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Sunday, September 17, 2017

Swakopmund, NM to Cape Cross, NM and back

After yesterday's long ride on the dirt, today we would be in Swakopmund and take a short ride 130 kms north to Cape Cross.
As we were not in a hurry we woke up later than usual and went for breakfast which was very nice. The weather was overcast and temperatures stayed most of the day below the 20C. An extra layer was necessary for the ride up the Skeleton Coast as there was wind coming from the west inland and that would decrease the temperature I would feel on the bike.
Before starting our journey we stopped at the Namibia Wildlife Resorts (NWR) offices to get our permit to the moon landscape that we want to visit tomorrow.
The ride up the Skeleton Coast is a unique experience as you have the ocean on one side and the desert on the other and you travel in the middle of this vast area that is mostly soft sand interrupted by rocky outcrops.
"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 name Skeleton Coast was coined by John Henry Marsh as the title for the book he wrote chronicling the shipwreck of the Dunedin Star.
On the coast the upwelling of the cold Benguela current gives rise to dense ocean fogs (called "cassimbo" by the Angolans) for much of the year. There is a constant, heavy surf on the beaches."
Every so often there are entrances into the beach which are used by fishermen to take their cars and fish by the seaside. They use these amazingly long fishing poles that they usually carry in front of their vehicles on special installed pole carriers.
We were able to get really close to the ocean with the bike and listen to its mighty roar as it tried to climb the sandy dunes.
There are supposedly several thousands of shipwrecks strewn across Namibia's 🇳🇦 vast coastline. Most of them have been destroyed by the sea, sun and wind but some of them are still visible.
The Zeila got stranded in 25 August 2008 about 14 kms south of Henties Bay.
It is an amazing sight as you watch this ship get hammered by the strong waves and know that it will be a matter of time until you will not be able to see it anymore.
We then arrived at Henties Bay and went for lunch. Chose a very nice cozy spot that we read on TripAdvisor that served fresh fish. We had a seafood mix with fresh fish.
The fish was very good and so was the calamari. Both were breaded.
It was at this restaurant that we met another portuguese couple and took a picture with Wilson Jorge and his Rubicon.
We also had a very nice encounter with 6 young Namibians that wanted to know more about bike riding around the world.
We then proceeded towards Cape Cross. There was no other traffic on the road. It is amazing how it feels like you are alone in the planet when you are in Namibia.
We arrived at Cape Cross and it was very emotional as it was discovered by Portuguese. The 5 castles on the cross and the inscriptions, one of them written in Portuguese remind you of that.
Cape Cross is actual a seal reserve and there are thousands of seals around. They are everywhere and where they are not, their smell is ...
It is unreal to see so many animals together, listening to their sounds and see how awkward they are on land and yet so graceful in the water.
As I was watching the seals I noticed some foxes and started getting the camera ready for a nature kill. As it turns out the seals and foxes have what seems to be a symbiotic relationship and they live together in harmony. It seems that the foxes do not kill any seal but will eat them if they die.
You can literally walk among the seals and watch them far in the distance as they enjoy the cold water of the Atlantic Ocean.
We then made our way back to Swakopmund enjoying once again the winding asphalt road in the middle of beautiful sandy stretches on both sides.
As we are traveling early tomorrow we went to fill up our tanks and while I was waiting, someone approached me and told me he liked my bike and first time he had seen one had been in a rally many years ago and he had drawn it for the owner. I told him if he liked to draw mine he should. I pushed the bike forward and he started to sketch at this unbelievable speed. His name is Ricky and he has been drawing since he was two years old. In 15 minutes he was able to encompass what I see in my GSA. It was surreal to see a true street Artist at work.
It was a calm and relaxing day with some historical relevance mixed in and great encounters.

Make Life a Ride !

Cape Cross

Facebook post with some photos of the DAY

Click HERE for all the photos of the DAY !

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