16.9.07: - Ok a lot to update you guys on. As you know from the Itinerary we left the comfort of our lodge in Swakopmund on 16.9.07. We set up camp in Sessriem within the Namib Naukluft National Park. Once we set up camp we headed to the pool, as the weather here is a lot hotter than we were used to on the coast. After relaxing we then put on our working boots & headed to the Sesstrium Canyon (meaning the 6 rains it took to get a bucket of water from the bottom of the Canyon). This was a short walk & it was wonderful seeing all of the different layers of rock surrounding us.
17.9.07: - This morning was a very early start, we had to be in the truck for 5.45 to be @the park gate for 6.00. Our mission this morning is to climb Dune 45 to watch the sun rise. Dune 45 is over 100m & it was very windy so to climb to the top was a bit of a task. As you look up @ the dune it is very deceiving as you think the peak of is a short distance away, however once you reach this peak 6you realize that there is a long way to the top. Anyway we reached the top of Dube 45 just in time to see the sun rise, which had a nice calming effect. Our walk down Dune 45 was a lot quicker than going up. It was also nice to see Manda & Robson @ the truck ready with our breakfast of scrambled eggs, which went down a treat.
18.9.07: - Last night we changed camps & ended up @ a site called Agama Camp. It was a very quite place & no one else was there, we could not even buy any of the much-needed beers. However the one good thing about this site was the shower, it was cold so v refreshing & had no roof. I know it sounds weird but it was nice having the sun shining on you whilst having a long well needed shower, an experience. After leaving Agama camp today we had a very long journey approx 9 hours to the Canyon Roadhouse located near fish river canyon. Once we set up camp, Robson drove us out to Fish River Canyon for the sunset. This did not disappoint, the view was amazing & the Canyon seemed to go on forever. We took a walk along the edge of the Canyon & met up with Manda & Rosbson @ the viewing point. They had a lovely treat for us when we arrived, nice cold wine & nibbles. This went down a treat. Drew & I enjoyed our 3 glasses of wine & were v merry by the time we got back on the truck.
19: - We departed the overpriced roadhouse today & Headed towards the South African border. As soon as you cross into South Africa your surroundings immediately change, the fields around you are lush & green with flowers blooming, a wonderful sight to see. We finished our short journey @ about midday & set up camp @ a place called Fiddlers Creek located on the Orange River. This had such a lovely atmosphere, so quiet & relaxing until the rumi cub came out. For once I have found a came that I am good @, I won 2 out of 3 games, Yeah! Whilst I was playing my game Drew was roped in to play a game of volleyball with the lads. I believe that his team lost 21-18, but it looked v energetic. Today was a good day where it felt really good being with everyone in the group.
20.9.07: - Today we got up early yet again & headed out on the truck. This was a very long day of driving, felt sorry for Robson sitting in the front alone. We ended up in Lamberts Bay @ about 17.30. We both thought that this stop was a bit of a waste of time as we were unable to explore the town. When we arrived we set up camp & changed in to some warmer cloths, it was freezing with the wind coming off of the sea. Robson had to change some lights on the truck today, as they were slightly damaged. Drew took great pleasure in helping & I think Robson really appreciated the help.
21.9.07: - Today we all opted to leave early from Lamberts Bay so that we could get into Cape Town earlier. Driving into Cape Town was brilliant, we new that tonight we would each be sleeping in a comfy bed & having a nice hot shower. Once we arrived we found our accommodation was not yet ready, therefore we were dropped off @ the Victoria & Albert waterfront for a couple of hours. Here we decided to go & have lunch with a couple of friends. It was really nice just sitting chilling & eating fantastic Seafood @ a place called Quay 4.
Once we were able to get into our accommodation we dumped our bags & headed out to an Internet café to try & arrange our excursion to Hermanus. We succeeded in doing this & you will find out later all about our little trip to the coast.
We went out tonight for our last dinner as a group, we visited a place called Mamma Africa – this had a nice atmosphere but the meals are a bit costly for those on a budget.
22.9.07: - Today we walked to the V & A waterfront about 30 mins walk from the lodge. At every opportunity we kept on looking up @ table mountain as today is our last day we can get to the top. It not look hopeful as the plateau had been covered in cloud all morning. We then decided to see if there were any cancellations for Robson Island, this is where Nelson Mandela was imprisoned & was later turned into a museum in 1994. The tour guides are people who were actually imprisoned on the island. However there were no available tickets today.
