Day 20: Farm Namuskluft – Oranjemund – Farm Namuskluft
Since we can't drive east, we take a trip west.
The Orange River is impressively full, and we see a few flooded areas. At the lowest point of the road, the elevation difference to the river is still about 2 meters, so it's not a problem. On the other hand, the delta continues to widen and expand.
Today, we realize that the border extends the entire length of the river up to the highest water level in South Africa, and doesn't run down the middle of the river as we're used to. The Namibians were thoroughly ripped off.
And then, unexpectedly, we find ourselves standing on the Atlantic Ocean and have to laugh because the fog makes it almost impossible to see anything. And we're freezing. 17 degrees Celsius instead of 29 degrees Celsius inland.
Oranjemund is a small, linear mining town, formerly in the restricted area of de Beers and accessible only with a permit, but now under municipal administration. The supermarket is surprisingly well-stocked; there's money here. There's also a golf course, a small airport, and nicely landscaped, irrigated greenery. An oasis in the desert.
The landscape between Rosh Pinah and Oranjemund is bizarre. Somewhat mountains, somewhat desert, somewhat dunes, a few meters of lush greenery right next to the Orange River. Sometimes it's hard to distinguish what has been plowed up by 150 years of diamond prospecting and what may have eroded naturally.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a few oryx or ostriches, once a whole flock of almost 30 birds. Are ostriches even birds? :-)
On the way back, we check out the Sendlingsdrift border crossing – nothing going on, nothing at all.
And the turnoff to Aussenkehr is indeed closed. We could probably drive about 30 km, but from there the road is flooded. It's just too far for us to take a photo.
Back at the campsite, we chat for a while with Ben, an Australian geologist who's a regular visitor. He's very friendly, even if the political situation in the world isn't so great right now. How lucky we are to be able to travel here!