Blogs from Spitzkoppe, Namibia, Africa
August 18th 2011
M – To date our camps have been pretty cozy affairs with toilet blocks and showers and hot running water etc. It all changed at Spitzkoppe. The local camp site there is run by the locals with the money going to the villagers. Once inside the camp you are virtually left to your own devices. We like to put money back into the local economy whenever possible so we headed into the bush to find the site. Unfortunately we arrived a little late in the day (a lesson learned). Although we were just in time to catch a great sunset we were not early enough to bag one of the better pitches amongst the sandstone rocks. After about 30 minutes riding round and round the rocks looking for something we settled on what looked to be ... read more
October 18th 2010
Cheetah Farm to Spitzkoppe, Namibia Another early morning, we are getting used to a wake up at 5:45, tents down & packed, breakfast at 6:30, and on the road by 7:00. The sun rose as we ate. We are also getting used to constant sun and lots of daytime heat. Love that vitamin D! This was a long driving day on very bumpy gravel roads. Anyone thinking of doing an overland trip must have a strong constitution - no back problems. One member of our group pulled a hamstring lifting the 'eske' (ice-filled cooler) down from the truck early on in the trip, and he has suffered especially on the bumpy roads. A smooth Greyline coach, this is not. Kayla decides she needs her little down pillow underneath and a rolled up sweater behind her back. ... read more
February 8th 2010
Spitzkoppe url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/whereissteve/5178696604/" title="Spitzkoppe by WhereIsSteve, on Flickr"img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4107/5178696604_2899843019.jpg" width="496" height="337" alt="Spitzkoppe" align=right / Monday 8th February On the Monday afternoon we head out of Swakopmund and head north towards our next major destination, Etosha Game Reserve. Quite a few people are looking the worse for wear as we have a number of adventure sports injuries and bad stomachs. Spitzkoppe is a suitable stopping point along the way. url="http://www.flickr.com/photos/whereissteve/5175740467/" title="Bush Camp at Spitzkoppe by WhereIsSteve, on Flickr"img src="http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4090/5175740467_497cb220a0.jpg" width="447" height="328" alt="Bush Camp at Spitzkoppe" align=left / ... read more
August 11th 2009
We were lucky enough to camp in Spitzkoppe. I hope the pictures can give you a glimpes of the natural beauty here. We arrived around 3pm and we rushed to climb the gigantic rocks before sunset. A small group of us treked up the mountain of rocks and had a fun time goofing off. After sundown, we had a big bonfire under the night sky full of stars. It's so amazing to look up and see every single dusting of stars and the Milky Way. In Africa, seeing the Milky Way is now normal for me. I'll never see this back home, that's for sure. During the bonfire, one girl on the trip played her guitar and sang. She has a beautiful, soothing voice. It was a very calming night. I was sad to leave this ... read more
August 8th 2009
From Cheetah Park our next destination was quote, “The best campsite ever!” On the way there none of wanted to go for a couple of reasons: 1) we thought it was just another night of bush camping and 2) we had to leave Cheetah Park. The drive there was through a long bumpy road in a bunch of desert with small Acacia trees every where, which means thorns in the feet! I really thought I am going to hate this place. At one point Benny, our driver, pulled over and he pointed out where we would be camping and in the distance we could see some hilly mountains in the middle of no where. When we pulled up the area was so beautiful. It looks like a mountain climbers dream. The mountains are tall, with faces ... read more
Climbers Paradies - Spitzkoppe, Erongo, Swakopmund
Published: June 10th 2009Africa » Namibia » Spitzkoppe
June 10th 2009
Nach 7 Tagen durch die Namib haben wir uns, unsere Klamotten und v.a. unseren Volksie erst einmal in Swakopmund entstaubt. Tonnenweise viel der Staub von uns ab. Naja, die Lunge muss so durchhalten aber den Rachen haben wir nach der langen alkoholfreien Campingzeit (jaja, wir waren ganz eisern) mit kuehlem Bier entstaubt. Dann zogen wir weiter an meinen Lieblingscampingplatz an der Spitzkoppe. Wir schlugen unser Zelt auf der wunderschoenen kleinen Aussichtsplattform auf und wanderten durch die Steinwelt. Beim Anblick der Felsen juckte es uns gewaltig in den Fingern. Aber das Kletterzeug liegt in irgendwelchen Kisten in der Schweiz. So genossen wir einfach die Landschaft nur zu Fuss. Dabei lernten wir Achim und Andrea aus Deutschland kennen, die mit ihrem gruennen LKW fuer 2 Jahre durch Afrika fahren. Wir hatten einen wunderschoenen Abend bei Rotwein am Lagerfeuer ... read more
Spitzkoppe Slabs, Schneitzel and the Spirit World
Published: February 25th 2009Africa » Namibia » Spitzkoppe
February 25th 2009
Feb. 24, 2009, Spitzkoppe, Namibia I sliced my knife through the crispy exterior. It cracked and then crackled back at me. I dug my fork in, lifted it to my mouth and tasted a small bit. It was the best tasting Eisbein I’ve ever had. In fact, it was the only Eisbein I’ve ever had. Eisbein, as you might imagine by the sound of it, is not traditional Nambian food. It’s grilled pork knuckle, a German dish. My meal, Sarah’s schneitzel and the restaurant we were eating at were a testament to the colonization of this part of Namibia by the Germans more than a century ago. We nibbled on the sauerkraut side dish and then took a slug of weisbier, a German wheat beer. We barely finished our dishes, but had just enough room for ... read more
August 10th 2008
Spitzkoppe in Namibia Spitzkoppe in Namibia is one of my favourite places in the world. Unfortunately due to time constraints we could stay for only 1 night so we could not completely relax. Nevertheless it is as far from civilization as you want to be with no running water, no electricity, no bathrooms, but with plenty fresh air. We camped at campsites 1 and 2. The place is managed by the local community, but unfortunately not well. We could not get the campsites we requested because they were booked and when we arrived there was a double booking on the one they gave us. We later found that the one we requested was open!! The long-drop (pit latrine) was filthy. Thanks to Aunt Frankie who took it onto her to scrub it and to Mark who ... read more
July 6th 2007
Happy July 4th to everyone!! I definitely was thinking about all of you this week and missing the shore, fireworks, bar-b-q's and other patriotic things that we do back there. It was funny, when I was writing the date on the blackboard at school, and I wrote 4th of July, and asked if anyone knew why this date was important to me, no-one knew and I was actually surprised by that since they know everything else about American life...our politics, our music, our celebrities...but not our Independence Day...anyway.... So, 2 weekends ago, I decided to go on a self-prescribed field trip with my 2 buddies. I've already told you all about Anna...my 13 year old side-kick who I just adore. The other one is a 16 year old boy named Gregory, who lives at my ... read more
