Namibia Travel Tips in a Nutshell

Last Revised: $Revision: 1.2 $, $Date: 2001/08/11 22:56:49 $

Car rental and Equipment

the standard off road car is the Toyota Hilux (the workhorse of Africa).
it is excellent and cheaper then any other so don't try to get a Land Rover or similar.
get one which needs 93 octane fuel not 95 becase 95 octane fule is not every where availble
if you have a fridge then ensure that you get two batteries.
this avoids to be unable to start after the fridge has drained the one battery.
get two spare wheels.
on bad corrugations tires usually are destroyed beyond repair.
bring your sleeping bags don't rent them.
in the south it can get 7 C at night in the north it is warmer (in spring).
a 25 liter water can is enough for Namibia.
get two jerry cans and fill them with petrol.
ensure that the seals of the jerry cans are good
if not a plastic bag between the closure mechanism can seal them
one roof-top tent can house up to two persons
roof top tents are safer since they are off ground
In my option Technitop roof tens are more convenient the the usual Eezi-Awn.
get a hard tent case instead (like Technitop) instead of the polyuretan bags which are a hassle to pack
the car rental I got with my local European drivers license and we did not need the international drivers license
and even most of the times at police-checks this is enough we were told by the rental company.
However having and international drivers license is on the save side.

Insurance

get all insurances you can get.
in any case you will be liable for like around 2000 USD
on almost 25% (I heard) of the trips an accident occurs due to bad driving skills
check that you are allowed to drive on gravel/dirt roads
with some larger companies like Hertz in some cases you may only drive on tarmac roads, which will bring you no where.
usually you are not insured at all if leaving official roads but there rarely a change to leave these.

Supplies

one can drink all water that comes out of a crane without any treatment we where told at the car rental.
however the water in Windhoek tastes awful and one should go out side.
you can get tap water e.g. at gas stations.
all water is pumped out of the ground except far in the norths where it comes from the Okavango river and there you should not drink it. (And not go there in first place)
93 octane gas is available almost evreywhere but 95 octane not
one liter 93 octane gas costs around 3 NAD in October 2000
Solitare is a kiosk not a city. The gas station is closed there.

plastic bags to cover baggage
toilet paper
lighter

Equipment Top Ten

Most important equipment:

sun hat
heavy hiking boots. You need them always when leaving thew car.
your flashlight - it is 12 hours dark a head light for (7 EUR ) proved most useful.
water bottle
sharp knife

Roads and Driving

Maybe you expect the wild free Africa in Namibia. Don't expect to much. Every square inch beside the parks is fenced and used for cattle. A cow need 20 ha, farmer have usually 6000 ha. That leave you with the excellent network of gravel roads, except 5 km in Sossusvlei which is a real sand field - and don't follow the soft sand sign. If you think it can't get worse - it can.

Roads are classified with letters and numbered:
B are tarmac roads C are gravel roads which are maintained more often D are gravel roads which are maintained seldom
In reality C or D may be as good or bad.

You are allowed to drive:

120 km/h on tarmac roads
100 km/h on gravel roads
60 km/h in the cities

on gravel road you need a longer distance to stop
driving on bad road with corrugations there is a low speed
and a high speed (e.g. 70km/h) where no shaking is felt
on sandy pads apply acceleration very careful.
after some days driving all day gets boring - plan time for something to do
It will always get sand into the car even through the sealing and closed windows.
you can reduce this if you set the ventilation to circulate inside the car
you should always fill up gas and water where ever possible
you never know when the next gas station is available
this especially important if you are not used to the car
most gas gauges are defect and will indicate full until the tank is half empty and then drop at once.
gas stations are often more then 100 km apart
always ask where the next gas station is with your type of gas

Four Wheel Drive

Cars with permanent four wheel drive have 3 differentials, two axel and one center deferential. Those (center) differentials prevent wind-ups by different rotation speed of the wheels (in curves) on tarmac roads. On slippy roads the differentials can be locked to prevent spinning on loose ground and digging the car in.
Cars with part time four wheel drive have no center differential - front and rear wheels are always locked when four wheel drive is applied.

therefor four wheel drive can applied when the surface provides enough slip
that is when you leave tarmac road and travel on gravel roads
do not apply four wheel drive on dry tarmac roads with part time four wheel drive (you have no center differential)
on really difficult terrain you may the apply the rear axel diff lock and then the front axel diff-lock if it is equip with those

