Dune 45

We woke at 4:30 and learned the balloon trip was cancelled so we set off into the Namibia desert as the sun rose.  We arrived at Dune 45 an hour later and started an arduous climb of the red dune in a whipping wind that must have been blowing at least 35 miles an hour.  It was tough going as the sand was so soft and your foot would sink in preventing much forward progress up the steep slope.  If you ever imagined what it would be like to walk across the Sahara desert let me tell you it would be a major challenge and I stand in awe of the local bushman that make the 50 mile trek to the ocean to gather salt so that they can cure their bush meat.  

Scooter and Nicki

The bushman use ostrich eggs filled with water at hidden springs in the desert and bury them along their route so that they can make it safely back across the dunes... Talk about a workout - ouch!!!  We returned to our wonderful lodge for lunch and a found out that the local pub (an hour drive away) was showing the euro 2012 match between Italy and Spain so we decided to get some local flavor and set off to the rest camp.  

It was fun to see the self driver/campers that had found their way into the desert and were camping at the nearby campground.  Most of the travelers we met were Dutch, German, or South African spending 2-3 weeks driving the circuit of Namibia.  We drank ice cold local Hansa draught beers and watched Italy and Spain draw 1 to 1 in the game.  Then it was back to the lodge for dinner and off to bed with the hopes of ballooning the next morning.