My 'Mother' of a Solo ride to Namibia

[ALLEN I]

Enjoying the ride  :ricky: take all the time you need. Ok wheres the rest  :spitcoffee:

 

[mother]

Swakopmund
the nice thing about being on a solo ride and no time limit i decided to take another rest day and check out the town a bit…also enjoyed the no camping bit..hehe

also catch up with some wifi comms to the family it was well worth it


met a fellow biker and off road enthusiast Ben


in Swakop it was the first day of the German festival

 

[Carrots]

Ben lyk amper amper soos 'n jonger Chris.....ChrisL dit is!  :3some:

 

[Frannarossi]

Bliksem dis 'n lekker report die!Kom ons pak en ry Chris....

 

[mother]

from Swakopmund the plan was to head up the coast and camp at Mile 108…having done this before i wanted to do it again…there is some thing to be said for camping on the beach..watching the sun set over the ocean….so i was looking forward to that experience
got an early start and headed North towards Henties bay just north of Henties came across this Ship wreck lying close to the beach

as i only had just over 160km to cover for the day i took my time riding the salt road …also stopped at Cape Cross


the seals of Cape Cross


at Cape Cross there is a lodge in the middle on nowhere so i decided lots of time to kill so had lunch…if you in this area well worth the stop


camping Mile 108


true to form i was the only soul camping on the beach…it was great having the place all to my self…the office reception being far from the camp site i felt totally alone and in my element ….there wasn’t much wind although i did prepare for it and tied everything down…..walked on the beach a bit sat on my chair feeding salticrax to the seagulls and watching the sun set over the ocean was an awesome way to pass the time….even had time for a power nap….life was good at mile 108….one other thing i always had signal in most places of Namibia so was always able to let my family know i was ok



Cost of Camping at Mile 108- R100.00 plus R10.00 for a shower….cost to my memory bank and experience…..priceless



the previous night i had used a brick to put on top of the empty tent bag so it does not blow away….mmmmmm after packing and ready to pull away front wheel goes up the brick no momentum my foot too short …bike is over at and angle i just can’t hold it….down it goes…took a pic so you back home can appreciate a good giggle at me for being so careless


next morning before i got under way i had my ten buck shower

 

[mother]

After Mile 108
next morning i wanted to try for the Skeleton coast park….i had heard they don’t allow motorcycles in…but i was optimistic i would try my luck….plan B being a retreat of some 40 odd km then taking the sandy section around the Brandberg to Uis but i was hoping this was not an option as i had done this road before…this time i wanted to go into the Park as i had never been…also just go check out Torra bay as i often looked at this area on the map…plan was to continue on to Palmwag and carry on to a place called Ongongo (hot spring) near Warmquelle and camp at the spring for the night…info thanks to my bud in Windhoek

the Entrance to the Skeleton Coast Park


from the Entrance back to Mile 108 was 38km if i couldn’t negotiate to pass through


lucky me….i managed to convince the gate keeper to let me in…it took about half an hour of explaining i wasn’t a quad bike or a plastic bike as described in his brief…because it clearly stated no motorcycles allowed into the park…it was open to interpretation so after half an hour of convincing the man my bike was a car on two wheels…registered and all…not a play thing to go breaking up the land….he was kind to let me in…..whooo hoo was nice to ride a new place and i knew i would be responsible and not let him down

inside the park a wreck now i understand why its called the skeleton coast….hard harsh place….if you survived the wreck the desert killed you


an old oil rig from the pioneer days lies dead in the desert


not one single person except me for miles and miles….



i had to go see what Torra bay looked like ten km detour from the turn to exit the Park

when i got to the other side of the park the gate keeper Whitey was very friendly we took a few pics together and i promised to mail him….so one day if you do this trip ask for Whitey and let him show you the pics i took…hehehe

 

[goblin]

sub

 

[mother]

ok so after leaving the Skeleton Coast Park
i headed for Palmwag……i mentioned earlier i had two close calls on my trip well this section was where the second incident happened
for most part of my trip i was riding well within my limits to conserve myself and my bike and my solo experience….ie if you want a nice trip take it easy
well i thought easy on the open dirt roads was 100 max 110km….mmmm
about 20km before Palmwag a nice sweeping bend to the right…there had been millions of these bends on this trip……or so i though…clearly not the stones very loose just above a very hard road surface…next minute there goes the front end….that electric moment when adrenalin kicks in and thank goodness i was in my kit …down went the right foot at about 100km and i was back up….man o man my heart in my throat…..needless to say i slowed it down a bit …..thats the thing with all the dirt roads they can easily deceive you

at Palmwag i refuelled and headed to the lodge feeling i deserved a bite and refreshment also managed to catch up with family and friends on their wifi for an extra 25 bucks

fuel at Palmwag


Palmwag lodge an oasis in the dry land


after Palmwag i still had 80km to go to get to my over night spot by the Spring at Ongongo so i got moving

Ongongo was a small piece of paradise…thanks David for the referral and definitely worth camping at


home sweet home at Ongongo



the warm spring in the desert



of course had to go for a swim in the warm cristal clear pool



that evening it was noodles for dinner

Leaving Ongongo the next day 6 km of track back to the main road

 

[mother]

man its a long story to upload pics.....and my connection is frustratingly slow...will post again later

 

[Gertjie Grondpad]

WOW!! baie goeie RR, mooi storielyn en fotos en soos iemand gesê het; dit lyk na ons ouens se idee van 'n motorfiets avontuur - dit voel amper of ek saam gery het deur daardie mooi land - veilige myle "Mother" - 'n mens kan sien jy is baie ge-organiseerd - ek sou laaaik om saam te kon ry.........

 

[Dirt Junkie]

RR's like these make me want to just ride, really enjoying it thanks for sharing

 

[JACOVV]

man its a long story to upload pics.....and my connection is frustratingly slow...will post again later

Don't worry - we'll wait  :deal:  :biggrin:

 

[Karoo Rider]

Ai ek moes nou nooit dié RR raakgesien het nie - nou dwaal die ou verstandjie darem ver vanaand!
Brilliant RR - please keep it coming!  :thumleft:

 

[Smuggy]

:sip:

 

[Wolzac]

Great RR and very cool Photos . I did this trip tree Years ago and at the entrance of Palmwag I came across this. Must have been an exhausted Traveller that collapsed at the Entrance.

 

[Ian in Great Brak River]

What are the road conditions like in the Skeleton Park ...?

No leeches in the water at Ongongo i hope ...?

 

[Three Dawg]

Lovin' this, more please! :thumleft:

 

[Vis Arend]

Very nice RR and great pics, thanks for sharing Mother.  :thumleft:

The last time we visited Namibia we also noticed that the roads are in a bad condition compared to our previous visits.  It seems like the days of the Namibian gravel highways are something of the past.  Just the way we like it.  :biggrin:

 

[ClimbingTurtle]

I am loving this!!

We did a very similar route in November 2012 - through the Skeleton Coast park as well - they never gave us any hassle about the bikes - just made sure they weren't plastics or quads...!

Also stayed at Ondongo - it was 47.5deg when we were there - heatstroke territory!!

Keep it coming!!!

:thumleft:

 

[Bill p]

Yerra Mother this is now a lekker RR. Actually feel like we are riding with you.