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Namibia

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Of all the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, Namibia is arguably the most comprehensively tourist-friendly. Not only does it have exceptional wildlife, (including a quarter of the world’s cheetahs and the last free-ranging population of black rhino), and a well-developed network of parks, reserves and safari lodges, but the landscapes of its coastline and deserts are some of the most photographed in the world, meriting a visit in their own right. Traditional culture remains strong in Namibia despite successive colonial occupations by Germany and then South Africa. (Namibia gained independence from the latter in 1990.) For many visitors, meeting the Himba people in the far north-west, or the San (formerly Bushmen) of the Kalahari, is an enriching and humbling experience. This Gallery of photos illustrates Silkbush Managing Director, Dave Jefferson, and his wife Catherine's, latest excursion from Silkbush Mountain Vineyards in 2014.

Namibia, twice the size of California, has 2.1 million people. Of those, 100,000 are Caucasians of German & Afrikaner decent, 50,000 are “Coloureds,” of mixed Caucasian and Tribal descent, and the rest consist of eleven major ethnic tribes. The principal tribes are Damara, Herero, Himba, Kavango, Nama, Owambo, San & Tswana. Much of Africa was colonized (in order) by the Portuguese, Dutch, French and Belgians, then followed by the English. Germans were late-comers taking over the areas comprising Namibia and Tanganyika (today's Tanzania). 1884- Tribal lands become “German South-West Africa”. 1915- WWI Germany loses Namibia; League of Nations mandates the Union of South Africa to administer the territory. 1946- League of Nations becomes United Nations and wanted control. South Africa objects...legal argument ensues for twenty years! 1966- the UN General Assembly decides to rescind the original mandate, making control of Namibia the responsibility of the U.N. 1991- Namibia gains independence, after much violent political struggle.

The Namid Desert comprises 1/5th of country's area, approximately 62 miles wide and 1000 miles long, from the ocean to the Great Escarpment. Windhoek (Altitude 5436, 155’ higher than a mile), the geographic center of the country, is a semi-arid mountainous plateau, situated within the Great Escarpment. Southern Namibia has the dramatic Fish River Canyon area. The Caprivi Strip gives Namibia access to the Zambezi River for commerce, however rapids and Victoria Falls make this treacherous. The Highlands, Northern Namibia, includes Kaokoland, Damaraland, and Etoshia National Park.

It is said that “Namibia is rich in low grade deposits, and low in rich grade deposits”. Namibia's Economy: Mining ( 8-19% GDP) -Diamonds (owned 50-50 by Namibian Government and DeBeers- 5th largest in the world) -Uranium, Zinc, Copper, Lead Copper Silver, Gold, Tin, Cadmium, Vanadium, Tungsten, Germanium Tourism (7-8% GDP) -World’s 4th fastest growing tourist destination -900,000 visitors annually Fishing (4-7.5% GDP) -Benguela Current- nutrient rich water though very productive- low in species. -White Fish- Kingklip, Hake, Sole, Monk, Snoek along the continental shelf -Pelagic - pilchard, horse mackerel (in more shallow water)

Catherine and Dave spent three weeks in Namibia, had a great vacation, and will return and recommend it to others for their exceptional experience. That understood, Namibia has major social problems whose roots extend back over 100 years. “When the missionaries came to Africa they had the Bible and we had the land. They said 'Let us pray.' We closed our eyes. When we opened them we had the Bible and they had the land”. -Desmond Tutu In Namibia, 35% of the people live below the poverty line; over 50% live on $2.00 per day.

Namib-Naukluft Park is the fourth largest park in the world. There are four sections in the park: Sossusvlei and Sesriem, Naukluft, the Namib section, and Sandwich Harbor.

Namid Naukluft Veldt (or Veld) is a term used to refer to certain wide open rural spaces of Southern Africa. The Namib Desert is the world's oldest desert and has been in existence for some 43 million years, remaining unchanged in its present form for the last 2 million years. The Namib is an immense expanse of relentlessly moving gravel plains and dunes of all shapes and sizes that stretch along the entire coastline. The most widespread and dominant type of desert sand dunes are linear dunes, with crescent shaped dunes common along the coast and clusters of star dunes, such as the towering horseshoe of dunes at Sossusvlei, found in the eastern reaches of the sand sea. Namib-Naukluft Park is one of the world's largest national parks, which merges the Namid Desert Park with the Naukluft Mountain Zebra Park. It is 23 thousand sq. kilometers of arid and semi-arid land. The gigantic cumulus clouds each day filled the seemingly endless sky with as much beauty as the imposing igneous mountains.

The southern Naukluft mountains form the eastern Namib-Naukluft National Park. The northern mountains are occupied by privately held farms. The mountain range is full of Leopards, Mountain Zebras, and many small streams and waterfalls.

The Limestone and Dolomite deposits comprise the bulk of the Naukluft, a mountain range in the Southern part of the Namibian Escarpment.

The Kobas Tree (Cyphostemma Currorii) is found growing on dry rocky hill slopes, where it survives because it stores much moisture in its thick, smooth trunk.

On the right see the beautiful "Quiver Tree". The Quiver Tree, also known as Aloe Dichotoma or Kokerboom, is a species of aloe indigenous to Southern Africa. Known as "Choje" to the indigenous San people, the quiver tree gets its name from their practice of hollowing out the tubular branches to form Quivers for their arrows.

The “Phantom Tree” (Moringa ovalifolia) is an upside-down kind of tree that grows mostly on rocky hillsides in the highland plateau and escarpment.

This is Dave and Catherine's guide, Amos, explaining desert creatures.

Namibia is made up of desert and most areas receive little rain so it is suitable for tourists to visit at any time. April and May are warm and clear, June to August can be cold at night, and September and October are good for game-viewing as the vegetation has thinned out, and animals gather at water holes. The rainy season runs from November to March. Roads are wide, as you can see from this picture, and easily drivable. Most roads in Namibia are not "tar roads," or what we call paved. They are dusty, wide, gravel expanses. Big yellow road graders keep the roads in beautiful condition (for gravel roads!).

Four kilometers south from the little town of Sesriem lies the area’s only permanent water source. Sesriem Canyon is a 1 km long depression that was carved by erosion. Steep walls of 30-40 meters hug the ephemeral Tsauchab River that flows all the way to Sossusvlei after hard rains. For early settlers, the upper reaches of the canyon were the only reliable water source. Sesriem means “six straps” in Afrikaans as the settlers had to tie together six straps (likely ox cart reins) to haul the water out of the canyon.

Sesriem Canyon, Ses Riems, or Six Straps- The early Afrikaners that came to this area would use six lengths of leather to lower a bucket into the canyon to retrieve water.

15-18 million years ago the Tsauchab River cut a gorge during a significantly wetter period of the Namib’s history. The canyon itself was created by continental shelf upheaval 2-4 million years ago.

Catherine loves trees, plants, and rocks; she also knows a great deal about them all, having been a good student in past years. So for her Namibia was a superb field trip, no matter where we journeyed.

Sossuvlei Lodge is just outside the entrance to the National Park. A visit typically entails a pre-dawn drive into the valley, flanked by enormous truncated dunes, followed by a walk around Sossusvlei itself. Going into the mysterious Dead Vlei and climbing up one of the largest dunes is not an isolated desert experience, but still mighty impressive.

95% of the Namibian people are from different tribes. This fountain art showcases two Bushmen hunting with their poison darts.

Namibia is abundant in fabulous artisans and their arts.

Sociable Weaver's Nest Sociable weavers construct permanent nests on trees and other tall objects. These nests are the largest built by any bird, and are large enough to house over a hundred pairs of birds containing several generations at a time. The nests are highly structured and provide birds with a more advantageous temperature relative to the outside. The central chambers retain heat and are used for nighttime roosting.

