It was a foggy morning arriving in Walvis Bay. We were told that could be the case, but it would burn off soon and you could see sand dunes. Well, today’s story is going to be Doug’s since I was unable to make it for our excursion – a 7 hour day in the dunes. So, I slept most of the day and Doug took lots of pictures so I could see what it was all about. So, today I’m like you – learning through his story and his pictures!
Doug, a driver, and two other couples got in a 4 x 4 right off the ship and headed along the coast line which is basically a dry desert. They went through the coastal town of Swakopmund – a tidy, well laid out small town about 20 miles north of Walvis Bay. Today it is the center of the popular Namib coastal resort with secluded beaches in and around town. This is where Angelina Jolie had her first born child.
The first stop (an hour after leaving the ship) was to see the Musical Rocks which are a part of the Moon Mountains. They are sizeable boulders strewn across the hillside which when struck with another rock sound like driving a spike. Fairly ho hum.
Driving on through the Moon Valley, they saw desert plant life. There were lichens growing on rocks, which when the guide poured water upon them, they seemed to grow. The most interesting plant was the rather unattractive welwitschia tree. It mostly appears to be no more than a pair of misshapen leathery leaves. The majority of the plant lives below the ground and its only source of water is fog and dew. Many of these trees are over 1,000 years old with some 2,000 years old.
The two leaves grow about 1 1/2 a year and also the ends die the same amount of growth. You can tell the age of the tree by the width of the trunk (in the middle of the leaves). Every inch represents about 100 years!
Lunch was in an oasis under a group of palm and blue gum trees – served on real plates, not paper! Other 4 x 4 vans on the same trip all met there, so there was a large group enjoying some food and drink – and getting ready for the hard part of the trip!
Dune 7 (which is 7 miles from Walvis Bay) was the big stop where everyone had the opportunity to climb the 600 foot dune. Not everyone chose to undertake this climb, but Doug did. The sand was very loose and climbing was like trying to go the wrong way on an escalator. There was a very narrow path everyone stayed on until the top edge. When Doug got to the top and looked over, all you could see was more dunes!
On the way back to Walvis Bay, the final stop was the lagoon and tidal flood plains near the water’s edge where flamingoes can be seen. There weren’t that many of them, and they were whitish in color. (Pink flamingoes get their pretty color from eating shrimp.)
Before Doug returned, there was a group of children from the Bernhard Nordkamp Center for AIDS orphans in Nambiba who performed for the passengers on the ship. I was not up to seeing them, but later watched their performance on the ship’s TV station. They were very cute as they sang and “moved” to the rhythm of their music. This Center is amazing in what it does for these children through sports and academics.
That evening Doug took care of me because I was getting sicker and sicker. Started with chills and fever and continued coughing. Not a fun night.
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