Sand Driving

sand driving is done by momentum
apply 4WD before you need it
if stuck stop hitting the acceleration pedal immediately, to avoid to dig you in
the track you came is now firm
if stuck reverse along the same track you came and get momentum
after starting in first gear select the highest gear that give you enough torque to get through (Low third)
follow other vehicle tracks

Navigation

get a the standard 1:4000000 road map
signs showing road numbers, direction (city) and distance are every where
you don't need any other mean of navigation or maps
learn the upcoming roads you will cross to check your position
always stop at major intersection or when unsure
this only takes 10 seconds getting lost may cost hours or your live
don't go to close to the boarder to Angola and to Caprivi - shootings happen there
the sun stands in the north at noon in the southern hemisphere
the sun travels from east in the morning almost straight vertical to the west in the evening.
don't make the mistake and conclude that e.g. east is right from the sun position around noon, as the sun does not travel from right to left.

Camping and Park Permits

as I mentioned there are not many free spots you could camp wild.
we only did this twice which was beautiful.
you will look for one of the many camping site and guest farms.
those have water, a shower, a fire place and a toilet.

there is one misconception that you can only get the permits in Windhoek.
this is not true - The permits you only get at the camp entries.
only the government camping reservation can be done and pre-paid in windhoek
the dates are mandatory but may be changed if space is avaliable
if you are lucky you get a space without reservation at government camping
there are always other camps out side and you just need to pay the permit to enter

Here is and example from Sesrim:
The camp Sesriem has noting to do with the entry to Sossusvlei. But you have to pass the camp in order to get to Sossusvlei and the camp gates open at sun rise and close at sunset (currently at 19:00h). Sossusvlei itself closes at 20:00h. This means when you stay in the camp you can watch the sunset and animals grassing otherwise you have to leave before. The permit costs 30 NAD per person and 10 per car.

img/rg/pic0b004.jpg

Snakes

go to a snake park to see what you can encounter (e.g. Swakopmund, Mokuti Longe).
also you will hardly see snakes, they are there and you will see their traces.
snakes are camouflaged - you will not see them even if you are very close. Believe it!
high boots and long pants protect you from many snake bits
there are 160 species of snakes in Namibia but 85 % of the snakes are not dangerous to humans
treatment for the bite of venomous snakes is a subject of controversy and some treatments that were recommended only a few years ago are no longer thought to be effective
most of what you may read about treating snakebites that was written more than twenty years ago is probably wrong
many vets/doctors have never seen an actual case of snakebite.
fortunately, venomous snakes do not always inject venom when they bite; in roughly 25% of the bites from venomous snakes no venom is injected
immobilize a limb of a snake bit like a broken bone
appropriate is a springe style suction device, the rubber suction cups often sold in "snake-bite kits" do not develop enough suction to do the job
with a springe style suction device you may still only remove as little as of 5 to 15%
The Black Mamba is the most dangerous snake. Already 10 mg of the neurotoxic venom is deadly and it injects 100 to 400 mg with a bite
they can get up to three meters and deliver a byte in your upper body.
most snakes flee when they feel the vibration of large predator and humans
an exception is the Puff Adder, this potential deadly snake is to lazy to flee and counts for most accidents with humans

Security

in cities there are often beggars
leave your car only on a monitored closed parking lot in cities (e.g. Windhoek)
in the country side there a not many people and you are perfectly save

Health

No vaccination are required currently
but if you stay aboard you need some vaccinations as preparations.

Beside the standard vaccination Tetanus... you should get the following:

Hepatitis A
Typhus, and some
Malaria profilaxe.

Places from Etoscha National Park and north are in the rainy season a Malaria(Tropica) risk areas.
don't trust and info on Malaria aboard - ask at a pharmacy in Windhoek
cover your body tread exposed body parts with some Moskito repel
sleep in a Moskito-net or a Moskito tight tent

Places to Go

Ketsmanshoop and the Quiver-tree camping
Sossusvlei
Etoscha National Park
Bushman farm
Ameib Ranch
Swakopmund

Places to Avoid

Lüderitz (noting to see)
Waterberg Plateau (Personal I find it boring)

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