Sossusvlei is a salt and clay pan surrounded by high red dunes, located in the southern part of the Namib Desert, within the Namib-Naukluft National Park. The name "Sossusvlei" is often used in an extended meaning to refer to the surrounding area (including other neighboring vleis such as Deadvlei and other high dunes), which is one of the major visitor attractions in Namibia. The name "Sossusvlei" is of mixed origin and roughly means "dead-end marsh". "Vlei" is the Afrikaans word for "marsh", while "sossus" is Nama for "no return" or "dead end". Sossusvlei owes this name to the fact that it is a drainage basin without outflows for the Tsauchab River.

One way of seeing Sossusvlei is by hot air balloon. There are a number of attractions around Sossusvlei for visitors to explore, including Sesriem Canyon, Dune 45, Hiddenvlei, Big Daddy and Deadvlei. The interesting landscape makes this area one of the most photographed in the world.

As the earlier sign said, if you want to go all the way to Sossusvlei, you need a 4 x 4. And if you want to have a truly meaningful experience, you need a good guide.

Desert Spider

Side-winding Adder Tracks

Beautiful Sand Dune

Dune 45 is a traditional but very exhausting climb for tourists. It is not as strenuous as the climb up Big Daddy.

Dune 45 is so called because it lies 45 km past Sesriem on the road to Sossusvlei. It is also known as "the most photographed dune in the world" because of its unusually simple and fascinating shape, and its proximity to the road making it convenient for visitors to stop by and take pictures. It is 80 meters high and it is not very steep, so that it can easily be climbed.

The Sossusvlei area is characterized by high sand dunes of vivid pink-to-orange color, a consequence of a high percentage of iron in the sand and consequent oxidation processes. The oldest dunes are those of a more intense reddish color. These dunes are among the highest in the world; many of them are above 200 meters, the highest being the one nicknamed Big Daddy, about 380 meters high.

Big Daddy Dune overlooks the Dead Vlei. You can run down the dune directly into it. When the Tsauchab River flooded, the silt flooded this little valley in the dunes, engulfing the trees and the heat pounded that silt into hard clay.

Amos Leading Group Up The Big Daddy Dune... It was quite a hike to say the least.

Here is another view of the Big Daddy Dune, said to be the tallest in the world (but there is some competition, naturally, for that title). It is 383 meters (nearly a quarter mile) high, above the clay pans around its base.

Deadvlei is a clay pan, about 2 km from Sossusvlei. A notable feature of Deadvlei is that it used to be an oasis with several acacia trees; afterwards, the river that watered the oasis changed its course. The pan is thus punctuated by blackened, dead acacia trees, in vivid contrast to the shiny white of the salty floor of the pan and the intense orange of the dunes. This creates a particularly fascinating and surrealistic landscape which has appeared as a setting for many films throughout the years.

Here is a Camel Thorn Tree in the Dead Vlei.

The Camel Thorn trees of the Dead Vlei started growing 880 years ago, and survived about 300 years, until the climate changed to become much more arid.

This little Black Backed Jackal wanders around the Dead Vlei among tourists.

If there is food around, the scavenging Black Backed Jackals always show up. They are always hopeful.

Here is a herd of Gemsbok in Sossusvlei.

The Gemsbok are also known as Oryx.

Dave and Catherine Jefferson chose to see Sossusvlei via helicopter.

This is an expansive view of Sossusvlei from the helicopter.

Sossusvlei is among Namibia’s most spectacular and best-known attractions.

Sossusvlei is characterized by the large red dunes that surround it; Sossusvlei is a large, white, salt and clay pan and is a great destination all year round.

Sossusvlei literally translates to “dead-end marsh”, as it is the place where the dunes come together preventing the Tsauchab River to flow any further. Due to the dry conditions in the Namib Desert, the River seldom flows this far and the pan remains bone-dry most years. During an exceptional rainy season, the Tsauchab fills the pan, drawing visitors from all over the world to witness a spectacular site.

Another Sossusvlei view...

From the air, the Namibian desert looks like it has a bad case of chicken pox. Spread across 1,100 miles of a narrow strip sit a smattering of these barren polka dots, also known as fairy circles. These sizable craters measure 10 to 65 feet in diameter, and represent one of nature's greatest mysteries.

Over the decades, a number of theories, from alien invasion to poisonous gasses have been put forth to explain the Fairy Circle phenomenon.

Fairy circles are circular patches of land, barren of plants, though often encircled by a ring of stimulated growth of grass. While numerous scientists have researched these circles, no one has yet been able to ultimately determine their cause or purpose. Various theories of their origin have been suggested, including euphorbia poisoning, animal dust baths, meteor showers, termites and underground gas vents.

Road to Solitaire

Observe the speed limit when driving in Namibia: 120km/h on tarred roads, 80km/h on gravel.

Take special care on gravel, which can be deceptively tricky. For example, braking suddenly may turn your vehicle over, while you need to slow right down at Turn on headlights on gravel roads.

When overtaking (passing) on gravel, be aware your plume of dust can obscure the vision of the overtaken driver.

Although you may think that minivan taxis, buses and bakkies are the modern means of transport in an ever-expanding South Africa, on the dusty roads of the Namibian interior, far from crowded cities and the hustle and bustle of the 21st century, it is also the donkey cart that is one of the quintessential Namibian forms of transport.

The many gravel roads that bisect rural Namibia are arteries in the vast country, ideal for this transport of old that has survived the centuries, providing a vital form of affordable, non-motorized transportation for local inhabitants for carrying essentials such as firewood and water. Donkey carts convoy people from village to village, to wells and clinics, and transport children to school.

Donkey Carts are the rural 4x4's of Namibia!

Solitaire is a small settlement in the Khomas Region of central Namibia near the Namib-Naukluft National Park. It currently features the only gasoline station, post office, bakery, and general store between the dunes at Sossusvlei and the coast at Walvis Bay, as well as to the capital Windhoek. It earned its name.

Solitaire was founded in 1948 by Willem Christoffel van Coller. Solitaire is well-known in the Netherlands because of the book of the same name by Dutch author Ton van der Lee recounting his stay here.

In 1948, Willem Christoffel van Coller bought 33,000 hectares of land from the government of Namibia for the purpose of farming Karakul sheep.

Solitaire offers a Call-out Service of 100 km around Solitaire for fixing and fitting new tires, as well as a tow-in service.

Bridge over Kuiseb River

Rising in the Khomas Hochland near Windhoek, the Kuiseb River is a linear oasis. The Kuiseb is an ephemeral river that crosses the Namib Desert just like the Tsauchab River, but no longer reaches the sea, as it has been blocked by the northward movement of dunes. It begins in the central highlands near Windhoek, and whilst the basin area covers an area of more than 21,000 km, most of its water originates from the annual 100-350 mm of rainfall in the 6,600 km east of the escarpment.

The Skeleton Coast is the northern part of the Atlantic Ocean coastal region of Namibia and south of Angola from the Kunene River south to the Swakop River, although the name is sometimes used to describe the entire Namib Desert coast. The Bushmen of the Namibian interior called the region "The Land God Made in Anger", while Portuguese sailors once referred to it as "The Gates of Hell". The area's name derives from the whale and seal bones that once littered the shore from the whaling industry, although in modern times this coast harbors the skeletal remains of shipwrecks caught by offshore rocks and fog. More than a thousand vessels of various sizes litter the coast. It is quite a vision.

The name "Skeleton Coast" was given by author John Henry Marsh as the title for his book chronicling the story of the Dunedin Star. Since the book was first published in 1944, it has become so well known that the coast is now generally referred to as Skeleton Coast and is given that as its official name on maps.

