Lorri and I are planning a trip to Namibia. With wildlife our primary objective we plan to spend most of our time in Etosha. We're looking at about 24 ground days in country. Are there any other can't miss locations that are easlily reached since we're self driving? Would it be better to fly into Cape Town and drive up or just fly into Windhoek? Any help and suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Posted by Josh Anderson on January 25, 2007 at 11:43 PM
Robert,
You may want to contact Jess Lee. I know he has gone or is going to Africa for a wildlife shoot. Thought I'm not sure if he is going to Namibia or not.
Thanks Josh, As much as im pains me to admit it Jess and I are old freinds I know he hasn't been to Namibia. I've been to Kenya and Tanzania many times but a couple years ago we self drove in South Africa for a month and really enjoyed the freedom. So this year we decided on a Namibia self drive trip.
Posted by Trym Espeseth on January 26, 2007 at 1:35 PM
Hi Robert
I suggest you fly into Cape Town and take a plane from there to Windhoek. I would recommend that you visit Soususvlei. Great places to stay is Soussusvlei Mountain Lodge and Wolfedans. But I dont know how much money you are going to spend. In addition to Etosha I would check out Damaraland. It is a very good chance to see black Rhino there. There are nice lodges in private game reserves outside Etosha, and inside the park there are self catering lodges situated around water holes. In Damaraland there are at least one nice lodge. Check out www.africatravelresource.com for information about high and low end places to stay. Remember when planing driving in Namibia to check out distances. It is a huge country. The roads are mainly grave and plan your driving distances according to road conditions. Be sure to bring plenty of water and salt tablets.
Good Luck
Trym
Robert, do not know when you are planning to go. Been there a few times, last trip was about five years ago. It was always a drive heading to Etosha either from JNB of CPT.
The last trip was driving from CPT in August. During this time, it is the wild flower season in Namaqualand. It is an arid region which starts about 150 km south of the SA border with Namibia. The road passes through the region.. You are faced with huge swathes of color. As you cross into Namibia, there is Fish River canyon, the second largest canyon after the Grand of course. Worth a diversion. Carrying on from there on to Luderiz, here you meet Jackass penguins, seals etc. Of note in the area is the ghost diamond mining town that is being claimed back by the sandy desert. Heading north to Soussusvlei which is highly recommended for landscapes, the highest sand dunes (apricot color) and abou 900-100ft high, all kinds of deer including desert Oryx (Gemsbok), birds including oestrich, etc. On the way to Soussusvlei I have seen wild horses. Cut across the desert to Walvis Bay for flamingos and pelicans. Drive north past Swakopmond on to Cape Cross. Here there is one of the largest populations of fur seals. The population ranges fro 10000 to 120000, depending on the season. The population is highest during the pupping season of Dec-Mar. A good selection of birds, jackals that predate on the seals. Also one of the best places to see the rare Brown Hyena. There is now a hotel at Cape Cross although I cannot remember its name. Head back south to Damaraland for the opportunity to spot Black Rhino and desert elephant. Then north into Etosha. At Etosha, I have always stayed in the govt rest camps within the park. Also I self catered. At the largest camp Okaokuyo. I always booked a chalet by the water hole. This is a magic place. The waterhole attracts all sorts of animals. Eat outside with the water hole in sight and watch the wildlife, after dinner I usually parked my self, tripod, long lens etc with glasses of chilled wine to assist with keen alert eyesight and watch the animal world go bye. Here I have regularly seen lots of black rhino, herds for zebra, wildebeest, springbok, elephant, lions, leopard. The list goes on through the night. So much so you wonder if you need to go to bed. There is so much animal interaction. There is a huge variety of birds in the camps too. The other two camps, Halali and Namatoni are each quite different. Namatoni was a police fort and is picturesque. From here you can head south past Windhok to Keetsmanshoop. Here there is the Quiver tree forest, which is very picturesque, with lots of bird life. From here head back to CPT. North of CPT is a place called Laangban (I think) which has a large colony of Southern Gannets. About 3 years ago some sea lions took to raiding the colony so much so the birds did not return the following year. The seals were forcefully discouraged and I understand the birds have returned, but please check.
