Chitter Chatter on 4x4 Travel and More: Tuesday 28th Sept 2010 - Desert Crossing

We awoke to a brilliantly clear day and got ourselves busy with packing up for the day ahead. Today was to be the desert crossing and as Andre had explained, we'd have to first get out of the riverbed before exploring further and this sounded like an adventure in itself.

Breakfast was an interesting array of muffins, sausages, pap and sauce, cheeses and breads. Once we had finished up, washed our dishes, made the final adjustments to our packing, we parked in convoy and waited for Andre to take the lead and guide us out of our little safehaven.

We joined up with section of riverbed we had driven through the day before and here we were instructed to pump up our tyres as we were about to ascend some very rocky terrain ...

This terrain being WORS PASS, is made up of rock that looks like slabs of shale. And that is all - just rock and pieces of it strewn everywhere. Any plant life is virtually non existent and what there is is very scrubby and dry.

Here is Andre taking the lead and testing the track before the rest of us can follow.

Once at the top he radioed for the rest of us to come up one vehicle at a time and here you can see just how high we are going

- notice in the clearing just left of centre how tiny the 4x4s look!

(click on the picture to enlarge).

And here is a close up of the type of rock we drove over...

Once at the top the view was again quite breathtaking with the contrasts

of rock, dune and greenery.

We assembled next to Andre, waiting as each vehicle slowly made it to the top.

Where the river flows the abundance of life is absolutely amazing and to see all this with one's own eyes is truly a privilege.

And so we continued our journey and not too far off we came to an area that is littered with Welwitschia mirabilis...

Dead Welwitschia

These are the most incredibly amazing plants consisting of only two leaves which grow continuously from a woody cotyledon. Because of the strong winds in the desert, the leaves become shredded and straplike, giving the impression that there are many leaves connected to the plant.

With a separate male and female plant, pollination takes place via little insects that inhabit the plants, waiting patiently for "cones" or buds to appear so they can live off the nectar and because they are so attracted to this nectar, they move from one plant to the other, therefore doing the work of bees in an area where a bee can't survive very well.

There is no telling how old Welwitschias become, but it is thought that they can live anything up to 1000 and 2000 years old.

So after our very interesting lesson, we continued our journey across the desert, seeing the ravages of drought on plant and animal life, but astounded by the survival of both as well. How remarkable it is that plants and animals have been adapted to suit their surroundings and when the time is right, to still be able to procreate and continue their species...

Talking of survival, should you ever find yourself stranded in this vast desert, don't forget about the Dollar Plant - it has thick succulent leaves bursting with water. But be warned, they are rather bitter (or salty I thought), and you most certainly wouldn't want to be devouring the entire bush to survive!

Our journey took us across gravel plains, where all there is is gravel. We didn't stop to discover, but I am sure there is an abundance of life in what appears to be completely lifeless. Perhaps one day I can return, become a nomad and just study what is the oldest desert on earth...

We slipped into the riverbed again and drove along a wide open area where Springbok ran alongside Andre's vehicle, as though in greeting and acknowledgement of his presence. Again a most moving thing to see. Animals do have brains and never forget, be you good or bad...

Where these trees are growing, a biodiversity rehabilitation program is taking place. This is a program to encourage people to take ownership of and contribute towards their livelihoods in a way that should maintain their unique environment and improve their lives.

With the mooing of cows not far off and the unpreventable buzz of flies, the convoy came to a stop and while lunch was being prepared, we yakked about our morning excursion, the things we had seen and learnt and the absolute wonder of it all...

Lunch was cold meat and salads, cheeses and breads and a variety of spreads.

We settled for our cup of tea and some padkos that had to be finished.

The temperature was incredible and the sweat just poured off. Temperature gauge read 38 degrees Celcius at midday.

With stomachs full, blaringly bright light and the heat of the day, Andre cautioned us to be wide awake. All these factors contribute to people becoming drowsy and falling asleep behind the wheel ... and the terrain we were covering, with its vast expanse of sand, sand and more sand could have a hypnotic effect...