synchro

I’m in a foul mood because of the road conditions and I’m angry at myself for letting this influence my mood. I want to be more calm and more positively thinking. We’re on vacation after all. Many people envy us for that. And here I am swearing at a road in bad condition – not very “grown up”. In this mood I have little hope that a pretty camp is expecting us but Camp Synchro is a very positive surprise. It’s like an oasis at the Kunene river. We find lovely spots for our cars overlooking the river and we settle for yet another romantic dinner around candles, torches and a small fire. I even manage to fix the flashing warning lights by disconnecting the primary battery for a second.

→ Namibia 2009 photos