The Namib Desert, Angola Pt. 2

We continue moving through the Namib Desert, the landscape always changing. At times it’s sandy and barren, and then other times rocky with the odd tree.

namib desert angola jeep rocks 720x480

Another campsite in the desert

namib desert angola 720x480

Morning walks to high vantage points

As we drive deeper into the heart of the desert we encounter more and more local tribespeople, who I think are the Mukawana tribe. All are extremely friendly, though speak little to no Portuguese and don’t understand any of my Spanish. One man in particular takes an interest in us and pays a visit one morning in camp. He brings his 13 year old daughter who he is very proud to introduce, and we “talk” with hand signals and smiles.

namib mukawana man and daughter 320x480

Friendly man and his daughter

namib jeep dry river 720x480

Lots of dry river crossings. I have no idea how bad they could get…

When I offer a cup of coffee he is extremely happy, though he immediately spits it out after tasting it. Apparently he has no concern about offending me!

Finally I figure out it is sugar he needs, and after adding many heaping spoons he is much happier, and grins madly while drinking coffee with us. I love his flip-flops, made out of an old car tire and he is very happy to pose for a photo of them.

car tire flip flop 720x480

I need to get a pair!

namib desert hut 720x480

A hut made by locals

Later in a small village we meet an entire family who again welcome us though we share no common language.

namib mukawana family 720x480

A local family

namib track mountains 320x480

Tracks lead out of the desert into mountains!

jeep titan transfer 720x480

Transferring 13 gallons from the Titan into the main tank. Extra 5 transferred long ago.

The days are scorching hot, and the nights beautifully cold. I could stay out here a long time.

namib desert stars jeep 320x480

I am happy to see the Southern Cross and Milky Way again!

namib desert star trail 320x480

The stars here are everything I imagine

-Dan

5 Responses

  1. Terry says:

    Dan-
    This has been the best part so far! Thanks for sharing.
    -Terry

  2. Steve says:

    Dan,
    Absolutely amazing! How is the Jeep holding up, and what is the current mileage?

    -Steve

    • Dan Grec says:

      Hey Steve,

      It’s holding up great, no problems to report! Looking forward to a round of maintenance in Namibia when I eventually get there.

      Mileage is a touch over 100k miles.

      -Dan

  3. Wolfgang Wüst says:

    Dan, when transferring fuel from the aux tank, do you use some sort of pump?

    Thanks, very much enjoying your blog,
    Wolfgang

Leave a Reply to Terry Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <s> <strike> <strong>