Day 1 - part 1(pictures in this episode can be viewed at better resolution here:
https://flic.kr/s/aHskyFq9p9)
The plan for the day was to make it up to Palmwag through some of the best scenery Damaraland has to offer north of Brandberg, including section of game rich Ugab river, Land Cruiser hill and tracks running past Doros crater and near Valley of Desolation:
The day before we settled into the Brandberg Rest Camp, off-loaded the bikes and packed up all the gear we will need for the next 12 days. Basil, the owner if the Rest Camp and avid biker, gave us advice about some of the routes we were planning to ride and we had the first dinner together.
In the morning we parked our cars in the Rest Camp carports, had breakfast, geared up and set-off. Bertie was very quiet so I checked what’s up and he admitted to being anxious about the riverbeds and sand we were going to hit soon. He is perfectly capable in dirt, but refuses to stand at any cost which can become a problem in the long sections of deep sand.
I probably didn’t help much, informing them the night before that we are going to hit the most dangerous part of the whole trip - section of 10 - 15 km of Ugab river - straight away. Ugab north of Brandberg mountain can be quite dodgy as it is overgrown with dense vegetation and there are plenty of dangerous crickets living there, including the elephants and lions. Last time I tried to ride there I ended up abandoning bike in the middle of the riverbed and beating Usain Bolt’s best times up a rocky outcrop. In Sidi Crossfires.
So there was a good reason for concern and I pondered for a bit the chicken route running across a dune field away from the river. But I decided to stick with the plan for few reasons. First of all, Basil told us that elephants have moved upriver and are not in the area. Second, we were on lightweight 500s that are joy to ride in sand even sitting and agile enough (unlike Tenere above) to turn around in a hurry should be bump into grumpy elly. I would be the scout through the area and told the other two to stay way behind should I run into trouble.
With that little encouragement we set-off from Uis heading 30 km or so on the dirt highways to the White Lady Campsite, where we hit the Ugab river.
Soon enough we reached the dodgy narrow section of the river and as you can see yourself from the tracks, straightaway found out that Basils intel was outdated. There was plenty of fresh elephant spoor. And the place was greener than I have ever seen it (this will be common theme throughout the whole trip) so visibility was very limited. We proceeded with caution giving whatever was lurking out there enough time to move away.
Soon enough we came upon long flooded section running through dense reefs. I went to check it out while the other two waited behind and it got deep very quickly. Not keen to drown bike in this jungle where one can feel the eyes watching his back, we found an alternative tracks heading north away from the river. This detour brought us back to the river further downstream where the river was wider and water less.
I am a big believer in natural order of the things. While I was supposedly the leader of the group as I was there before and planned the route, by now it became pretty clear that Justin was by far the fastest one of the bunch and keen to ride fast not that bothered by the scenery. I on the other hand was the slowest, because I was stopping frequently for the pics. Justin had GPS and the tracks (I insisted that everybody must have GPS and the routes I have sent, so that if we split either by accident or by decision, each of us can find our way out), which is perfect for this kind of scenario so I send him ahead, with Bertie (who is not keen GPS user and thought he forgotten his at home - he found it few days back at the bottom of his day pack) riding between us. We have more or less stuck to this riding order for the rest of the trip, allowing each of us to enjoy the aspects of the trip each of us liked the most.
The track I plotted run unbeknownst to me away from the river on the Brandberg side. I haven’t been there yet so I wasn’t complaining and enjoyed the scenery only this part of Namibia can offer.
At one point I caught up with Bertie who had a little mishap, being helped back to his feet by an Austrian guy in 4x4 whom I have met 3 months ago in Kasane, Botswana. He was very envious of my 500 in Kasane, and doubly so here (he used to work in KTM and as a bike guide in Alps). Small world.
We eventually reconnected to the river, at the point where we were going split from the river heading north up a T4A ‘Not Recommended’ track that will bring us up to the ‘Land Cruiser Hill’ sitting at the top of a dunefield.
Track up to Land Cruiser Hill - not recommended by T4A, as far as I'm concerned - HIGHLY RECOMMENDED:
We have made it to the top of the dunefield and took a short break, before pushing onto the sandy plain ahead.
Location, location... would pay good money for this one:
Brandberg - highest mountain of Namibia delineating southern boundary of Damaraland (I think):
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