Day 7 – Footprints in the sand

Walvis Bay is Namibia's main seaport. Although Namibia became independent from South Africa in 1990, Walvis Bay remained a South African enclave. South Africa did not want to give up the natural harbor. It was only in 1995 that Nelson Mandela gave Walvis Bay personally back to Namibia. The city of Walvis Bay is not interesting by itself, but the surrounding nature is.

We start this beautiful sunny and warm day on the water. We take a boat trip to observe seals, pelicans and hopefully dolphins. We have just left the shore when Nico, one of the seals, jumps aboard. He knows we have some yummy fish. Nico is 3 years old and is a young seal. In nature, they can grow up to 25 years old. From the age of 5 they can mate and  from then on they only have eyes for the girls, no longer for boats with fish on board J. We can closely observe Nico.

He looks at us with investigating eyes waiting for his fish. His mustache vibrates when he sees them. That tasty snack is going down well. Under his wet black fur he has brown hair. Those hairs remain dry. It's only the upper layer of his fur that gets wet. Meanwhile, the pelicans have arrived who also want some fish. Their landing on the water is spectacular.

Nico apparently likes being on the boat and does not seem to want to leave. The pelicans are happy with their fish. They are beautiful birds. The power that comes from their wings is incredible. After a while, Nico gets bored and dives into the water. We are heading for the oyster fields. These are manmade oyster fields.

The weather conditions here are optimal for growing oysters. Where an oyster normally takes over 3 years to grow, this happens here in just a few months. At the end of Walvis Bay, the so-called Pelican Point, there is a colony of seals. There are thousands of them. 

They roll in the water, jump like dolphins and play as children. They have a lot of fun.

A  jackal looks at this scene from the side.
We sail a little further to a drilling rig. Here in secluded Walvis Bay, many repairs to ships and drilling rigs are done. This drilling rig usually drills for oil in front of Angola's coast.

No oil was found before the coast of Namibia. Then it is time for a snack and a drink on board. The sparkling wine is popped, the oysters are opened and for non-lovers there are samosas, spring rolls and sandwiches.

Suddenly Eddie turns up. Another seal. We act quickly to get the food and drinks out of the way. With difficulty, we get Eddie back in the water. The drink and snacks are a threat. We have a perfect day so far. Suddenly some small shy dolphins turn up next to the boat.

It is a smaller local species that are shy and do not jump out of the water. These are the only dolphins in the area. We sail quietly back to the port as out of the blue, the  bigger 'flippers'  turn up. There are 4 of them.

We try to follow them. They are fast animals. We catch up with them and when everyone gets ups to photograph them, we hear and feel a big blow, the boat jumps and tilts to the right and then falls back in the water in a horizontal position. Everybody is lying on the ground, some crying of pain. The blood pours out of Evelyn’s nose. I'm trying to help where I can. Lynn is in great pain. She can hardly move her hand and is clearly in shock. More people are in shock. When everyone gets over the initial shock,  it becomes clear that we have hit a concrete buoy. The captain still tried to turn the steering wheel, but could not avoid the impact. Upset we leave the boat at the shore. When the boat is taken out of the water we see a huge hole just above the water line. We realize that this could have ended completely different. The boat could have capsized or people could have been thrown overboard. Lynn is transferred to the hospital to have X-rays taken.

Still a little dazzled, we start immediately with our next activity. With 4X4's we are taken to Sandwich Harbor. The flamingos are waiting for us. Thousands of them stand in the water on their long black legs.

A beautiful spectacle. Sandwich Harbor is a big sea of ​​sand dunes.

The next few hours we drive like in a car rally over the big sand dunes. We drive dune up and dune down, the car making deep traces in the sand.

Sometimes we can’t get up from the first time. Some dunes have a slope of more than 30°. It's just the Paris-Dakar rally. We get butterflies in the stomach. As in a roller coaster we are thrown back and forth. The powerful 4X4s bring us up fast, sometimes we stay on the rim before driving back down.

We get out of the car for the first time on the rim where the dunes disappear into the ocean. The dunes drop from high altitude (as a cliff) into the Atlantic Ocean. A unique view.

We stop a few more times to put our feet in the sand. It's really hard to climb a few meters up the dune. You slide away in the sand. When the sun starts to set, the 'McDonalds’ opens.

Sparkling wine is served and we enjoy tasty snacks and  the beautiful views from the setting sunrays  that shine on the dunes. An antelope seeks cooling down on the now colder sand.

Tonight the wind earases our footprints and tire tracks. What remains is a painting of perfectly shaped dunes.