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The_Norwegian

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The_Norwegian

Namibia, the wonderful!

Woooooow, the countdown is at 0, the day is finally here! In just a few hours, I am airborne and on my way to Namibia, once again! The excitement is beyond words as i post this! I have thought about how to write this years trip-report, as last years, http://safaritalk.net/topic/16912-my-great-namibian-adventure/, I never completed because i got lost in dates and places etc. So I think I have a better «strategy» in my mind this time around and as you can see with this first installment even before I have left home, I feel confident that this report will take you from the first to the last day!

 

We will travel with the same little company as last year, but our guide from last year, Tommy, sadly had an accident, and for the longest we and he hoped that he would be well enough to travel, but sadly, his doctor has grounded him, so no Namibia for him this time around. So the trip-leader will be another one in the same company, a very proffesional fellow, but he has never been to Namibia before, but they choose to do it like this instead of cancel the trip, wich all of us is very happy for. So this year, I am the «experienced» one ? and they have actually asked if I can be of assistance in anyway I want, and of course I will, these guys have become my friends, so I am happy to help in any way I can!

 

In Namibia we will be driven and guided around by the same company we had last year, a Namibia-based company called safari24.com, wich specializes in Namibia and Botswana, and makes the trip smooth and hassle-free for us. Well, smooth is up for debate  considering the roads in Namibia driving in a safari-specced landy, but you know what i mean ?

 

Unlike last year when Air Namibia flew us down south, and qatar via doha homebound,  this year we will travel with british airways via heathrow and jo`burg both ways, so one more stopover this time. BA was in fact my suggestion as they have a class between economy and business(https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/travel-classes/premium-economy/world-traveller-plus) with a good amount of added comfort, and it does not cost the white out of ones eye. I am quite tall with some extra «padding», so it is a nightmare for me to fly in economy, so i was happy to get some more room for my legs and overall myself this year! And also, today is actually my birthday, so if I am offered a bubbly drink aboard, I think i will say yes to it this time, although i`m not much of a drinker! Can`t think of a better way to spend my birthday ?

However, since we are flying BA we had to depart a day before planned due to flighttimes and bookings, so we will spend the first day and night in Windhoek before we head down to sossusvlei on the 18th and spend the two first days there at http://www.sossusdunelodge.com/. Then we head back up north and will spend two days at erindi.com, doing a total of 6 game-drives, 18 hours of game viewing ?

 

Then off to http://www.etoshanationalpark.org/, where we will cover the park from east to west, starting at https://nwr.com.na/resorts/namutoni-resort, then https://nwr.com.na/resorts/halali-resort, before we end the trip inhttps://nwr.com.na/resorts/okaukuejo-resort , same as last year, wich I think is great as this time I know what to expect and have the opportunity to plan a little ahead, photowise!

 

And this is where the anticlimatic part begins, the jorney home, with a mind full of new memories and harddrives full of pictures!

 

Also worth mentioning is that i have shedded a great amount of weight in my camera backpack this time.

 

My Nikon D500 will be fitted with a Sigma 50-500 OS, and I just recently bought a D7500 wich will be fitted with a new tokina 16-50 f.2,8 i bought (i really like Tokina, they are great lenses built like a tank at an affordable price), so i think i have all the range i need in a very managable weight! I will also bring a lightweight tripod as the moonphase is favourable to try some nightsky-photo, we`ll see if i get some decent shots, it`s new to me. Lots of memorycards, and my new microsoft surfacebook that i purchased earlier this year, as well as 2x1tb external hdd`s, lots of extra batteries, chargers, the works, so I think I have everything covered!

 

My initial thoughts is to write this trip-report «live», as in writing a little bit for each day that passes when the impressions and thoughts are fresh, obviously to save and post when i get home, not to much in the way of internet down there. However, I`ll have to see how this plan turns out, it`s easy to have this plan now, but follow through when every day is an adventure.. Well, we`ll see!

 

Well, that is about it for the introduction to the trip i suppose, it`s time for me to leave the winter and head for summer!

 

Oh, btw, I might have a little surprise for you up my sleeve in the final part of the trip report, so stay tuned!

«TBC»….

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1 hour ago, The_Norwegian said:

And also, today is actually my birthday,

 

Happy birthday, @The_Norwegian! That is one heck of a b'day present you gave yourself :o.

 

 

1 hour ago, The_Norwegian said:

we will cover the park from east to west,

Hmmm, what about western part? No Dolomite Camp :huh:?? 

 

 

1 hour ago, The_Norwegian said:

My initial thoughts is to write this trip-report «live»

A very wise strategy! A few lines each day, with date and places works miracles after a month or two when all photos are sorted out, and ready to start a trip report.

 

 

I wish you a great trip, and I wish us a great trip report! Namibia is oh so beautiful.

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Happy birthday, and I hope (but am also sure) that you have a wonderful time!

 

I do hope you manage to read this on the way: please don't expect too much with the night sky shots, as the milky way's core (the bright parts) are currently under the horizon, somewhat like the sun in northern Norway, it is only visible for half the year, in this case, the colder half. However, all is not lost, as you will still be able to get good star trails.

 

I look forward to reading about the adventure!

 

Edited by Peter Connan
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The_Norwegian

Hello everybody! Just checking in to say we have arrived in sossusvlei, now enjoying a double GT, i can not start to describe how good that tasted again, one year since last time! Just a relaxing afternoon and evening today, tomorow the adventure begins! Hope you are all ok! 

