Andre does a neat little take off, flying around & then back over the encampment with our little friend making the plane wings waggle to say goodbye as we go over them...I fear that manoevre might have led to more palpitations....as we head inland towards Damaraland the landscape morphs once again....
Suddenly Paul seems to realise that we're heading straight for the ground and nervously asks if we're landing...yes, we are landing....in a canyon for a quick geology lesson....I knew Soil Science 101(Grondkunde for those Maties out there) from my varsity days would eventually come in handy.....Andre tells us that his brother, Bertus, is actually the geologist in the family but he's just being modest....I think he knows his stuff all right.
Image: courtesy of Amanda Mitchell
We also get to see a couple of Welwitschia mirabilis plants up close...I find the adaptations that plants have made to cope with extreme desert conditions fascinating.....this one is even flowering although it is suffocatingly hot today & no water to be seen anywhere. They'll get their daily water requirements from the sea mists that roll in from the coast every night.
We take off again bound for the camp at Kuidas in the Huab River Valley. The picture below is of the canyon we've just visited - if you look carefully you'll see our 'runway' down the middle of the canyon....
The diversity in colours and landscape continues to amaze the further we fly into Damaraland...
It seems we're landing in this ochre world.....
Image: courtesy of Amanda Mitchell
Kuidas Camp is not far away & our transport comes barrelling across the open plains to meet us...everyone's eyes light up as they spot the roof seat....what fun.....
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