Swakopmund, also known as "Swakop" in Namibia, is the country's biggest coastal city (pop 42,000) and a mecca for Namibians on holiday.

The city's German origins are quite pronounced in beautiful old 19th century German Colonial buildings throughout the city, making an even starker contrast for this town sitting at the edge of the Namib Desert.

Swakopmund means “mouth of the Swakop River” in German.

Swakopmund boasts palm-lined streets, seaside promenades, fine accommodation, a pleasant summer climate, and decent beaches. It is Namibia's premier holiday resort. During the December holidays, the cool Namibian coast offers relief from the intense heat of the interior.

Swakopmund is 170 miles west of Windhoek, Namibia's capital, and situated in the Namib Desert.

There is interesting architecture in Swakopmund.

Most people of Swakopmund live in the suburbs of Vineta, Tamariskia, Mondesa, and Vogelstrand. Here are two street craftsmen. They were carving names for tourists onto the pods they sold.

Vera and Mike are exceptionally talented and fun people. Vera is a past President of the Rotary Club of Swakopmund. Mike is the retired Managing Director of Rossing Uranium. The Jefferson's met them through Catherine's Rotary connections, and were delighted with their encounter.

Vera operates her own NGO which is called Mondessa Youth Opportunity Trust in Swakopmund. MYO is an after-school program, focusing on subjects like English, Mathematics, Reading, Life Skills, Music and Sport. “Learners” from formerly underprivileged schools are attending classes at the institute, totally free of charge. Their objective is to be an empowering force in the community, producing sound citizens, able to participate fully and confidently in their chosen career paths.

Desert Breeze is located a few minutes' drive from the Swakopmund town center. Standing on on the banks of the Swakop River, the lodge also sits at the opening of the Namib Desert dune belt. It is the perfect setting for visitors who prefer an out-of-town desert atmosphere.

While surrounded by ultra-modern, colorful, and unique architecture, the Desert Breeze Lodge buildings contrast sharply with the surrounding desert landscape. In this photo, see enormous basalt sculptures standing on guard over this interesting desert destination.

Desert Breeze was designed and constructed by one of Namibia's top lodge and restaurant developers, Danie Hugowith. Guests here and at Hugowith's other properties enjoy the distinctly original and unique character. Other properties include the Raft and Tug Restaurants in Walvis Bay and Swakopmund respectively, Erongo Wilderness Lodge near Omaruru and the nearby popular Stiltz Lodge.

Aloe (Aloe barbadensis) is a genus containing over 500 species of flowering succulent plants. This genus is native to Africa; species are found in southern Africa, the mountains of tropical Africa, various islands off the coast of Africa including Sardinia, Madagascar, and the Arabian Peninsula.

Walvis Bay is located a convenient half an hour south of Swakop. Dave and Catherine enjoyed a magical kayaking experience on the beautiful lagoon and in the surrounding water of Walvis Bay.

They went there to experience kayaking with Jeanne Meintjes who owns "Eco Marine Kayak Tours" www.emkayak.iway.na
(<a href="http://www.emkayak.iway.na ">www.emkayak.iway.na </a>)
and leads everyone on the water.

Since a major part of Walvis Bay's economy is fishing, there are many fishing companies and canneries. It has been a haven for sea vessels because of its natural deep-water harbor. It’s the only natural harbor of any size along the country's coast. The Dutch referred to it as Walvisch Baye and the English as Whale Bay. The name ultimately has evolved into Walvis Bay.

The protected Pelican Point Sand Spit is home for seal colonies and their beachfront friends. Historically, a succession of colonists developed the location and resources of this strategic harbor settlement. The harbor's value in relation to the sea route around the Cape of Good Hope had caught the attention of world powers since it was discovered. Accordingly, the political status of Walvis Bay has been complicated over the years.

Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus ruber) breed in large, flooded shallow salt pans. Flocks of tens to tens of thousands, usually with Lesser Flamingos, are common.

In addition to the large numbers of the Greater Flamingo at Walvis Bay, there are also 33,000 Lesser Flamingos (Phoenicopterus minor), pictured here, in the same location.

George Erb's colorful vehicle carried Dave and Catherine around Klipspringer Canyon. George has conducted nature and photography tours for many years www.swakoptour.com (<a href="http://www.swakoptour.com">www.swakoptour.com</a>)

View Before Entering Klipspringer Canyon...

Kllipspringer Canyon is just outside of Swakop. On the Klipspringer Canyon Trail, hikers can expect a unique and exciting adventure in a wilderness area.

Klipspringer Canyon Trail runs through the Nama Karoo and will lead you to a number of unique and fascinating plants such as the quiver tree, candelabra euphorbia, and tamarisk. Game resident in the area includes Mountain Zebra, Ostrich, Duiker, Springbok, Kudu and Klipspringer, from which the trail is named.

Dave and Catherine saw an incredible range of landforms and captivating landscapes, rugged mountains, and deep canyons carved more than 200m into the surrounding primordial, time-worn plains.

Here is a piling of Namibian red granite boulders.

This is Daga (Leonotis leonurus), which is native "Herbal Marijuana" and is also known as lion's tail. The dried leaves and flowers have a mild calming effect when smoked. In some users, the effects have been noted to be similar to the cannabinoid THC found in Cannabis, except that it is a much less potent "high".

This is Welwitschia mirabilis. Catherine kneels next to this dwarf conifer, classified with cycads and pines, as cone-bearing plants which are thought to represent an evolutionary link to flower bearing plants. They can live up to 2000 years; this one is about 1500 years old.

There are only two leaves on this Welwitschia plant which grow continuously throughout its life!

A number of unusual species of plants and animals are found in the Namib Desert, many of which are endemic and highly adapted to the specific climate of the area. Here is a beautiful flowering cactus.

Kaokoland (also called Kaokoveld) is in Northern Namibia, within the Kunene Region. It is one of the wildest and least populated areas in Namibia. The most represented ethnic group is the Himba people who account for about 5,000 of the overall 16,000 inhabitants of Kaokoland. The main settlement in Kaokoland is the city of Opuwo.

With all those empty roads and spectacular landscapes, driving is enjoyable in Namibia by car OR Donkey Cart... but you can be lulled into a false sense of security if you’re not used to driving long distances, often on gravel.

The Donkey Cart is one of the quintessential Namibian forms of transport. As you journey across Namibia's dusty roads, you will pass by more than one...!

Dave and Catherine visited the Erongo Wilderness Lodge. Their guide, Richard zu Bendheim, hands a present to Catherine in this photo.

Close to the small town of Omaruru in central Namibia, is the Erongo Wilderness Lodge. It is nestled amongst huge boulders and granite formations, all on the outskirts of an ancient volcano. Pictured is the entrance to the lodge, set into the Erongo Mountains, flanked by the Namib Desert to the west and a mixed, woodland savanna to the east.

Raised wooden walkways and natural stone steps connect the tented chalets to the main area. The restaurant and pub at Erongo Wilderness Lodge are situated on a separate, rocky outcrop from which the floodlit waterhole can be viewed.

A winding path, past colonies of dassies, (some of which inhabit overhanging trees and have the startling habit of dropping down as you walk past,) leads from the reception area up the hill. There is a large, central fireplace, comfortable lounge with a big leather sofa with matching chairs, a small selection of books, and the 'Mokoro' bar, all set in stunning surrounds. There are also two decked areas where meals and drinks can be enjoyed in warmer weather.

Dave and Catherine's two-week guide in Erongo, Richard zu Bendheim, was born and raised in Namibia. As are many Namibians, he is of German parentage, as his surname indicates. His knowledge of animals was simply amazing.

