TRAVEL — NAMIBIA
Experiencing the Beauty of Rainy Season
And overlooking the desert from the Spreetshogte Pass, Namibia
Leaving the desert behind, we went on an overwhelming drive through the Khomas Highlands in Namibia. The area that has been dry for so many years and finally received the desperately needed rainfall.
The Spreetshogte Pass is one of the steepest mountain passes in southern Africa and reaches an incline of up to 22 percent. It connects the vast plains of the Namib desert with the hillsides of the Khomas Highland.
As we were approaching the mountain range, I pointed at the road in the distance. My partner said, “this is not the road we are taking.” I shook my head, explaining that this is the exact road we would be taking.
It has been four years since I drove this pass the last time, but I still remember hitting those breaks of my small little rental VW Polo on the downhill part. This time we were driving in the other direction, taking the steep parts of the road on our way up.
And this time, we are also in a remarkably bigger car, but being heavily loaded, we had to push those refs up to make it to the top. Within a distance of four kilometers, the road is elevating us by 1000 meters in altitude.
Halfway up the pass, we pulled off to the side to embrace the view from one of the many viewpoints along the way. I also still remember standing up here the last time while it looked entirely different.
This is all desert country. But you can see the mountains received remarkably more rain than the vast plains. Looking across the vastness of the desert, you can see the red dunes in the background.
Those shades of green covering the landscape is an absolute eye massage. Especially knowing how much this country has suffered in the past few years during the draught.
While talking about all this, I had to dig into my hard drive and find the photographs of my previous visit, which is for once a good thing about being a passionate photographer.
While documenting everything when traveling and just living my life, I can pull off these incredible contrasts in the scenery.
Four years apart are the photographs, but the critical difference isn’t the amount of time lying between them. Rather the amount of rainfall that occurred in this region before taking the second photograph.
It leaves me stunned how much a landscape can change. It is a different change from the change in the European seasons. This is a more powerful one. One that majorly influences the life of the animals and humans living here.
Continuing the drive up into the Khomas Highlands, I spotted weird white spots on the side of the road. Convinced they weren’t rocks, I made my partner stop the car and got out.
Look at these beauties. A different version of desert lilies I haven’t seen before. So delicate. So special. Every flower shooting out of the ground right now is getting captured by my camera as long as I had the opportunity to spot them.
Driving further into the depths of these green landscapes, I can’t stop looking out of the window. With wide-open eyes, I’m staring at the beauty of this country.
Small lakes, dams, and water puddles all along the way. This is not the time to see wildlife due to the bushes and grass, but I know they are all just as happy as I am. Because they can feed anywhere, and they can drink everywhere.
Our destination for the day was Lake Oanob. After choosing our campsite on the dam’s shore, I packed out my backpack with the inflatable paddleboard.
This is the gear I need to explore a lake. A lake I haven’t heard about before. A lake that was so full it was flowing over the walls just a few days ago.
A sunset paddle discovering the beauty of this bird’s paradise turned into a workout session. To surround the lake in one session, I was occupied for a while and not even finished half of it.
This lake has countless fjords if you call them the same on land. It must be stunning looking at this dam from above. Cutting into the hills surrounding it, the lake has lots of unexplored areas of pristine nature all around.
As the clouds were turning into the most amazing colors, I was fighting my way back to the camp with the last strength in my muscles. Despite the struggle, the smile on my face wasn’t to be overlooked.
A day memorable in every single aspect. A pass I won’t forget because of the change in seasons I got to witness. And a lake as a playground for many and my personal highlight.
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Anne Bonfert is a traveler. Photographer. Writer. Teacher. Skydiving instructor. Adventure enthusiast. Nature lover. And fell in love with the African continent.
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