WINDHOEK TO HENTIES BAY
WE DID NOT LEAVE WINDHOEK VERY EARLY BUT DECIDED TO RATHER GET TO HENTIES BAY TO ALLOW US TO REST UP BEFORE THE BOEREMUSIEK ACTIVITIES AND TO SEE A LITTLE MORE OF THE AREA NEAR HENTIES BAY. I AGAIN DID NOT TAKE MANY PHOTOS APART FROM A FEW FROM THE CAR BUT I WILL ADD SOME PHOTOS THAT I SNAGGED FROM GOOGLE TO GIVE A BETTER IDEA OF THE LANDSCAPE AND SOME PLACES OF INTEREST.
ON THE WAY TO HENTIES BAY WE TRAVELED ON THE TRANS KALAHARI HIGHWAY. THIS ROAD WAS BUILT TO CONNECT THE WEST COAST ON THE ATLANTIC OCEAN (IN NAMIBIA) WITH THE INDIAN OCEAN IN MOZAMBIQUE ON THE EAST COAST OF AFRICA. THE ROAD GOES FROM NAMIBIA THROUGH BOTSWANA AND SOUTH AFRICA (N4 HIGHWAY) BEFORE ENDING IN MAPUTO IN MOZAMBIQUE.
WINDHOEK IS LOCATED IN CENTRAL NAMIBIA IN THE KHOMAS HIGHLAND PLATEAU AREA, AT AROUND 1,700 METRES (5,600 FT) ABOVE SEA LEVEL. AS CAN BE SEEN ON THE MAP THE CITY IS SURROUNDED BY MOUNTAINS THAT MAKES EXPANSION DIFFICULT AND EXPENSIVE.
THE POPULATION OF WINDHOEK IN 2011 WAS 322,500 AND GROWS CONTINUALLY DUE TO AN INFLUX FROM ALL OVER NAMIBIA. ACCORDING TO WIKIPEDIA NAMIBIA IS THE SECOND-MOST SPARSELY POPULATED COUNTRY IN THE WORLD AFTER MONGOLIA BUT THE POPULATION IS INCREASING RAPIDLY AS IS THE CASE ELSEWHERE IN AFRICA.
THE TOWNS THAT WE PASSED WAS SMALL WITH ONLY A FEW SHOPS AND THE MOST BASIC ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDINGS AND A TRAIN STATION. THE RAILWAY LINE WAS SEEN NEXT TO THE HIGHWAY ALMOST ALL THE WAY TO SWAKOPMUND. IT WAS A PITY THAT WE DID NOT HAVE TIME TO STOP AT SOME OF THESE TOWNS TO TAKE PHOTOS AND ENJOY THE NICE OLD BUILDINGS.
ONE OF THE TOWNS WE PASSED WAS USAKOS. ALL OF THE TOWNS HAD NICE WELCOME / GOODBYE SIGNS.
ANNOYING HOWEVER WAS THE ROAD BLOCKS AT ALMOST EVERY LITTLE TOWN. THE POLICE OFFICERS NOT ALWAYS BEING THE FRIENDLIEST ONE COULD FIND BUT WE MANANGED TO PASS WITHOUT TROUBLE. HOWEVER, AFTER A WHILE YOU GET USED TO THAT AND KEEP THE PASSPORTS AND DRIVIER'S LICENCE CLOSE AT HAND.
ON THE WAY TO SWAKOPMUND WE PASSED THE SPITZKOPPE ("POINTED HILL") BUT DID NOT AT THE TIME KNEW WHAT WONDERS WERE TO BE SEEN HERE AND LIKE MANY OTHER TRAVELERS WE SPED BY. IT WAS ONLY AFTER OUR RETURN THAT I LEARNT MORE ABOUT THE SPITZKOPPE. ON THE RETURN JOURNEY WE PASST VERY CLOSE TO THEM BUT IT WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT AND WE COULD ONLY VAGUELY SEE THEIR OUTLINES.
