Exploring Africa on motorbike: Wild horses, leopard, desert and the snake

Last five days in Namibia were just amazing. Luderitz surprised as a small town but in a positive way. I met a lot of inspiring people and we had lots of fun together. Good times with Reinhold (businessman), Manfred & Monica (motorbikers, businessmen), Richard (son) & Alex (waitress, Richard’s girlfriend), Sophie (post-doc french researcher living in Africa), Andy (diver, sailor), Rainer (stand up paddle instructor), George (motorbiker, ex banker).

After Luderitz I was heading for Namib desert through Aus. Just 20 kms before Aus I saw beautiful wild horses running around. Also the little ones.

Two hundred kilometers we were driving together with George, the Greek from UK which I met in Luderitz. He is driving his BMW 1200 GS motorbike which he bought in Mexico and drove it through South America for three years and then ship it to South Africa. It’s a big and heavy motorbike, maybe too heavy for Africa. I was driving in front of George as he has very cool maybe greekish style (calma, calma). After enjoying some really scenic legendary D707 gravel road, we turned right to Namtib farm to stay over. Camping there is very beautiful and you are staying right next to all those huge red rocks. The farm was bought in 1982 and run by Walter Theile from Luderitz, now it’s run by his son Thorsten and his wife. I met all of them plus Thorsten’s kids from his first marriage. The kids look very focused and good educated for their age. The girl (17) told me she prefers staying on the farm than in the big city. But it was only school holiday so they both kids have to return back to school to Windhoek, capital of Namibia.

In search of adventure I drove next morning to the gorge for the hike. I met Sonia in her 4x4 vehicle. She is phd student researcher living in a tent below the red rocks next to Namtib farm and studying life of brown and spotted hyenas and their effects on farmers’ lifes for last two years. She knows Sophie the french girl from Luderitz, what a small world. She told me she caught a grown up male leopard in her trap-camera during the night. For me it sounded like a quest. I parked my bike and started a hike through the gorge. Alone, with my camera and a whistle around my neck. Why whistle? It might fright the animal if it approach me too close. First I was very nervous to step on some snake or meet the leopard eye-to-eye. But then I was quite relaxed. Sonya told me that if I meet the leopard the last thing to do is to run. I was hiking for an hour but didn’t spot any leopard. Unfortunally or fortunally? :)

George left with his motorbike in the morning. I left Namtib farm only in the afternoon and met him few hours later on the road to Duwisib castle but somehow he didn’t stop, he explained later why when I met him again at Sossuvlei. I drove to Duwisib Castle, turned back and then another 250 kms on gravel roads in direction to Sesriem. My goal was to visit Sossusvlei and other famous dunes in Namib desert in next day. It was late and I was caught by the night so I stopped and slept over at the village 50 kms before Sesriem. It was village built for workers at Namib Desert lodge. Thank you Simon, Johnny, Ronnie, Belinda, Patience and the rest for having me at your village and kept me safe. It’s always good to meet and to be friends with locals.

Sesriem in Namibia is a tourist place and I put my tent for one night at Namibia Wildlife Resort. I drove 60 kms into the desert, saw famous Dune 45, climbed HiddenVlei dune, walked to DeathVlei lake and climbed to the top of Sossusvlei dune. When climbing to Sossusvlei dune the outside temperature was 38C. I was close to heart attack. But then I saw a 73-year Richard from Switzerland walking in front of me and I simply couldn’t turn back as I am around 30 years younger then him. Btw. Richard's son Andrew told me Richard walked up the Sossusvlei dune already for five times.

Later in the night I was sitting at the table on the sand outside of the restaurant at Sossus Oasis campsite, drinking beer and chating with Cristina and Philipp. Suddenly Philipp rose his voice and said to Cristina to slowly move to my direction. I looked to her and saw a big snake in the sand behind her back, just one meter off her feet. She stayed cool and slowly moved away. It was huge cape cobra, some two meters long, moving directly to our table. There was some panic but the local guys slowly captured the snake, put it in the bag, drove it to the desert and released it. What a night. We celebrated happy ending with jaegermeister and beer till late hours.