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NEW HUES AND POSITIVE ENERGY CUES As I head northwest, the landscape’s colour palette changes from hues of bright green to a soft red. Travelling along gravel backroads the view astounds, more often than not. The mighty Brandberg, Namibia’s tallest mountain, comes slowly into view. I pass roadside craft markets and small stalls where locals sell their wares and wonder how they make a living out here in the middle of what seems an awful lot like nowhere. As I pass over the Ugab River my eyes wander hopefully. This is a popular haunt of desert-adapted elephant, but they must be further up or downstream right now. Just north of the Palmwag veterinary gate a vehicle and guides await my arrival. Soon we are bobbing along the trail across the rugged terrain that will take us to my destination. The rust-coloured rocky landscape is dotted with green - Euphorbia Damarana. Food to some, poison to others. The dark, cloudy skies make it all seem somewhat ethereal. Until the sun's mighty rays slip through the cracks and ignite the red magma rocks. Lying almost unseen amidst this beautiful landscape is the stunning Etendeka Mountain Camp. I almost immediately set off on another adventure. Following Boas along narrow game tracks we explore the area around the lodge on foot. Lion tracks, scorpions, Hartmann’s mountain zebra, springbok and giraffe ensure an interesting
excursion. I’m also introduced to a Kaokoveld Namib Day Gecko, a species I have never had the pleasure of meeting before. Boas assures me that he is a special little endemic creature and I treasure the moment. A hike up a hilltop reveals a magnificent vista. Our 360-degree view of the rough land is awe-inspiring. Here we sit and watch the sun descend beyond the skyline, sipping an ice-cold Windhoek Lager, camera shutter snapping away. One last stop takes us up a mountainside at sunrise. Atop this escarpment the earth begins to flicker with exciting new colours and textures. The red and brown template of the surroundings is interrupted by bright white and green crystals glistening in the early morning sun. Our “crystal walk” explores these different geological marvels, and according to Boas who has hosted a number of crystal fundies, we are absorbing fields of wonderful positive energy from this prolific mineral earth.
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FROM RED ROCK VALLEY TO GREAT WHITE PLACE My route turned eastward once more as I made my way from Palmwag up the Grootberg Pass. Somewhere between the summit of the pass and Kamanjab stands my colleague Rièth’s favourite tree. And no, not just her favourite type of tree, literally her favourite tree. A Sterculia Quinqueloba, or Largeleaved Sterculia. Having passed by it a few times before and never catching the right “golden hour” light we have previously
The Brandberg, Namibia's tallest mountain
Visit the Enethe Craft Centre on the southern bank of the Ugab River along the D2319.
Boas admires the Damaraland vista from a
hilltop overlooking Etendeka Mountain Camp.
Euphorbia virosa
TRAVEL NEWS NAMIBIA AUTUMN 2017
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