THE SPITZKOPPE IS DESCRIBED AS:
ONE OF NAMIBIA’S MOST RECOGNIZABLE LANDMARKS, THE SPITZKOPPE, OR ‘POINTED HILL’, RISES SOME 700 M ABOVE THE SURROUNDING PLAIN AND IS 1784-M ABOVE SEA LEVEL. THE MOUNTAIN’S DISTINCTIVE SHAPE HAS GIVEN RISE TO ITS NICKNAME AS THE MATTERHORN OF NAMIBIA. THE MAIN PEAK, OR GROSS SPITZKOPPE, IS ONE OF THREE MOUNTAINS IN THE AREA, THE OTHERS BEING THE KLEIN SPITZKOPPE AT 1572 M AND THE DOME-SHAPED PONDOK MOUNTAIN.
GEOLOGICALLY, THESE THREE MOUNTAINS ARE GROUPED WITH THE BRANDBERG RANGE TO THE NORTH; ALL ARE ANCIENT VOLCANOES. THE VIOLENT BREAK UP OF GONDWANALAND 500-750 MILLION YEARS AGO CAUSED EXPLOSIVE ACTIVITY THROUGH THESE VOLCANOES; THEIR GRANITE CORES HAVE BEEN EXPOSED BY MILLIONS OF YEARS OF EROSION, CREATING THE INSELBERGS OR ‘ISLAND MOUNTAINS’ THAT WE SEE TODAY.
THERE ARE ALSO BUSHMAN (SAN) PAINTINGS – THE BEST KNOWN ARE FOUND AT BUSHMAN’S PARADISE. UNFORTUNATELY MANY OF THE BUSHMAN PAINTINGS ARE VANDALIZED.
YOU CAN SEE MANY MORE FANTASTIC PHOTOS AND READ MORE BY JUST GOOGLING "SPITZKOPPE"
THE PANORAMA ABOVE SHOWS OUR FIRST REAL VIEW OF THE DESERT AND THE MOUNTAINS NEAR HENTIES BAY. AT FIRST I COULD NOT MAKE OUT WHAT THE LIGHTER PARTS ON THE MOUNTAIN SLOPES WERE BUT LATER ON SAW THAT IT WAS IN FACT SAND DUNES. LATER ON I BECAME USED TO IT THAT THERE WOULD EITHER BE MIRAGES OR FOG MAKING PHOTOS LOOK SOMEWHAT LESS COLORFUL AND ALMOST BLURRY.
WE ARRIVED IN HENTIES BAY AT ABOUT 16.30. WE HAD TO WHILE AWAY SOME TIME WAITING TO GET THE KEYS OF THE HOUSE WHERE WE WERE TO STAY FROM ONE OF THE BOEREMUSIC CLUB MEMBERS.
SOME PROBLEMS AROSE ABOUT THE KEYS SINCE THE WOMAN THAT HAD THE KEYS WAS IN WALVIS BAY AND WE HAD TO WAIT FOR SOMEONE TO BRING THE KEYS. WE WAITED WITH ANOTHER FRIEND FROM THE CLUB TILL THE KEYS EVENTUALLY ARRIVED AT ABOUT 9 PM. WHILE AT THAT HOUSE I TOOK A FEW PICS OF THE PLANTS IN THE GARDEN. IN HENTIES BAY ONE SEE VERY LITTLE PLANTS IN THE GARDENS EXCEPT AT THE HOUSES WHERE THE LOCALS LIVE SINCE MOST HOUSES ARE OWNED AS HOLIDAY HOMES AND WATER FOR GARDENING IS LIMITED.
AT LAST WE WERE SETTLED INTO A VERY NICE LARGE, NEWLY BUILT, MODERN HOUSE WITH ALL THAT WE WOULD NEED DURING OUR STAY. SO WE WERE OFF TO BED LOOKING FORWARD TO EXPLORE OUR SURROUNDINGS THE NEXT DAY.
ENJOY THE SLIDE SHOW...
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