The Namaqua Chameleon (Chamaeleo namaquensis) is a ground living lizard found in the western desert regions of Namibia, South Africa, and Southern Angola It is one of the largest chameleon species in Southern Africa, and reaches up to 25 inches in length.

In Uis, this restaurant, motel, bar, swimming pool, and motorcycle-friendly hangout is the place to be, especially if you are a biker. (Mike Leech of Swakop suggested that the Jefferson's stop by ...)

The Brandberg Rest Camp is located in the heart of Damaraland, an unspoiled rural area in Namibia.

The Brandberg is the highest mountain in Namibia, standing at 2573m above sea level.

There is a grocery store with basic food stuff, bottle store, filling station, curio shop and Internet café in the village.

The Unelected Mayor of Uis used his inheritance to buy the Brandberg Rest Camp. He was really a fun and unique character.

There is a restaurant and bar, overlooking the large swimming pool. (Bring your own towels!) The guest lounge has a satellite TV system, and there is a communal braai facility, Internet Wi-Fi connection, laundry service and secure (undercover) parking. There is also a conference hall/facilities.

This parrot was the owners pride and joy.

Together with the San, the Damara are one of the oldest nations in Namibia and their origins are unrecorded. This is largely due to their loose social structure, which made them unable to defend themselves against the more unified tribes, dispersing them far and wide and driving them, for the most part, into servitude.

Here, guide, Richard, purchases his group's entrance to the Damara Village. The Living Museum of the Damara, close to Twyfelfontein, is the first traditional Damara project in Namibia and the only one of its kind. The possibility to experience the traditional Damara culture in this form exists nowhere else in Namibia or in the world. Within the framework of the Living Museum of the Damara, an attempt was made to reconstruct the 'lost culture’ of the Damara. Here visitors have the unique opportunity to get to know the fascinating traditional culture of the Damara, thus contributing to the preservation of the culture as well as to a regular income for the Damara community that built the museum.

The Damara were unique ancient and aboriginal hunter-gatherers but now are agriculturalist-animal husbandry and Khoekhoe-speaking people inhabiting the environs of the Brandberg and Khorixas. They are regarded as the oldest inhabitants of Namibia alongside San (Bushmen) and Khoekhoe (Hottentots).

Prior to 1870, the Damara people occupied most of central Namibia, but large numbers were displaced or killed when the Damara and Herero began to occupy this area in search of better grazing.

When the first Europeans visited Namibia, the Damara were a group of semi-nomadic gardeners, pastoralists, and hunter-gatherers. However, in 1960 the South African government settled the Damara in "Damaraland," an area of poor soil and irregular rain fall. Due to this, many Damara now work in the urban areas and only about one quarter of their numbers still occupy Damaraland.

About 100,000 Damara people live in Namibia. The Damara have mystified anthropologists as they are a group of Bantu origin who speak a Khoisan dialect. Due to their resemblance to some bantu groups of West Africa, it is speculated that the Damara were the first people to migrate to Namibia from the north.

The Damara Living Museum offers three essential advantages to the project participants. First, it is a good source of income for the Damara, who, according to western conception, live in great poverty. At the moment about 20 Damara have a secure work place in the "museum." Second, through the sale of jewelry and crafts in the craft shop, additional community members are able to earn some money. And third, the Damara people focus their time and energy on preserving and showcasing their roots and thus prevent the loss of cultural values. In this respect, the museum also functions as a school for history and culture.

The African Stone Game (sometimes called Awari or Mancala) is a two-player game in which each player tries to capture more stones than the other before all the pits on either side of the board are emptied.

"Nice Smile"!

The Herero arrived in Namibia around 1550. Migrating from the great lakes of East Africa, they moved through Zambia and southern Angola and settled in the Kunene Region. After 200 years, a large group left the Kaokoveld and settled in the northern central areas of Namibia. The descendants of this group are most commonly referred to as Herero, while the groups left in the northwest are called the Himba and the Tjimba.

The Herero (together with the Himba) moved into present-day Namibia and Botswana several hundred years ago.

During the 19th century, the Herero came under the influence of German missionaries who took exception to what they considered to be the immodesty of the traditional Herero dress, or lack of dress (similar to the Himba). Herero women eventually adopted the style of dress that makes them so distinctive today. Although the influence of the missionaries is certainly diminished in modern day Namibia, Herero women are still seen proudly wearing this elaborate costume in rural parts of the country as well as downtown Windhoek. Herero men cannot be distinguished by clothing except on special occasions. Then Herero men wear an elaborate suit that is reminiscent of 19th century German military uniforms.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Herero migrated to Namibia and established themselves as herdsmen. The Herero are proud cattle farmers who measure their wealth in cattle. The importance of cattle to these people is even evident in the Herero women's' headpiece. The horn shaped hat is said to represent the horns of a cow and is made from rolled cloth.

The Herero are a mostly pastoral and nomadic, cattle-herding people. This Herero woman and her children were selling crafts and dolls to tourists by the roadside. Catherine purchased a doll from them and gave the children paper finger toys.

While the Himba today continue to live the nomadic life they have for centuries, the Herero settled down and prospered as cattle ranchers in the central grasslands of Namibia. Eventually, they came into conflict with the German colonial armies. After the Battle of Waterberg in August 1904, the Herero sought peace with the colonists, but German attempts to exterminate the Herero continued in what historians have labeled as one of the bloodiest colonial wars of all time. It is estimated that within three years, the Herero population was reduced from 80,000 to 15,000. Today, the Herero population is estimated at 130,000, about 7% of Namibia's total population.

Today, the various Herero paramilitary groups parade before their chiefs and Herero women line the streets in their beautiful dresses, illustrated by the dolls this woman has for sale.

Dave and Catherine Jefferson were very fortunate to meet Garth Owen-Smith, author of "Arid Eden".

Garth has spent almost his entire working life fighting – not against a conventional enemy, but against official ignorance, harsh climatic conditions, poachers, and other enemies of Africa’s fast-diminishing wildlife. In the process, he has lived and worked in a number of countries but his chosen battlefield has always been the most challenging place of all: the harsh, beautiful, and almost unknown Kaokoveld in north-western Namibia.

(The Jefferson's friends from Swakop, Mike and Vera, opened his door with a timely phone call about some Americans who wanted him to autograph his book!)

Garth Owen-Smith chose sides early on, when he spent two youthful years in the Kaokoveld and not only developed a deep affinity with the indigenous Himba, Herero, and Damara pastoralists, but also realized that they had developed the ideal form of nature conservation, a situation in which humans and their livestock could live in equilibrium with wild game, so that there was room for all.

In 1970 he was thrown out of the Kaokoveld as an alleged security risk, then spent a year looking into conservation and the treatment of indigenous peoples in Australia, farmed for two years in Rhodesia, and did pioneering work in conservation education for black youths in South Africa. He finally managed to get back to South West Africa in 1978, and from there embarked on his life’s work, to save the remnants of the Kaokoveld’s rich wildlife, devastated by a variety of illegal hunters.

In 1982, when Garth Owen Smith returned to the Kaokoveld, he found that its rich wildlife, including black rhino and desert-adapted elephant, had been devastated by illegal hunting.

Garth has worked since then to reverse this, starting a non-government organization with his partner, Dr. Margaret Jacobsohn. The pair has won some of the world’s major conservation awards for their efforts.

North-western Namibia has since become a popular tourism destination and the Kaokoveld’s wildlife has come back from the brink of virtual extinction. Thousands of people have benefited from the links they have forged between community development and natural resource management.

Garth named this black rhino "Stumpy" due to his short tail. This guy was right outside Garth's front gate so we went out to pay him a visit.

