Words: Jack Simpson
Somebody once told me that their greatest ambition was to one day go to Mars. A noble and pioneer-esque ambition without a doubt. The wonderful thing is, I’ve already been there. Ok so maybe it isn’t actually Mars, but the ghostly quiet landscapes that form Namibia are by far the closest one could come to genuinely stepping foot on the red planet without leaving terra firma.
Namibia, a country situated on the south-west coast of Africa, is the second least populated country on Earth after Mongolia, with just over 2 million people living in a landmass of 825,000 square kilometres. This makes it a haven for anyone in search of true wilderness. I was fortunate enough to take the transformative trip of a lifetime when I was in my mid teens.
I’ll never forget waiting at Windhoek airport with my younger brother for our pilot, who was booked to take us a few hours’ flight into the middle of the Namibian desert where we’d be meeting our father and comrades. After five hours of waiting our man arrives and takes us to his tin can with wings he called Elsakop. I was hoping that was Afrikaans for ‘never crash’! Stepping in I saw the disconcerting sight of a hole in the floor directly below my feet, big enough to put my hand through. He saw me looking at it and laughed, then muttered, “don’t worry, you aren’t that skinny!” With junkyard airlines on the runway and every appendage of mine crossed, we took off and spluttered into the searing mid-day sky.
After a tremendously turbulent trip, we touched down on a slither of orange sand, surrounded by a sea of untouched beauty. We had made it to Wolwedans, a magnificent island of rustic refuge hidden within the barren wasteland. This was to be our launchpad into the wilderness. After a night under the stars we set off in a convoy of three Defenders, each with fold-out tents on the top and a tantalising sense of adventure.
Our first stop was the truly unique and everlastingly beautiful Sossusvlei: a land of granular giants, where the tallest sand dunes in the world reside, some towering over 300 meters tall. There’s an old dried up lake bed called Deadvlei set amongst the dunes with petrified trees that haven’t changed in nearly 1,000 years. The place has an eerie, yet majestic feel to it. Coming from a world where everything is always on the move, it was a refreshing yet mildly unnerving sensation that made me realise how far from normal life this place really was. As far as I could see, this was Heaven on Earth.
After leaving the serenity of Sossusvlei, we travelled up the Skeleton Coast. A land littered with the remnants of old ships that crashed on the rocks after losing their way in the dense fog that often plagues the area. Their rusted hulls a reminder of the savagery of the sea. We travelled north and after a brief stop in Walvis Bay, one of the few examples of civilisation in the country, we arrive in Etosha National Park. If you ever want to guarantee seeing the Big 5 while on safari, go to Etosha. The park is a lush ring of vegetation surrounding a lifeless salt-pan in the middle. This extraordinary layout means all the animals reside in the thin rim of greenery and stay well clear of the deadly salt-pan. This pushes your chances of seeing fauna through the roof. I was lucky enough to find myself a few meters from a leopard in broad daylight, which was quite happy sitting there while we gazed in awe at this regal creature. The bountiful wildlife in Etosha will leave you with a sense of wonder and amazement. It truly is a Garden of Eden.
Back on the road after a few days in the oasis of Etosha, we begrudgingly embarked on our return journey towards Windhoek, passing through endless miles of horizon-less landscapes that seem to swallow whole mountains. I looked back on our dusty quest. I started out fresh-faced and full of teenage bravado, expecting a few good stories at most. What I got was a truly life-changing experience that completely warped the way I viewed our world. We take silence, space and moments to ourselves completely for granted, and before this trip I never even considered the possibility that I could find peace in the most unlikeliest of places. If you’re looking for a bar-studded beach holiday, go to Ibiza. But if you’re looking for something completely out of the ordinary, something you’ll never forget and something that’ll have a lasting effect on you as a person, go to Namibia. I can assure you, it’s a decision you’ll never ever regret.
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