Trym is quite correct about driving distances. Also have lots of water for yourselves and the vehicle if the need arises. DEhydration creeps up. Gravel roads are quite deceptive, many a tourist has come to grief by rolling the vehicle. I too have rolled a car here and it was not funny. Fortunately, we did not sustain any injury, but to pride and a good fright. In the country, the dirt roads cross dry river beds. If there is water flowing treat this with extreme caution, loose sand where you will get stuck and could wait for ages before someone turns up and is able to help you out and flash floods. Before crossing such places I tend to walk across to test the firmness or watch carefully when others cross before me.
We have had great times there and wish you both an equally good time. With what I have described, expect to cover a minimum of 15000kms. It is long distances between places. In SA and Namibia, payment for fuel is usually by cash. Namibia $ is on par with the SA Rand, however, in SA the Namibia $ is not generally accecpted as tender.
PS I have found that vehicle hire with unlimited milage was cheaper from SA when compared with hire in Namibia. You may also want to consider one way hire ie collect at CPT and return at Windhoek. If you take a vehicle from SA, make sure that you request a letter of authorisation to take the vehicle across the border and a country identification disc (in this case it is a circular badge with ZA written on it) that is required by Namibia law. Not having this may mean losing up to half a day for a visit to the courts, if stopped by the Namibia police. There were lots of police check points, usually checking for stolen vehicles.
Sorry that the thread is a bit long.
Hari
Robert, a thought just occured to me. To cut out 2000km (two days drive, a day going north and another going south), you can fly to Upington from JNB or CPT. It is the main town serving the Kalahari Gemsbok NP and the eastern edge of Namaqualand. The Gemsbok NP is a transfrontier park with Botswana and its western border nestles up against the Namibian border. If you have not been here, it is famous for its black maned lions, cheetah is common with the occassional leopard. Meercats are also present. Birds are prolofic. If you go to the park, it is about 150kms north of Opington. From the park about 50kms south, there is a rough dirt road that goes into Namibia. Do not know the condition of the road now, but when we used it it was rough with some potholes and stones. It is safe but a careful drive is advised to avoid punctures.
If you go into Namibia directly from Opington, or use the dirt road from the Gemsbok NP, start your itenary from Soussusvlei, etc, etc. On the way south, visit the quiver tree forest then on to Fish River canyon, come back up north and then head west to cross the border to Upington, return the vehicle and fly back to JNB or CPT. You save at least 2000km.
If you are intending to look at flowers in August, accomadation can be difficult as there are hundreds of tour coaches for the world and its wife will be there. On our trip in August going north and returning south, we stopped at a place called Springbok (main town in the northern part of Namaqualand, about 50kms south of the SA border with Namibia) and had some difficulty finding a place to night stop. You can also go from Upington head to Springbok, looking at the flowers on the way and head up to Namibia from Springbok.
Hari
Posted by Scott Elliot on January 28, 2007 at 1:16 AM
In 2002 I drove from Cape Town to Langebaan and West Coast National Park that is located there in late August. There were some good photos in this area. We then proceeded north to Kamieskroon in Namaqualand where the wildflower photography was incredible in Skilpad National Park and surrounding areas. A Canadian photographer called Freeman Patterson sat down beside us at breakfast in the hotel and suggested an itinary for the day. At Springbok we turned east to Upington instead of continuing north to Namibia, which we are saving for a future trip. From Upington we continued north into Kgalgadi Transfrontier Park in the Kalahari desert. This was also wonderful photography, but there are two roads that go to the Namibian border and both roads ended in what looked like permanent fence so you could not cross. Namibia has recently announced expansions of their national park system so this may have changed. It would be wonderful to see Kgalagadi expanded to include ajoining areas in Namibia, South Africa and Botswana. From the South African portion of Kgalagadi you could cross into Botswana, but this required a 4x4 and there were other travel restrictions that we did not investigate. You would have to go into a rather remote part of the Kalahari Desert in Botswana which should not be taken lightly. We dropped the car in Upintgton and flew back to Cape Town.