Driven to the brink of extinction, the black rhino's story is one of the most tragic wildlife crimes. Due to poaching, 92% of the population has been wiped out over the past 35 years, and there are now just 5,055 left in the world.

These numbers are an improvement, however, from the lowest point of 2,500 in the 1980s and are thanks to conservation efforts of a few groups and, perhaps surprisingly, tourism.

The black rhinoceros or hook-lipped rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis) is a species of rhino native to eastern and central Africa including Kenya, Tanzania, Cameroon, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, and Angola. Although the rhinoceros is referred to as black, its colors vary from brown to gray.

Stumpy's Mock Charge...

You only know it was a mock charge when the rhino stops! If it had been a serious charge the next picture would have been from an overturned vehicle!

The Twyfelfontein Country Lodge is built directly into the rock hillside and definitely is not wheelchair friendly. Twyfelfontein was proclaimed a national monument in 1952. It first came to the attention of the wider world when Reinhard Maack included the site in a report in 1921. He is thought to have been informed of the engravings in the area by a land surveyor.

The Twyfelfontein Country Lodge is located in the Huab valley in Namibia’s Kunene region (formerly known as Damaraland). The lodge is relatively new, about 20 years old, and, warning: there is no air conditioning so the rooms can be quite hot some nights.

The area boasts 17 different sites of rock paintings and engravings, totaling 212 stone slabs. These are a silent testimony to the first hunter-gatherer and subsequent Khoi-San inhabitants of 6,000 years ago, who used the area as a place of worship and shaman rituals.

The monument's imagery suggests it came from the Khoi-San belief system. The Khoi-San peoples lived in the area up to about 1,000 years ago when they were displaced by the Damara. No Khoi-San currently inhabit the area, but the beliefs of the San (800 km away) give insight to the meaning of the paintings and engravings. To preserve this unique history, Twyfelfontein became Namibia’s first UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2007.

Twyfelfontein is a truly amazing & wondrous site of ancient rock engravings in the Kunene Region. It consists of a spring in a valley flanked by the slopes of a sandstone table mountain that receives very little rainfall and has a wide range of diurnal temperatures. As Twyfelfontein lies in a valley, it is flanked by the slopes of a sandstone table mountain, covered in a hard patina.

The original name of the farm, in Afrikaans, was Twyfelfontein or "Doubtful Fountain." The prior owner was known for fearing his spring would go dry. The building in the photograph is not of the original farm but rather the rock engravings historical center and guide headquarters.

The guide explained the boulders and slabs of red sandstone reportedly hold some 2,500 prehistoric engraving depicting wildlife, animal spoor, abstract motifs, and water holes. It is believed that hunter-gatherers occupied the site over a period of 7000 yrs. The exact age of the engravings is unknown but the patina on the individual figures gives an idea of relative age.

There are 17 different sites at Twyfelfontein of rock paintings, totaling 212 stone slabs covered with engravings. It is these pieces of Stone Age art that lends the importance of Twyfelfontein, as opposed to that of the rock paintings and stone artifacts. The most famous and to some, the most impressive rock engravings are:

•The lion with the kink in its tail
•The giant giraffe
•The fable animal
•The works at the 'place of ceremonies'
•The symbolic engravings in the vicinity of the terraces

Unlike the newer Bushman/San paintings that mostly depict people involved in everyday events from dancing to hunting, the majority of the engravings at Twyfelfontein focus on animals and were most probably executed by the San’s ancestors thousands of years earlier.

Some of the older engravings show hand and footprints which could be artist "signatures". Rarely do you find complete human form however.

The shaman is thought to have chosen rock faces that not only served as suitable canvases but may have been portals into the other world. The act of engraving itself could have been a means of focusing energy to enter into trance. The animals are represented with elongated limbs or necks, as seen in the renditions of the giraffes, or like the well-known lion-man and dancing kudu, contain human elements or are half-human half animal, revealing the merging of the physical and spiritual worlds.

The separation of super-continent Gondwana into Africa and South America 125 million years ago is the cause of a number of geological curiosities in Namibia’s Damaraland. The Organ Pipes south of Twyfelfontein are the remains of molten rock pushing up through the Earth’s surface. The similarity of these vertical basalt slabs to organ pipes is obvious. The straight lines and geometrical shapes are intriguing and captivating.

Opuwo is the capital of the Kunene Region in north-western Namibia. The town is situated about 720 km north-northwest from the capital Windhoek, and has a population of 15,000. Opuwo is the gateway to the villages of the Himba & Herero Peoples, the Epupa Waterfalls, the Marienfluss, Desert Elephants & Van Zyl's Pass. Plan to spend a night or two in Opuwo where you can experience its diverse people, sights and smells. But the reason most come to this small city is to experience the Himba culture.

This is the "infinity edge" swimming pool at the Opuwo Lodge, and it looked very inviting.

The name "Opuwo" was given by the commissioner of Ondangwa, Mr. Hugo Hahn, who came in search of land to build an office. Upon his arrival, he asked local headmen to give him land where he could build an office. The headmen gave him a small plot, and when the headmen tried to give him more land, Mr. Hahn responded saying "Opuwo (it’s enough for me). I don’t want any more land". That is how Opuwo got its name. The local residents of Opuwo called it Otjihinamaparero at the time, and some still call it that.

Although Namibia is classified as a middle-income country, the income gap between rich and poor is one of the most marked in the world. The government has made good progress in addressing structural problems such as gender parity and access to basic education, yet the situation of imbalance persists. Although a tiny proportion of the population enjoys considerable wealth, overall poverty rates are high. About 27.6 per cent of households are classified as poor and 13.8 per cent as severely poor; poverty is especially prevalent in rural areas.

About 70 per cent of the population lives in rural areas, and about 60 percent are concentrated in the seven northern regions. The rural poor are typically undereducated, with limited access to health care, adequate sanitation and gas and electricity supplies. Food shortages are a major problem during years of drought, and nutritional intake is consistently poor.

Namibia has one of the highest incidences of HIV/AIDS in the region. The epidemic is a major factor in the incidence of poverty and vulnerability among the rural population.

Namibia is unusual in the region in that rural people are less dependent on agriculture than their counterparts in other countries.

The Himba People have been successful in maintaining their culture and traditional way of life. The Himba breed cattle and goats. Men handle the political tasks and legal trials. Men also care for, herd, and slaughter the cattle for special occasions. (It appeared pretty easy to be a Himba man.) On the other hand, the responsibility for milking the cows lies with the women, as does taking care of the children; and one woman will take care of another woman's children. Women tend to perform more labor-intensive work than men do, such as carrying water to the village and building homes.

Members of an extended family typically dwell in a homestead which is a small, circular hamlet of huts and work shelters that surrounds an okuruwo (ancestral fire) and a central livestock enclosure. Himba homesteads are cone shaped structures made from palm leaves, mud and cattle dung. During the course of a year the family will move from one home to another in search of grazing for the animals.

Both the fire and the livestock are closely tied to their belief in ancestor worship the fire representing ancestral protection and the livestock allowing "proper relations between human and ancestor." The breasts are nonsexual, but the buttocks are always carefully covered. Both boys and girls are circumcised before puberty, to make them eligible for marriage.

Because of the harsh desert climate in the region where they live and their seclusion from outside influences, the Himba have managed to maintain much of their traditional lifestyle. Members live under a tribal structure based on "bilateral descent" that helps them live in one of the most extreme environments on earth.

Under "bilateral descent," every tribe member belongs to two clans: one through the father and another through the mother. Himba clans are led by the eldest male in the clan. Sons live with their father's clan, and when daughters marry, they go to live with the clan of their husband. However, inheritance of wealth does not follow the father but is determined by the mother, that is, a son does not inherit his father's cattle but his maternal uncle's instead. Anthropologists consider the system advantageous for groups that live in extreme environments because it allows individuals to rely on two sets of families dispersed over a wide area.

