Canoeing and Bushcamping in Namibia

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June 6th

I woke up promptly in the morning and got my things packed away in the truck while the kettle was on and the bread was toasting.

After speaking with the reception of the campsite I had been informed that if we were to get within 20 meters of the Angolan side of the river then we would be forced to go over to that country, and be arrested. “What if we don’t go over to the Angolan side after they call us over?” I asked. “Then you’ll be shot”, she replied. Sooo my decision was made, and my 32nd would have to be South Africa, and not Angola. The receptionist also mentioned how ill-mannered the Angolans are, especially towards Namibians. I don’t know all the ins and outs of the history between the two countries but Angola was one of the latest countries to gain independence in Africa, in 2002. It’s a very difficult country to visit because visas have to be ordered in advance and I think they are pretty costly if I remember correctly.

Luke and I still wanted to get on the river even if it meant we couldn’t go to Angola so we rented a canoe ($100 Namibian Dollars for an hour, or about $14 US). Once we were on the water we tried paddling upstream but the current was pretty fierce and we decided to head downstream. A few Angolan children were on the banks of the river watching us and I was able to ask them in Portuguese how they were enjoying their day. It was around this time that we looked behind us and saw the quarter mile we had gone down river and realized that we would have to turn around soon. Like I previously said, the river was a bit stronger than we expected so we tried going ashore to portage the canoe up river. The moment we got to land there was a huge splash near the canoe and we deduced that a crocodile had been right near us! That was enough evidence for us to muster the energy to paddle back up the river after a short break on the riverbank.

It was a difficult paddle and we actually didn’t make it back to our departure point but about halfway when we found a good spot to get the canoe out of the river and carry it back to the campsite. Luke and I both declared the adventure a great time, even though we didn’t get shot or eaten by a crocodile! Ha ha!

After getting back to the campsite we all got the kitchen and truck arranged and headed for the shopping market in Rundu. I picked up some lunch there and when I left the market I met a group of children that were a bit hungry so I gave them a little money so that they could get some bread and water. I was skeptical that they would buy junk food but they did buy some bread and I was happy. I chatted with them for a while and shared some of clean water with them before offering them some cookies which they all devoured in about 10 seconds. After they were shoo-ed off by the grocery store security, I followed them across the road and talked with them some more. They even let me take some pictures with them which was great! I let a couple of them play photographer and take pictures of me with their brothers and sisters, it was a good laugh showing them pictures of themselves, they absolutely loved it.

So after my twenty minutes with them I jumped back in the truck and we set off towards the Etosha National Park in northern Namibia. We drove for about 5 hours before finding a bush camp to park the truck and get dinner started. Since the was absolutely no light pollution where we were (the middle of no where) it gave us the chance to sleep on top of the truck again. After dinner even of us slept on top of the truck and were hypnotized by the southern constellations that made our ceilings for the night. It was the perfect ending to a great day, and we all enjoyed the view immensely!

Most of us got a good night’s sleep, those who could sleep through my snoring that is. We looked forward to the next day in the African Trails adventure…game driving through Etosha National Park and the prospect of seeing giraffes, zebras, elephants, leopards, lions and hippos.

Hope you like the photos! Until next time, PURA VIDA!

-Brendan

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Comments

[Luke's Nan and grandad]

appreciation
Brendan We got your address from Luke's mum and although I am useless with computers I think I have managed to get the relevant pages. We have had a very enjoyable time reading your daily diary. Thank you Luke's Nan and Grandad