As we walked around after our lunch we could se the clouds lifting @ Table Mountain, we thought we should give the cable car a go. So we got a taxi from the waterfront and headed up to only find that the cable car station was closed due to high winds, not our lucky day today!
23.9.07: - Well today we got up @ about 7.30 as we were unsure when our last breakfast was going to start. We ended up heading to the restaurant @ about 8.30. Once everyone was seated we all said a massive thank-you to Manda & Robson, who made the whole trip very memorable & enjoyable. We said our good byes to the rest of the group & exchanged email addresses etc. We then got our things together & headed to Avis car hire to pick our rental. Our car was a Mk 1 Golf & was very spacious & comfortable (cost about 40 pounds).
Thankfully it was early morning so a lot of the maniac drivers are still in bed. So we navigated Cape Town with ease & headed to our 1st port of call Simons Town. As we were driving towards our destination we saw people pulling over looking out to sea. So we decided to follow suit. We stepped out of the car to find that about 50m from the shore a couple of right whales. Our 1st encounter with these great mammals was outstanding & I became very optimistic about our forthcoming trip to Hermanus. After about 30mins & 50 photos later we traveled onto Simons Town to visit the Penguins. Once we arrived we found out that you could not go onto the beech, as it was breeding season. So we walked to a clearing & sat watching the Penguins playing & daring each other to take the first dip in the sea. We left Simons Town @ about midday so we had to drive nonstop to Hermanus to make our booking @ the backpackers for 14.00. The scenery on our way reminded us so much of Scotland & there was even a place called Highlands. Once we found the Backpackers we were pleasantly surprised with our basic double room. We locked our bags away & headed to the Whale Festival, the atmosphere was amazing with everyone watching out to sea for a glimpse of a whale. I must say I was a bit disappointed with the viewing & wanted to head back to Simons Town.
After sitting on the cliff & freezing our butts off we decided to find somewhere to eat, but soon found out everywhere was shutting for the afternoon, so we settled for a beer in a warm seaside bar. Then headed to do some more whale watching.
Come 19.00 we were quite hungry $ headed to a rustic restaurant called “The Fishermans Cottage”. It was lovely, I had a dish called Seafood Poije which is like a fish stew.
24.9.07: - We each had a v good nights sleep as the Hermanous Backpackers is out of the town center so is nice & quiet. We had our breakfast of jam on toast (free) in the communal kitchen & got to know not only the other guests but also the 2 pet dogs & cat, which were happy with all the attention.
After breakfast we then headed to the cliff path for an early morning walk & some whale watching. I was feeling slightly disappointed from the previous day whale watching in Hermanus, but today we saw an abundance of whales. It is so difficult to describe how wonderful it is to watch these mammals in the water. They are massive & come very close towards land, so much so that you can hear them flap there flippers & spray out water from their blow holes, fantastic!
We red that it takes the equivalent of twp days of human energy for a right whale/humpback whale to breach out of the water, so we were not expecting to see much of this. However we were completely surprised when numerous whales around us started breaching. This was a tad bit annoying as we had just put our camera away to have a coffee break. So out came the camera again & we sat in anticipation for the whales to start breaching again. Our dilemma was where to focus the camera, as there were about 20 whales within the vicinity. Anyway out of 200 odd pictures I think we may have a few descent ones!
25.9.07: - We had to get the car back to Avis by 10.00 & we just made it @ 9.50. So we did not have to pay the extra days charge. However we then had 6 hours to kill @ the airport, hilar! The 6 hours went by really quickly with me reading & Drew writing his journal, which I cannot wait to read.
Our flights from Africa to the UK were pretty non-eventful, with us making every connection in time. We even received all our bags @ Heathrow; we were worried they would get left in Jo’burg as many do.
26.9.07: - Arrive @ Heathrow just after 8.00 to find Pat, Mick & Berty waiting for us with a very warm welcome. Once back @ Pat & Mick’s both Drew & I opted to have Sausages for breakfast, you cannot beat British Sausages especially ones made in the New Forest. Today we washed our cloths & then disregarded what we did not need for our onward journey. It was nice catching up with people on the phone & hearing how everyone has been getting on whilst we have been away. My family made long journeys to come & say goodbye for the next 9 months. It was fantastic to hear what they had been up to. A big thank-you for bringing over additional stuff from nanna’s for me.
All of us sat down for spag bol that Pat & Mick made us all, finishing off a perfect evevning.