The Himba wear little clothing, but the women are famous for covering themselves with otjize, a mixture of butter fat and ochre, possibly to protect themselves from the sun. The mixture gives their skins a reddish tinge.

The mixture symbolizes earth's rich red color and the blood that symbolizes life, and is consistent with the Himba ideal of beauty. Women braid each other's hair and cover it except the ends, in their ochre mixture.

The hairstyle of the Himba indicates age and social status. Children have two plaits of braided hair. From the onset of puberty the girls' plaits are moved to the face over their eyes, and they can have more than two. Married women wear headdresses with many streams of braided hair, colored and put in shape with otjize. Single men wear one plait backwards to their necks, while married men wear a turban of many otjize-soaked plaits

The Himba are indigenous peoples of about 20- 50,000 people living in the Kunene Region of northern Namibia, and on the other side of the Kunene River in Angola. Himba are a semi-nomadic, pastoral people, closely related to the Herero, and speak Otjihimba which is similar to the Herero language.

When drought and war struck Namibia in the 1980s, it looked as if the culture of the indigenous Himba people might disintegrate. 90% of Himba cattle, the center of their economy and identity, died. Some families left for Angola. Lacking any other means of survival and desperate for cash, a number of men joined South Africa's army in its fight against guerrillas seeking Namibian independence. Unable to feed themselves, Himba flowed into the town of Opuwo for relief food, settling in slums of cardboard and plastic sacks.

Here is Catherine posing with a Himba woman as the Jefferson's explored the Himba culture. They found that the Himba jewelry is made from iron and shell, and due to the intricate designs, this jewelry has become very popular among western tourists.

Tourism has indeed become important to the Himba economy. Modern clothes are scarce, but generally go to the men when available. Traditionally, both men and women go topless and wear skirts or loincloths made of animal skins in various colors. Adult women wear beaded anklets to protect their legs from venomous animal bites.

Rustig Toko Lodge is situated in northwest Namibia, some 22km northeast of Kamanjab on the D2695. The lodge is situated on 6,000 ha of private farmland. It is an ideal base for tours into the Etosha National Park, the Epupa Falls on the Kunene River, and to visit one of the indigenous populations, the Himba. Toko Lodge has 14 individual en-suite rooms. They all have a stunning view from the verandah, over the surrounding savanna and lush gardens.

(<a href="http://www.namibian.org/travel/lodging/private/toko.htm">http://www.namibian.org/travel/lodging/private/toko.htm</a>)

This is the Leadwood Tree (Combretum imberb) and is also called the Namibian “Ancestral Tree.” The Herero believe that out of this tree came the first human beings and later all the wild & domestic animals as well. In time all such trees came to be venerated and wayfarers would address them as “Father” and entreat them to grant a prosperous journey.

Dave and Catherine stayed for only one night at the Rustig Toko Lodge, but really wanted to stay there longer and enjoy the pool and view.

Incidentally, we had been assisted greatly in planning by Cardboard Box Travel Shop, a one stop shop offering a complete travel & reservation service for Namibia. Their friendly, experienced and knowledgeable staff can recommend a range of options for making your trip a success. They offer a comprehensive travel service available in Namibia. If you're looking for car rental, accommodation, lodges, safaris, self drive itineraries, day trips, vehicle hire, travel advice or just tourist information contact them about travel reservations service.

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Namibia’s largest and best-known wildlife park is Etosha. Its name means ‘Place of Mirages’, for the dusty saltpan that sits at its center. During the dry season huge herds of elephants, zebras, antelope and giraffes, as well as rare black rhinos, congregate here against an eerie bleached-white backdrop.

Etosha National Park is unique in as its main characteristic is a salt pan so large it can be seen from space. Yet there is abundant wildlife that congregates around the waterholes, giving you almost guaranteed game sightings. At the same time Etosha National Park is one of the most accessible game reserves in Namibia and Southern Africa.

The large mammals in Etosha National Park include lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, giraffe, wildebeest, cheetah, hyena, mountain and plains zebra, springbok, kudu, gemsbok and eland. Among the smaller species you will find jackal, bat-eared fox, warthog, honey badger and ground squirrel. The park is home to 114 species of mammals.

Etosha National Park is open throughout the year and is accessible by tarred roads via the Anderson Gate in the central southern section, the Galton Gate in the west and the Von Lindequist Gate in the east.

Etosha, meaning "Great White Place", is dominated by a massive mineral pan. A San (one of Namibia's indigenous peoples) legend about the formation of the Etosha Pan tells of how a village was raided and everyone but the women slaughtered. One woman was so upset about the death of her family she cried until her tears formed a massive lake. When the lake dried up nothing was left apart from a huge white pan.

The number of elephants in Etosha park is around 2000. The most usual appearance is small family units and bull herds. Large herds are made up of small units, each unit consisting of a matriarch, several adult cows and offspring of different ages. Grown up young bulls are forced out of these units at the age of about 12-15 years and later they join bull herds. The tusks of elephants in Etosha which are actually two upper front teeth do not attain significant lengths, mostly attributable to a mineral deficiency. Another reason is that elephants use their tusks for digging up a roots and end up breaking the tips in the process.

The Etosha elephants are regarded as tallest in Africa. To regulate the body temperature they often use stomach water spraying it over the body or using large ears as radiators continually flopping them. Elephants have only four molars in use at a time. As these are worn down they get replaced by new ones. Elephants can be destructive around waterholes and the surrounding areas can be severely damaged and deforested.

Dave and Catherine found giraffes throughout northern Namibian, not just in Etosha Park. They are hardy animals and not dependent on a regular water supply.

Giraffe numbers have dropped rapidly across Africa over the past decade and a half – and the world has taken little notice. Even recognised conservationists are surprised when they hear that there are more than 6 times the number of African elephant than giraffe. The fact that there are currently 9 recognised giraffe subspecies does not help to improve the situation. So, is there a future for giraffe in Africa? At least in Etoshia, they seem plentiful and it is such a treat to admire them.

There are about 13,000 zebras in the Etosha National Park. They are, unfortunately, particularly susceptible to the deadly disease anthrax, which causes several hundred to perish in the park each year.

The origin of the word "zebra" is not certain. It likely comes from an African language via Portuguese (zevra). The Damara word for zebra is "!oareb" and the Oshiwambo word is "ongolo".

There are only three species of zebra extant – the plains zebra, including the Burchell’s zebra found in Etosha; the mountain zebra, including Hartmann’s mountain zebra found in north-western Namibia; and the more distantly related Grévy’s zebra found in Kenya and Ethiopia. While the Grévy’s species is more akin to a donkey, the other species look more like domestic horses. All three belong to the horse family Equidae.

The Cheetah is the fastest land mammal in the world and can reach speeds of 80-100 km/h. However, it is only able to keep up this speed for a short period of time.

Cheetahs do not roar like lions and tigers. Instead, they make birdlike chirping sounds for communication with other members of the family and they hiss when angered or threatened and purr loudly when they are content. If they are alarmed they whine or growl.

A cheetah has a good sense of smell and communicates by scenting tree trunks, bushes and termite mounds with its waste.

Cheetahs are typically solitary creatures although males sometimes live with a small group of brothers from the same litter.

The Black Rhino is the more widespread of Africa's two rhino species. It is an imposing and rather temperamental creature which has been poached to extinction in most of its former range, but still occurs in low numbers in some southern African reserves. Namibia offers the Black Rhino its best chance of long-term survival – thanks in no small measure to the work of Namibia's Save the Rhino Trust.