If you do this, make sure you have an adequate vehicle. We thought we were going to get a Toyota Corolla, but got a Renault that was good on the highway but inadequate on the sand roads in Kgalagadi where it was under powered and lacked clearance so it risked bogging down in soft sand. A 4x4 would not have been necessary, but a van with more clearance like the Toyota we rented in Kruger would have been better than a low slung car.
I am not sure whether we will fly directly to Windhoek or rent a car in South Africa when we go to Namibia. It would be good to avoid the long drive through South Africa, but I would hate to miss Namaqualand if it happened to be a good year for flowers.
In all my drives, the vehicle hired was a Toyota Corrolla/VW Golf type car. For most places you do not need a 4X4. In to reach Soususvlei and Deadflei a 4X4 is required to travel the last 5km. There is a car park and there is a shuttle service to and from, or if it is cool walking is possible. I have done both options, the sand is quite soft and can be tedious. If walking it is possible to come across the gemsbok (Oryx). Be careful with this animal, it has long sabre like horns and are reputed to have elcellent eye/horn placement and cordination skills to seriously injure.
In the Kalahari transfrontier park, an ordinary vehicle is ok, wander away to the more remote camps in the SA side will require a 4X4.
A vehichle similar to a VW transit van that is very practicle is the Venture. It comes in 2 wheel and 4 wheel drive versions. It has relatively good ground clearance. I have not used this but have seen many on the roads.
Hari
Posted by beth summer on January 28, 2007 at 2:16 PM
I've never been there but I just read an article today about the Harnas Wildlife Foundation animal rehabilitation center in Gobabis, Namibia. Sounded fascinating. You can visit for any liength of time and even stay there if you wish. Website is www,harnas.de/en/ Wish I could go
Discussion
10 repliesYou may want to contact Jess Lee. I know he has gone or is going to Africa for a wildlife shoot. Thought I'm not sure if he is going to Namibia or not.
I suggest you fly into Cape Town and take a plane from there to Windhoek. I would recommend that you visit Soususvlei. Great places to stay is Soussusvlei Mountain Lodge and Wolfedans. But I dont know how much money you are going to spend. In addition to Etosha I would check out Damaraland. It is a very good chance to see black Rhino there. There are nice lodges in private game reserves outside Etosha, and inside the park there are self catering lodges situated around water holes. In Damaraland there are at least one nice lodge. Check out www.africatravelresource.com for information about high and low end places to stay. Remember when planing driving in Namibia to check out distances. It is a huge country. The roads are mainly grave and plan your driving distances according to road conditions. Be sure to bring plenty of water and salt tablets.
Good Luck
Trym
The last trip was driving from CPT in August. During this time, it is the wild flower season in Namaqualand. It is an arid region which starts about 150 km south of the SA border with Namibia. The road passes through the region.. You are faced with huge swathes of color. As you cross into Namibia, there is Fish River canyon, the second largest canyon after the Grand of course. Worth a diversion. Carrying on from there on to Luderiz, here you meet Jackass penguins, seals etc. Of note in the area is the ghost diamond mining town that is being claimed back by the sandy desert. Heading north to Soussusvlei which is highly recommended for landscapes, the highest sand dunes (apricot color) and abou 900-100ft high, all kinds of deer including desert Oryx (Gemsbok), birds including oestrich, etc. On the way to Soussusvlei I have seen wild horses. Cut across the desert to Walvis Bay for flamingos and pelicans. Drive north past Swakopmond on to Cape Cross. Here there is one of the largest populations of fur seals. The population ranges fro 10000 to 120000, depending on the season. The population is highest during the pupping season of Dec-Mar. A good selection of birds, jackals that predate on the seals. Also one of the best places to see the rare Brown Hyena. There is now a hotel at Cape Cross although I cannot remember its name. Head back south to Damaraland for the opportunity to spot Black Rhino and desert elephant. Then north into Etosha. At Etosha, I have always stayed in the govt rest camps within the park. Also I self catered. At the largest camp Okaokuyo. I always booked a chalet by the water hole. This is a magic place. The waterhole attracts all sorts of animals. Eat outside with the water hole in sight and watch the wildlife, after dinner I usually parked my self, tripod, long lens etc with glasses of chilled wine to assist with keen alert eyesight and watch the animal world go bye. Here I have regularly seen lots of black rhino, herds for zebra, wildebeest, springbok, elephant, lions, leopard. The list goes on through the night. So much so you wonder if you need to go to bed. There is so much animal interaction. There is a huge variety of birds in the camps too. The other two camps, Halali and Namatoni are each quite different. Namatoni was a police fort and is picturesque. From here you can head south past Windhok to Keetsmanshoop. Here there is the Quiver tree forest, which is very picturesque, with lots of bird life. From here head back to CPT. North of CPT is a place called Laangban (I think) which has a large colony of Southern Gannets. About 3 years ago some sea lions took to raiding the colony so much so the birds did not return the following year. The seals were forcefully discouraged and I understand the birds have returned, but please check.