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The_Norwegian

Greetings from Namibia! Currently in Erindi, it`s so beautiful here now compared to last year, so green and lush, happy animals, happy people! LIttle harder to spot the animals of course, but you won`t hear a word of complaint out of this mouth, I`m in heaven :-) Hope you are all ok :-) Check in with you later! 

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The_Norwegian

900km of gamedriving

50+ lions, including a brute that would send the most notoriuos of lions running, and probably has done just that

countless zebras, gnu, giraffes and general game

wonderful elephants

my first Etosha cheetas

birds, birds and birds

etc etc

 

That`s a wrap people! 

 

A wonderful magical trip has come to an end, just one night left in Windhoek where we are now, then it`s back to reality until next time! The addiction that is Africa is growing stronger each time, and there is no cure apart from going back. 

 

I have lots of pictures to work through, so stay tuned, and this trip report will go live during the first half of december! 

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The_Norwegian

just a little something to start with ?

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Nice!

 

Looking forward to the photos.

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The_Norwegian

So I am back home in a winterly Norway, walked in the front door right before noon. It`s very anticlimatic getting home after a trip like this, but I don`t have to explain that to you guys ;-) It has been a fantastic jorney, I feel i got a whole lot more out of the trip this time then last year, and although a lot of pictures naturally has been taken, I had more of a calm inside me now, allowing me to take it all in in a different way than a year ago. The main part of the trip report shouldn`t be all that many days away, I think i have it all better planned out now! Hope you all will follow my jorney! Here`s a little something to keep the thread warm :-) 

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What else to do when outside is snow and cold ;). Don7t wait too long, in a month time it is my turn to go down south :)

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The_Norwegian
22 hours ago, xelas said:

What else to do when outside is snow and cold ;). Don7t wait too long, in a month time it is my turn to go down south :)

 

I will try to have something ready by then i think :-) I will try to get cracking on the Sossusvlei-part in a few days :-) Where are you going, Namibia you as well? 

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9 minutes ago, The_Norwegian said:

Where are you going, Namibia you as well? 

 

No, it will be South Africa (for a change of pace), Cape Town and around.

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The_Norwegian

The jorney south.

After a long day of travelling, we finally arrived at the airport. unlike last year, we were through passport and baggage reclaim in a breeze, and were met by Walter, our guide in the arrival hall. good thing I was on this trip since i was the only one that knew him from before :-P Our first port of call was the pension moni, a quiet and nice place with a bird garden and a semi habituated yellow moongoose! We went for dinner at, where else, Joe's that first evening for some good meat and slme cold beverage in our glasses, very nice! I fell asleep very quick that evening, and slept good all through the night. 

 

We started early morning from Windhoek towards Sossusvlei, driving the route through the spreetshoogte pass, and all to Solitaire, where something cold to drink and various cakes was eaten. The applecake is the popoular choice, I don`t like it, so i opted for a delicious cinnamon-roll.

 

Onwards to the sossus dune lodge, just like last time. Much much hotter this year, i would say a little to hot for comfort for me,  with temperatures steadily in the 40`s C. If i were to book a stay in Sossusvlei, personally i would stay at one of the lodges outside the gate, the comfort is better. I would gladly sacrifice the one hour jumpstart in the morning into the dunes for better sleep quality, and also that one hour does not have that much effect if you don`t plan to do the dead vlei in the morning. We did dead vlei in for sunset, wich also means that the vlei has very few visitors. It was very nice to be back in sossusvlei, had a great couple of days, with photographing, quite a lot of walking, sore legs, exhausted and happy, with a really cool sighting that stands out, for me at least!

 

 

Solitaire!

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My first attempt at nightsky photo, not perfect in any way, but fun to try!
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Brown hyena in the dunes! Wow ? A highlight!

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Edited by The_Norwegian
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Fabulous!

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The_Norwegian
12 hours ago, Peter Connan said:

Fabulous!

Thank you so much ?

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Really like your different approach/views of Deadvlei. Seeing brown hyena in dunes ... amazing!

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The_Norwegian
3 hours ago, xelas said:

Really like your different approach/views of Deadvlei. Seeing brown hyena in dunes ... amazing!

 

 

Yes, it was truly amazing, and not something you see every day, maybe the most special sighting the whole trip! Thank you, it`s hard to choose wich pictures to show, I tried to take a little different pictures this year :-)

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Excellent pictures and a great start to the trip report! We’ll be going to Namibia late January, so I’m reading your story with added thorougness. Interesting to read that you visited Deadvlei at sunset!

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The_Norwegian
32 minutes ago, PeterHG said:

Excellent pictures and a great start to the trip report! We’ll be going to Namibia late January, so I’m reading your story with added thorougness. Interesting to read that you visited Deadvlei at sunset!

 

Thank you very much! More will come, I will just let the first part "sink in" a little first :-) You will love it, but january, you might get a fair share of rain i think :-) Yes, dead vlei is best in the evening, so please consider it, but don`t tell anyone ;-) The light is best, and you will be there alone, or close to it. Only thing is, you will have to push it to get back to your lodge in time ;-) 

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The_Norwegian
On 8.12.2017 at 8:50 AM, Antee said:

Truly excellent photos!

 

 

Thank you very much! :-)

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Beantiful scenery pictures,well done and the  tracks in the sand along with the animals :).Brown hyena encounter surely would be highlight.Thanks 

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The_Norwegian
22 hours ago, colbol said:

Beantiful scenery pictures,well done and the  tracks in the sand along with the animals :).Brown hyena encounter surely would be highlight.Thanks 

 

Thank you very much :-) Yes, the brown hyena was a unexpected sighting, it was very special to me!

 

Next installment will be up and running either this evening or during tomorrow!

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