No paler in color than the black rhino – the 'white' derives from the Afrikaans weit (wide) and refers to its flattened mouth, an ideal shape for cropping grass. This is the best way to tell the two rhino species apart, since the mouth of the black rhino is more rounded with a hooked upper lip.

Aside from a relic population of some 30 animals in the northern Congo, the white rhino is now restricted to southern African reserves. They were reintroduced to Waterberg, and about a dozen have recently been introduced back into Etosha – where they seem to frequent the areas between Namutoni and the Springbokfontein waterhole. Unlike their smaller cousins, white rhino are generally placid grazing animals which are very rarely aggressive. They prefer open grassy plains and are often seen in small groups.

Frequently and erroneously referred to as a water buffalo (an Asian species), the Cape, or African, buffalo is a distinctive, highly social ox-like animal that lives as part of a herd. It prefers the well-watered savannah, though also can be found in forested areas as well.

The word klipspringer literally means "rock jumper" in Afrikaans. The klipspringer is also known colloquially as a mvundla (from the Xhosa umvundla, meaning "rabbit").

Klipspringers are herbivores, eating plants growing in mountainous habitats and rocky terrain. They never need to drink, since the succulents they consume provide them with enough water to survive.

Kirk's dik-dik (Madoqua kirkii) is a small antelope found in eastern and southwestern Africa. At a petite 7 - 13 pounds, the Dik-Dik has a soft, grizzled gray/brown coat and eats a wide range of plants. It has hooves with rubbery undersides, which are effective when travelling over rocky terrain. Newborns are hidden for two to three weeks, and suckle for three to four months.

The Oryx (also known as the Gemsbok) is the quintessential desert antelope; unmistakable with its ash-grey coat, bold black facial marks & flank strip, and unique long, straight horns. Of the three races of Oryx in Africa, the Gemsbok is the largest and most striking. It occurs throughout the Kalahari and Namib and is widespread all over Namibia, from the coast to the interior highlands.

As you might expect, Gemsbok are very adaptable. They range widely and are found in areas of dunes, alkaline pans, open savannah and even woodlands. Along with the much smaller springbok, they can sometimes even be seen tracking across flat desert plains with only dust-devils and mirages for company.

Gemsbok, Springbok, and Zebra all in one photo... the Jefferson's got lucky driving through Etosha one afternoon.

Springbok is the most plentiful antelope in Etosha Park. Springbok are mainly active around dawn and dusk, although they may feed through the day in colder weather, or through the night at particularly hot times of the year. During the summer, they sleep in the shade of trees or bushes, although they often bed down in the open when the weather is cooler.

The Springbok is native to the open, treeless plains of southern Africa. This one was lucky to find a little shade to rest under.

Springboks once roamed in enormous herds but are now much reduced in numbers. Springbok is the symbol and nickname of the national rugby team of South Africa.

The Kudu is the most frequently observed member of the genus tragelaphus. These medium-sized antelopes are characterized by the male's large spiraling horns and dark coat, which is generally marked with several vertical white stripes. In Namibia they are absent only from the Namib Desert – though they are found in the river valleys and are very common on farmland, where their selective browsing does not compete with the indiscriminate grazing of the cattle.

The Red Hartebeest is nicknamed the "Harley Davidson” of the antelope tribe because of the configuration of its horns. This 'beest' is truly a strange-looking creature. The elongated appearance of the face is exaggerated by the smooth, non-ringed section of the horns, which continues on the same line as the face. The horn then curves slightly forward and finally takes a drastic curve rearward coming to the tips. Both sexes carry these very unique horns, however, the bull's are much heavier, especially at the bases. The 'beest's' white rump is very evident as he flees the scene when disturbed. The rocking horse motion is almost comical when exaggerated by the up-and-down bobbing of its long face when the hartebeest takes flight.

A member of the pig family, warthogs are black, grey or brown in color, with dark mane & tail and white cheek whiskers. Their bodies are covered with sparse, coarse bristly hair. They have a long face with fleshy warts and protruding tusks.

Warthogs are sociable animals and are usually found in groups consisting of 1 or 2 sows and young offspring. Males (boars) usually travel alone. Boars have more prominent warts than sows. These warts primarily protect their faces during fights.

Warthogs use burrows for shelter and, when entering, the warthog backs in enabling it to defend itself. In the mornings, warthogs burst out of their burrows at top speed to get a running start on any predators that may be lurking nearby.

Although they look fierce, warthogs would rather run than fight. But they can be fierce opponents if forced.

Mongooses live in burrows and are nondiscriminatory predators, feeding on small animals such as rodents, birds, reptiles, frogs, insects, and worms. Some species supplement their diet with fruits, nuts, and seeds. Creative hunters, they are known to break open bird eggs by throwing them with their forepaws toward a solid object.

Famously, some species of mongoose will boldly attack venomous snakes such as cobras. The most celebrated of these is Rudyard Kipling’s fictional "Rikki-tikki-tavi," based on an ancient fable and included in "The Jungle Book."

The black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas) gets its name from the broad, dark saddle which exists on the upper parts of the body. Although the black-backed jackal is an efficient hunter, it relies heavily on scavenging for its food supply. Jackals will often be found around campsites searching for scraps and unattended food. It is common for shoes left outside of tents and bungalows in Etosha National Park to go missing during the night, and jackals are generally the culprits.

Dassies, also known as Hydraxes, are small, thickset, herbivorous mammals. They are well-furred, rotund animals with short tails.

Often mistaken for rodents, Dassies are more closely related to elephants and manatees.

The hairy-footed Gerbil (Gerbillurus paeba) is named after the French name for a small mouse, "gerbille". The specific name, Paeba, is the Tswana name for a mouse. They have hair on the soles of their feet, hence the name. They prefer sandy soil or sandy alluvium with grass, scrub or light woodland cover.

The Leopard Tortoise (Stigmochelys pardalis) is a large grazing species that favors semi-arid, thorny to grassland, habitats. However, it is also seen in some regions featuring a higher level of precipitation. They have a very attractive shell pattern. This pattern acts like camouflage in its natural home range. It is found throughout savannahs of Africa from Sudan to the southern Cape. Being a tropical tortoise, Leopard tortoises do not hibernate.

African Snail (Achatina fulica) is a species of land snail in the family Achatinidae known commonly as the giant African snail or giant African land snail. It thrives in many types of habitat in areas with mild climates, it feeds voraciously and vectors plant pathogens, causing severe damage to agricultural crops and native plants, it competes with native snail taxa, it is a nuisance pest of urban areas, and it spreads human disease. It is listed as one of the top 100 invasive species in the world.

While the abundance of the Big 5 not surprisingly tends to be the main draw for most visitors to Etosha, the wetter, greener and less busy summer months are a bird lover’s dream.

The park plays home to more than 340 species of bird, both local and migratory, with most being found in their greatest numbers on and around the Etosha Pan when it becomes filled with water during the summer season, roughly from November until April.

The African Ostrich is the largest and heaviest bird in the world. It is one of five extant species of ratites, a group of flightless birds that are found in the Southern Hemisphere. Ratites are considered the most primitive living birds. The ostrich, native to Africa, compensates for its inability to fly with strong legs that make it the fastest of all bipedal animals. A group of ostriches is known as a herd.

Contrary to a popular myth, ostriches do not bury their heads in sand. When it appears from a distance that they are doing so, they are actually laying their heads on the ground with their necks stretched out to avoid being seen by predators.

In addition to their speed, which makes them capable of escaping virtually any kind of danger, ostrich legs are so powerful that they can kill a lion or a hyena with a single kick.

