DAMARALAND IN A SERIES1

In 2015, Jacques Nortier and I traversed Namibia on motorcycles - from the Orange River in the south, to the Kunene River in the north. When going through Damaraland, I felt as if something was grabbing at me and telling me to slow down. Because time was limited, I vowed to come back someday, and experience the place at a more leisurely pace.

Four years later, in January 2019, Ben van der Merwe and I towed my 1954 Land Rover Series 1 short-wheelbase from Pretoria to Windhoek. We wanted to explore Damaraland, and the plan was based on the “keep it simple, stupid” principle. Basically, we would unhook the Landy in Windhoek, and travel north to Damaraland. The planned route was equally simple: we’d go north to Etosha, west to the Skeleton Coast, south to Swakopmund and east back to Windhoek. We had no detailed itinerary. We would see where we got to every day, set up camp, and then consider what to do the next day. Our only definite plan was to stay off tarred roads and out of official campsites as much as we could. ‘Off tarred roads’ was because the Landy is not the fastest, and I don’t like being overtaken by trucks. ‘Out of official campsites’ was because we wanted to avoid people, and our wallets were a bit thin after the Christmas holidays.

I did some desktop research on Damaraland prior to the trip, and realised that this region was not in Namibia’s mainstream tourist destinations. However, its untamed, rugged beauty offers the adventurous traveller a remarkable and challenging experience. (See sidebar, FACT FINDER). It was also clear that we were about to explore a unique wilderness area, and that we should do so in the most sensitive way possible.

I needed to