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We rent a cabin at Marble Camp and tonight it’s my turn to sleep in the double bed. Marc cooks up a fantastic dinner that consists of a can of vegetable curry, rice and some beer that a friendly local organizes for us.   We sit around recounting the tales of the day, relieved to be safe and...

Four hours and a lot of sandy gravelly tracks later, we arrive at Marble Campsite. Along the way, I was entertained by these two goat herders who appeared out of the bush to lift my spirits. I succeed in making them laugh and this photo is one of my favorites of the trip.

We saddle up and head back south through the sand. The tracks are almost non-existent in places. Jan Lucas wants to take the same way we came in – the safe way. I have other plans. If I’m going to cut my trip 50km short because my friends are nervous, then I’m going to make sure that the...

It feels eerie and I can see that Jan Lucas is getting uncomfortable. He suggests that we start heading south instead of exploring more. He tells me that he feels anxious here. So do I actually. But that’s not enough for me to bail on the opportunity to ride the dunes. But I can’t ride alone...

We find a building with a toilet and a sink with running water, so we replenish our water bladders. Marc and I walk around to see if there’s any fuel. Sure enough, there’s a fuel drum, but it’s completely empty. We find 12 quad bikes – each of them covered with and with all the fuel drained...

We push on towards Serra Cafema – an exclusive lodge on the Kunene River. Now, Sera Cafema is known to be super expensive. You can’t get there by car – only by plane. I’ve heard that they charge R20000 ($1300)/night. Rumor also has it that they do not welcome strangers. But we want to check it...

Marc almost rides over the crest of the dune, not seeing the enormous drop on the other side. I’m able to flag him down and make him stop. He later thanks me for saving his life. This is not for sissies. We ride a little more conservatively, realizing that one accident out here could mean the...

I catch up with the boys and we’re all exhilarated. “Fuuuuck, this is amazing.” says Jan Lucas in a rare display of colorful language. We all agree. This is ******* amazing. Like ridiculously ******* amazing. We race down a hill and arrive at some really big sand dunes.

What follows is hard to describe. The sand is Virgin. It looks like nobody has driven this road in a long, long time. It’s not even a road. It’s a fine outline of what used to be a sandy 4x4 track and has now been blown over with sand. It feels other-worldly. The sand is soft and my Mitas...

A few minutes later we go from riding rocks to being surrounded by an ocean of sand... This video may help you get a sense of it. https://youtu.be/upEPR4d8Yt4 Words cannot describe the feeling of isolation out here. It’s magical. The boys blast off into the distance, but I can’t stop taking...

As we work our way up to higher ground, the track opens up into a fast sandy riverbed. And then I almost crash. Not through any fault of my own, but because two enormous giraffes run right out of the bushes and in front of me. We stop and take in the moment as the giraffe just stand 50 meters...

The track turns into a rocky hill climb and I'm loving the challenge of trying to ride it without dabbing a foot. I make it. Here's a video of part of the climb. https://youtu.be/fzFfUaiktZ8

By the time I get back to camp, the boys are ready to leave. We decant the water into Marc’s 6-litre bladder and set off to explore the track over the Hartmannberge.

We arrive at the water-well /  borehole thingy. Columbigo looks around for a rope, then winds it around the starter of the big diesel water pump and yanks the rope as hard as he can. The pump roars to life and water begins gushing from the pipe attached to it into a trough. Comumbigo washes...

I arrive at 7:30am and Ben is standing outside his shop with a bunch of guys. I greet him with a smile and handshake and he seems curious to see us again. “Are you guys OK? He asks. “Yes. We just need some water. Do you sell 5-liter bottles?” “Nooooo. We don’t sell water. Only Beer!” “Beer...

I woke up feeling sticky. Sleeping last night was difficult because the desert sand beneath my tent stayed warm all night. The only way I can think to describe it is like an electric blanket. I don’t know about you, but when I’m sticky, I’m uncomfortable. And there’s only one cure for that when...

LOL! Perhaps you can let Justin know that I'm spoken for and will gracefull bow out of his race to accumulate a harem. :-)

It's on the South West side of the Marienfluss here: -17.626250, 12.513683

Craig, that was a great explanation. Thanks for taking the time to make it so clear. I might pick your brains a little more tomorrow when you come round. Don't be surprised if I give you a white lab coat and present you with a few tubes of glue and a few patches and inner tubes. :-) We still...

Here's a video on the way to Van Zyls Pass: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNRlc-Lc2Hc Here's a video Marc took with his phone while riding drunk down the Marienfluss: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GN_Pc4fs4XU And this one of our campsite: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elqP1j3UYdE