Trym is quite correct about driving distances. Also have lots of water for yourselves and the vehicle if the need arises. DEhydration creeps up. Gravel roads are quite deceptive, many a tourist has come to grief by rolling the vehicle. I too have rolled a car here and it was not funny. Fortunately, we did not sustain any injury, but to pride and a good fright. In the country, the dirt roads cross dry river beds. If there is water flowing treat this with extreme caution, loose sand where you will get stuck and could wait for ages before someone turns up and is able to help you out and flash floods. Before crossing such places I tend to walk across to test the firmness or watch carefully when others cross before me.
We have had great times there and wish you both an equally good time. With what I have described, expect to cover a minimum of 15000kms. It is long distances between places. In SA and Namibia, payment for fuel is usually by cash. Namibia $ is on par with the SA Rand, however, in SA the Namibia $ is not generally accecpted as tender.
PS I have found that vehicle hire with unlimited milage was cheaper from SA when compared with hire in Namibia. You may also want to consider one way hire ie collect at CPT and return at Windhoek. If you take a vehicle from SA, make sure that you request a letter of authorisation to take the vehicle across the border and a country identification disc (in this case it is a circular badge with ZA written on it) that is required by Namibia law. Not having this may mean losing up to half a day for a visit to the courts, if stopped by the Namibia police. There were lots of police check points, usually checking for stolen vehicles.
Sorry that the thread is a bit long.
Hari
If you go into Namibia directly from Opington, or use the dirt road from the Gemsbok NP, start your itenary from Soussusvlei, etc, etc. On the way south, visit the quiver tree forest then on to Fish River canyon, come back up north and then head west to cross the border to Upington, return the vehicle and fly back to JNB or CPT. You save at least 2000km.
If you are intending to look at flowers in August, accomadation can be difficult as there are hundreds of tour coaches for the world and its wife will be there. On our trip in August going north and returning south, we stopped at a place called Springbok (main town in the northern part of Namaqualand, about 50kms south of the SA border with Namibia) and had some difficulty finding a place to night stop. You can also go from Upington head to Springbok, looking at the flowers on the way and head up to Namibia from Springbok.
Hari
If you do this, make sure you have an adequate vehicle. We thought we were going to get a Toyota Corolla, but got a Renault that was good on the highway but inadequate on the sand roads in Kgalagadi where it was under powered and lacked clearance so it risked bogging down in soft sand. A 4x4 would not have been necessary, but a van with more clearance like the Toyota we rented in Kruger would have been better than a low slung car.
I am not sure whether we will fly directly to Windhoek or rent a car in South Africa when we go to Namibia. It would be good to avoid the long drive through South Africa, but I would hate to miss Namaqualand if it happened to be a good year for flowers.
In the Kalahari transfrontier park, an ordinary vehicle is ok, wander away to the more remote camps in the SA side will require a 4X4.
A vehichle similar to a VW transit van that is very practicle is the Venture. It comes in 2 wheel and 4 wheel drive versions. It has relatively good ground clearance. I have not used this but have seen many on the roads.
Hari