Day 6: Sassriem to Swakopmund

26 April 2019

Once again we packed up camp in the dark, and joined the 4x4 queue to get into the park. Our destination was a large sand dune about 40km down the road, which we dubbed Dune 40. Dune 45 lies at the 45km mark and is the most photographed sand dune in the desert. We chose the quieter, equally impressive earlier dune to climb, and began our ascent in the faint pre-dawn light. We thought we were making good progress and just before sunrise thought we were almost at the top, but the dune had a vanishing summit that seemed ever out of reach.

The sun rose and turned the dunes bright orange, and we eventually made it to the peak for a quick drink of water and a marvel at the view, before another exhilarating running descent.

We left Sesriem mid morning, and stopped briefly in Solitaire for schnitzels and legendary apple pie for lunch. We arrived in Walvis Bay and got our first puncture driving along the beachfront. We changed it quickly and continued up the coast to Swakopmund, and into the fog.