I think we go camping because it makes us appreciate home comforts more.
We woke up feeling refreshed and ready for the day. Except for Tony and Al who had some guy banging around all night in the room next to them, they thought it was George and Sue, until the man started his 4 o’ clock Muslim prayer chants. This caused much hilarity at breakfast – with George and Sue being newly weds.
After a hearty hotel breakfast, including omelettes and crumpets we were on our way. A 180km drive to our next destination, a two night stay at Epupa Falls.
Our first stop was at Opuwo to fill up with diesel, buy NTC air time and cool drinks. The town, although extremely dusty had no litter. We had an extended stop at a 4 way intersection while 2 piglets crossed the road. What strikes you most are the eclectic mix of cultures; Damaras, Ovambos, Hereros, Himbas and 6 South African whities.
The two cultures that stand out are the Hereros and Himbas due to their difference in dress from western culture.
Hereros are traditionally cattle herding pastoralists, their status in the community being rated on the number of cattle owned. They were however, heavily influenced by western culture during the colonial period, pretty much creating a new identity. The women, especially, wear dresses along the style worn by colonial Europeans. They have however, added their own African flavor in terms of the bright and beautiful African print materials used.
The Ovahimbas are indigenous to Northern Namibia, with an estimated 50 000 living here. They are semi-nomadic pastoral people. In remote regions, they are considered amongst the last of the hunter-gatherers. They are polygamous, with arranged marriages and females in the tribe perform most of the labour intensive work, this is reminiscent of the Masai of Kenya and Tanzania. The Himbas wear traditional clothing that befits the hot semi-arid climate of Kaokoland. This consists of skirts made traditionally from calf skins. They are most famously known for covering themselves with otjize paste; a mixture of butterfat and ochre pigment, perfumed with aromatic resin of the omasum shrub. This gives their skin a red/orange/rust colour and apparently cleanses the skin over long periods, due to a scarcity of water and protects them from mosquitoes. Hairstyles and jewelry play a significant role, indicating age and social status in the community. Women wear headpieces, sculptured from sheepskin, with streams of braided hair, colored and shaped with otjize paste.
The road out of town was sandy and in need of repair, there were road works being done, and numerous narrow low lying bridges, all in all, making driving conditions bumpy and difficult. This was the busiest road we have been on since Swakopmund. The surrounding area was predominantly mopani and acacia trees, with no ground vegetation. There were numerous herds of goats and we were continually stopping or slowing down for them, they were tended to by boys, some looked as young as around 5 or 6.
At Okangwati we turned right and drove along a few kilometers of lush vegetation with palm trees, before long it had returned to Mopani territory, with a few baobabs. We passed the zebra mountains on our right, well known for their striped appearance.
Eventually we came over a rise and the dry red sand of the past 4 hour drive turned into an oasis of green palm trees. We arrived at Epupa Falls lodge around 1. OMG!!! this is absolutely beautiful, a real running river after almost 3 weeks of desert and dry river beds. From desert to jungle – we are so privileged to be experiencing such remote and amazing places. We're have now travelled from the southern most tip to northern border of Namibia.
Our thatched roof, wooden-reed hut is on stilts, right on the banks of the river. We have a view overlooking the top of the Epupa Falls on the Kunene. The room is open aired with no windows. On the opposite side of the river we look into Angola. Gray recalled being in this area of Namibia and unofficially in Angola, in the early ‘80’s, while fighting in the bush war. At one point they landed a helicopter here to pick up the body of one of their soldiers who had been washed over the falls.
We went for a drink to the central wooden stilted bar and food area. Here we saw a rufous-tailed palm thrush – this is the only place in the world where they are found, another lifer for us all. The temperature is in the early 30 degrees and I would love to go for a swim in the river but we have been warned about big crocs lurking around.
After spending some time reading, really being more distracted by the view, the birds, the flowing water – I gave up. The heat got the better of us and we took a walk to the edge of the falls and couldn't resist a swim. The water was wonderfully cool and refreshing. We had some local Himba children come and watch us. When the men arrived and started stripping down for their evening wash, Al and I got out pretty quickly. George and Sue had gone on a bird finding walk down the river.
Dinner and drinks on the deck saw the last of the sun’s rays and an almost full moon rising between the makalani palms. Thankfully the heat had been replaced by a cold breeze and the spray from the falls.
I went to bed in our ‘George of the Jungle’ hut and was lulled to sleep listening to the sounds of the waterfall.
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