Here is an adult Guineafowl. Flocks of over 20 birds are common and for all the noise they make, can be conspicuous or secretive. This species of guineafowl become tame in the vicinity of bush camps and are often seen on the sides of dirt roads in forest and woodland as well as throughout Etosha.

The guinea fowl is a ground-nesting bird and spends much of its time scratching around on the ground in search for something to eat.

In their native Africa, guinea fowl have been used as domestic animals for hundreds of years as the large size of the guinea fowl means that just one bird can provide a great deal of food.

Crested guineafowl are noisy birds that vocalize well into the night and before dawn. Pictured here is a baby Guineafowl. The young Guineafowl have white feathers. The guinea fowl chicks, known as keets, remain with their mother until they are big enough to fend for themselves. They roost at night in trees and move out of the forest areas in the morning to preen and take advantage of the morning sun.

The Rollers get their name from the aerial acrobatics some of these birds perform during courtship or territorial flights. Rollers resemble crows in size and build, and share the colorful appearance of kingfishers and bee-eaters, blues and pinkish or cinnamon browns predominating. The two inner front toes are connected, but not the outer one. They are mainly insect eaters. Rollers nest in an unlined hole in a tree or in masonry.

The African Goshawk is a Southern African bird that belongs to the Accipitridae bird family group which includes birds such as Raptors, Old Vultures, Osprey.

Etosha boasts 46 species of raptors that can be seen throughout the year – including a few different species of vulture, kestrels and 12 species of eagle – as well as a number of other open country species, both large and small, including the kori bustard and the rare yellow-throated sand grouse.

Cape Sparrows are primarily granivorous and also eat soft plant parts and insects. The birds typically breed in colonies and gather in large, often nomadic, flocks while not breeding. The nest can be constructed in a variety of locations- in a tree, a bush, a hole or even an empty nest of another species. A typical clutch contains three or four eggs, and both parents are involved in breeding from nest building to feeding the young.

Pied Crows are generally encountered in pairs or small groups, although an abundant source of food may bring large numbers of birds. The species behaves in a similar manner to the Hooded and Carrion Crows. Structurally, the Pied Crow is better thought of as a small crow-sized Raven.

The summers are ideal for birding in Etosha National Park. While game viewing benefits from dry conditions, the summer rains turn some of the vast pans into seasonal lakes and attract migratory and wetland species. Etosha is home to 340 bird species, about a third of which are migratory.

This red winged blackbird has bright red eyes.

The avian residents of Etosha National Park make up an eclectic mix that ranges from flamingos to the colorful lilac-breasted roller and the eagles soaring high above. Everywhere you look, there is another beautiful and interesting bird.

Armored Bush Cricket (Acanthoplus discoidalis)
is a species of katydid that is native to Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe & South Africa. They are wide-bodied, flightless and can grow to around 5 cm. Their thorax is covered in sharp spines and they have a pair of strong biting jaws. They are able to defend themselves against predators in an unusual manner by squirting haemolymph (insect blood) out of their bodies. Their populations peak in autumn and their bodies often litter roads during this time. When deprived of protein & salt they can become cannibalistic.

Bush Cricket Close-Up

Situated halfway between Windhoek and the Etosha National Park, the 55,000 acre Okonjima Game Reserve offers some of the best accommodations in Namibia, but the highlight is the cheetah and leopard safaris.

The AfriCat Foundation rehabilitates cheetahs, wild dogs, hyenas, and leopards. There are opportunities to see these beautiful carnivores in their natural environment here on safari.

The staff at Okonjima could not have been more helpful or responsible. And, they are very knowledgeable about their animals.

Here, they told us about their Cheetahs. This carnivorous species preys on antelope, guinea fowl, hares etc - even jackal at times. The prey is run down at considerable speed over short distances and bowled over by having the hind legs knocked out from underneath. Death is brought about by strangulation. The Cheetah will not eat carrion or anything that has not been freshly killed. Of course their hunting is aided by excellent sight.

This AfriCat guide could never have found the cheetahs and leopards were it not for the beacons and and the direction finder carried in the Land Rovers.

This lovely cottage is where Catherine and Dave were upgraded to within Okonjima.

This remarkable spotted cat has a greyhound-like build, and is capable of running at 70km per hour in bursts, making it the world's fastest land animal. A diurnal hunter, cheetah favor the cooler hours of the day to hunt smaller antelope, like steenbok and duiker, and small mammals like scrub hares.

Namibia probably has Africa's highest cheetah population – estimated at 25% of the world's population. This is largely due to the eradication of lion and spotted hyena from large areas of commercial farmland, where cheetah are not usually regarded (by enlightened farmers) as a threat to cattle. Etosha is Namibia's best park for cheetah in the wild, though there's probably a higher density of them on many farms.

•A ‘Rehabilitated Cheetah’ is an orphaned cheetah that has NOT been hand-raised, but has been in captivity from a cub to adulthood and is now hunting on its own and been given a second chance to return to the wild.

•It is important to remember that AfriCat’s cheetah rehabilitation program was initiated to give captive cheetahs an opportunity to return to their natural environment. Although hunting in carnivores is instinctive, many of the cheetahs at AfriCat lack experience due to being orphaned or removed from the wild at an early age.

At Okonjima, all the rehabilitated cheetahs are monitored daily by radio-tracking them on foot.

Besides giving orphaned cheetahs a chance to return to the wild, the success of this project provides other substantial benefits. It provides the opportunity to assess whether rehabilitation is a successful means of conserving an endangered population and also allows for the number of cheetahs in captivity to be reduced.

This two-year old Leopard cub has a radio collar. The staff at Okonjima collared this male because his mother is so old she may not be able to take good care of him. So, they keep an eye on him by taking out their tourist guests and finding him through the beeps from his collar.

This adult leopard was equipped with an electronic collar which allowed the guide to track him down. It still took some doing, as the enclosed area is very large.

Without these fences, the wild animals would escape onto the adjoining ranch lands and prey upon the cattle. The ranchers would retaliate with rifles, and the wild population would diminish in short order. So these modern fences are essential.

The Jefferson's saw Zebras (pronounced ZEBras in Africa, not ZEEbras as in the US) in numerous African countries: Kenya, Tanzania, Namibia, and South Africa, to name a few. The animals are so striking that Dave considered buying a Zebra skin rug to take home.

The Jefferson's trusty guide, Richard, steered them to an upscale shop in Windhoek where they checked out purchasing a zebra rug. Very handsome... but they decided to do some research on the US restrictions on importation prior to making a purchase. When they got back to CA, they more calmly decided the zebra rug would not go with their present décor. But sometime in the future ...

Wow, was this kid ever into colorful garb! He and his brother were selling baskets in a small town as our trip drew to a close.

The boy's mother was living proof the baskets did not come from some factory or sweatshop. As the Jefferson adventure ended, Catherine thought more about what she could pack for the return trip. As usual, baskets went to the head of the list.

Dave and Catherine will return to Namibia some fine day. For now, they have a little piece of Namibian craftsmanship at home as a reminder of their grand adventure.

"One Namibia - one Nation" is the Namibian government's motto since Independence was achieved. And, indeed, today there is a great feeling of solidarity amongst the Namibian people despite the variety of ethnic groups and the fact that Namibia is a multicultural nation.

Each of the eleven national groups has its own history, language and culture and, and as a result of the South African apartheid policy, its own homeland, although that system has been abolished. People still follow, particularly in rural areas, a traditional lifestyle with tribal and family communities.

Dave and Catherine found the food very tasty and, of course, drank bottled water in copious amounts. But Windhoek is a tasty beer and this butterfly that landed on Dave's beer glass made for a great photo and fitting close to the visit.

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Tel: (27) 083-629-1735 or email: [email protected]
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