D10-11: Epupa - Okongwati - Bushcamp (132km)

D10: Epupa (housekeeping)

We did as little as possible ... washing, chatting, comparing maps with neighbours, 

birding (Rufus Tailed Palm Thrush), 

Tom baked his famous bread!

D11: Epupa - Okangwati - Bushcamp (132km)

We left feeling refreshed and a little apprehensive - we were heading towards Van Zyl's Pass via Okangwati.

The road south towards Okongwati was typical of the excellent Namibian roads: dirt, wide with good grading, dusty, undulating in tandem with the surroundings. In short - they were an absolute pleasure to drive!

We found Okongwati easily. Our mission was to buy diesel as without a top-up our Van Zyl's Pass and Hartmannsberge route could be compromised. 
So we asked where one could buy diesel - "Just drive straight on!"

Donisa is an Angolan who runs this business - consider her expenses bringing diesel to Okongwati before you faint at the price - roughly 4x what diesel costs in Namibia. However, without this diesel (in spite of the canisters we had filled) we would not have been able to complete our journey.

She will be pleased if you call her to ask whether she has diesel/petrol in stock: +26481 3363856.

The locals come to sell their wares when they see foreigners. This necklace is a typical Himba ornament: natural grass and a nut from a local tree; the iron beads are bought in town.

After filling up, 
we headed directly west towards Van Zyl's Pass.

Soon it was T-time!

This sign amused us - "Water?? Really!" It's so dry one cannot imagine that such a sign could mean anything in this arid world.

What a magnificent view! It just gets better and better.

Would this be a quartzite intrusion?

The dam wall which is shown on T4A.

A Himba grave - inspite of the western influence (headstone), the Himba still cling to their traditional skull/horn near the grave.

Where does this army helmet come from? A stark reminder of the war that took place in the north of Namibia.

We marvelled at the size of this Leadwood (Combretum Imberbe). It is extremely slow growing and it is a protected tree in South Africa. We wondered how many years this tree had grown?

Animals know they have right of way!

A Commiphora can be used to house a nest.

A type of wild Basil? Many of these together created a beautiful patch of white flowers.

The wheels crunched over the stones. Several patches of the road were very demanding.

Fortunately, the T4A map told us to look out for 
Himba "graves" in the trees.

We found these piles of stone in and under several trees along the road.

Soon the road demanded attention. 
Mrad guided us through this rough patch - 
was Van Zyl's going to be as tough as this?

 Stuck - but not for long!

This is definitely the trip of 
the troublesome runner boards.

The approach road to Van Zyl's stayed difficult. In fact, it was nearly as difficult as the Kunene River road.

The Kunene Impala Lily 
stood like a sentinel next to the road.

We decided to camp a short distance before the next village. In fact, it was +-14km before the van Zyls Community Camp. This camp worked very well for us.