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Blogs from Otjiwarongo, Namibia, Africa
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June 8th 2012
The flight from Epupa Falls was a hoot. Our little plane was still waiting for us at the short air strip, where the pilot had left it two days ago when we arrived. There had been no other planes either coming in or going out. This was a short airstrip, so the pilot really gunned the plane to get us off the ground before running into the bush. It was a good thing we had all stripped down to not much more than our photography gear (no big lenses), a change of underwear and a toothbrush. Later we speculated on what would have happened if our group had been two more. The altitude of 8,000 feet for the flight didn't allow for much game spotting, even though we flew right over Etosha Park. The only thing ... read more
July 29th 2011
I woke early this morning, and as I lay in bed ideally wondering what the time was and how long I had before my alarm forced me to rise, my thoughts turned to home. Or, more precisely to my many friends back in the UK that I haven't seen in months, and in a few cases for years. There are so many of you that I wish I could bring out here, and show you my life in the bush, show you my mornings, show you my afternoons, and give you the chance to share some of my adventures first hand. Alas, money and time, or rather the lack thereof generally scuppers such plans, but in their place, I thought it was time (and possibly time overdue) to write here again. The following happened over a ... read more
May 4th 2010
It is 10:30 on Sunday morning, and I've just woken up after three and a half hours sleep. Last night, instead of spending time in my bed, I was huddled in a sleeping bag 15 ft off the ground, overlooking one of the most beautiful water-holes in the area. I've spent much of various nights in the past at the waterhole in Halali camp, Etosha National park, but this was my first full dusk till dawn session, and to be honest, although the variety of game we have is much less, I enjoyed it far more. Around 5pm on Saturday night, while most people were looking forward to dinner, undoubtedly followed by a few drinks, I drove into the centre in our violently converted open bakkie and picked up my companion for the night. Although ... read more
December 31st 2009
I have shown numerous people the decaying remains of a broken signpost with the words "Wilderness Camp" enscribed upon them. A few I have driven a little way along the road it used to mark, but no one to my knowledge has been to the end of that road for years. Once I'd explored every other corner of the farm however, I became determined to see the mysterious campsite for myself. --- Almost a year ago today I tried driving along the poorest condition road on our property in an attempt to reach the abandoned Wilderness Campsite at it's end. I had no idea when I started just how bad the road would get, and the first kilometre and a half definitely gave me a false sense of security, since while narrow and with acacia bushes ... read more
January 4th 2009
After a brief sojourn in the UK, I returned to a Namibia far different than the one I’d left scant weeks before. The mild winter sun was gone and temperatures had risen into the mid thirties. Stepping from the shade to the sun now resembled a close approach to a blast furnace or blazing bonfire. It is no wonder nearby Zambia refers to October as “Suicide Month”! There isn’t really an equivalent to the season of spring here, nor is summer quite what a European would expect. As winter draws to a close, the temperatures get steadily hotter and hotter, and then, abruptly, the rains come. For weeks on end, (joyous weeks for anyone in a desert country like this), we had intense rain storms virtually every afternoon or evening. The mornings dawned hot, the afternoons ... read more
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May 29th 2008
Volunteer Work for the Cheetah Conservation Fund Namibia Arrived 11 May 2008. The journey was fine and dandy. No real hiccups. On the flight between Johannesburg and Windhoek all that could be seen as far as the eye could see when coming in to land was brown, brown, brown. Windhoek Hosea Kutako Airport is on the Trans Kalahari Highway (how evocative is that!?). A worker from the Cheetah Conservation Fund was there to meet me and we picked up a few more volunteers from Windhoek. The Cheetah Conservation Fund is about 40 km east of Otjiwarongo and it took a few hours to drive there from Windhoek. The rondavels where we were to stay were fine and home for the next two weeks; I shared one with a young lad, a graduate zoologist, from Jersey in ... read more
