Leaving Camp Kipwe we only had about 100km or so to do so we took the opportunity to go to Twyfelfontein (doubtful spring) to visit the rock engravings. These were done by the San bushmen (a nomadic people) who frequented the area some 3000 years ago. The pictures consist mainly of animals that we see today - oryx, zebra, ostrich, flamingo, seal etc and the tour took about 45 minutes. We then went a little further to see ‘Burnt Mountain’, a rock formation which is of much darker sandstone than the other hills. And then the ‘organ pipes’ a different type of formation in a dried up river bed. A certain degree of imagination was required!

And then on with our journey on some quite rough at times sand and gravel roads to Palmwag. It was at the lodge here that we were to leave our truck and be ferried to our next camp - Etendeka Mountain Camp. While waiting, we had a snack lunch and a whistle wetter.

Our driver - Bonny - arrived at 3pm loaded our bags and us and started the 18km drive to the camp (which took 1.5 hours!!). Along the way we saw springbok, a giraffe and three ground squirrels. We arrived at the camp which is just that - a collection of tents and a more solid lodge structure in the middle of nowhere. The other 6 guests were out on an afternoon game drive so we settled in. In our tent, we have a double bed, a single light, and next door we have a (long drop flushing) toilet, basin (with hot (solar) and cold water and a bucket shower. The latter works by filling a bucket at the basin, then lowering the shower bucket and filling it and hoisting it up to shower height. It has a tap and shower head - although gravity pressure is not great but it is functional. Just!

We met the other guests for dinner (Jason from Belfast and his wife from Houston and two children who live in Dubai and an Italian couple as well as Dennis the owner and Peter a manager) and chatted over pre dinner drinks. Dinner was whole chicken cooked in foil on the edge of hot wood embers and was the best meal we have had since Windhoek!

In between courses, Dennis took us outside to his (really flash motorised) telescope, gave us a talk pointing out the milky way and various other constellations before letting us view Jupiter + 4 moons and Saturn with rings and 1 moon. Truly breathtaking!

Breakfast was at 7 am and then we bid the other guests farewell - we are on our own tonight - and then went out with Bonny on a 3.5 hour walk. He showed and talked about many of the trees and plants as well as insects that we saw on the way and, over a drink and biscuit stop, talked about Namibia since independence. A very enjoyable morning. This afternoon a game drive.

There, that’s us all caught up and I will try and get enough WiFi to post this later!

ADO & LMA xx