Adventures in the desert

June 24, 2016

Adventures in the desert

Welcome to Swakopmund, the adrenaline capital, and also major retirement hub of the desert. We spent a few days here, and immediately upon arriving, conditions were perfect, and we were told now is the optimal chance for skydiving. So, luckily, with no time to sleep on it, eight of us hopped in a van with the license plate "SKYDIVE NA" and took a wild ride into the middle of nowhere.

We were briefed on how to properly jump out of a plane, mainly, don't become a cat above a bathtub when the door is open and you're ready to go. Enjoy the scenic ride on the way up. When Frank taps you on the shoulder, get cozy and he'll strap you to him. When you get to the door, keep your hands at your chest, and kick your feet up under the plane. Look up! Free fall, forget your stomach in the plane, lose your breath, and cartwheel through the sky. Try to smile for pictures! See if you can hold your arms straight in front of you. One big tug and the world returns below you, and it's a pleasant ride to Earth over the vast desert.

These guys just played games to pass the time on the plane ride. My videographer worked on his Rubik's Cube with his feet dangling out the window the whole way up. Photo: Shay Dodds

Chelsey and Tom were up first, and with Chelsey being the most nervous of everyone, it was a good thing she didn't have to sit and wait for the rest of us to go. She also got incredibly motion sick during the landing, and spent the next few hours overheated on the ground.

Jana and I got to take to the skies together. It got pretty packed in that tiny plane, with a pilot, two of us and our instructors, and a camera guy each, but we didn't have to sit all over each other for very long. I could feel my instructor take two deep breaths behind me and I knew it was time to go. I later heard how bizarre it is to see your friend topple out of a plane before you, but for me, only my camera guy preceded, and he jumped with such gusto and ease that it was only phenomenal to watch. Luckily, I didn't have to make any motion towards the door, for, as excited as I was, this final act was definitely where the heart started to race. It was like waking up in the middle of a dream and suddenly you can't remember the exact decisions and motions that got you to this place. But Military Frank had enough strength and nerve to get us both to the door, where I hung out while he got into position. Okay, feet touching the bottom of the plane? Well that's unnatural. Look up at the wing, and suddenly - oh here we go. Okay wait wait is this what we meant to do? Wait wait THIS IS AMAZING.

In too short a time, we waved goodbye to the camera guy, who shot down like a bullet with his tiny trick parachute, and Frank deployed ours. Catching a deep breath of the calm air, we began to float gently to the base. I got to steer with a pull on either end of the chute, and marvel at the desert. Frank pointed out Spitzkoppe in the distance, from where we had just arrived that morning after a five hour truck ride. With the Atlantic to the west, nothing but dunes to the east, and Swakopmund sprawling to the south, we landed gracefully beside the rest of the crew. The following half hour was spent in hysterical laughter, a life-affirming phenomena that leaves one curled in a corner, happier than they've ever experienced.

At dinner that night, we found our skydiving instructors at the bar and discussed the adrenaline high in depth. It was fascinating to hear their stories, and how the natural reaction of their bodies is still fear, despite jumping out multiple times a day. "It's against human nature," Frank explained, and even after two thousand jumps, it takes mind over instinct to move to that open door.

Photo: Shay Dodds

Still riding the adventure high, the following day we headed into the great sand dunes to do some sandboarding. It was an incredibly hot day, and after a night of celebration, it was a little difficult to keep climbing up the sand, getting half the distance for twice the effort. But each run was worth it. I had never snowboarded before, so the entire motion was brand new to me. Standing up and obtaining any sort of velocity was difficult enough, but also, falling in the scorching sand is painful, get back up quick! In addition to learning the techniques of sandboarding, I also got to try the sand toboggan. You can achieve wonderful speeds flying down the dune with your hands pulling the front of your sled way up to avoid getting a mouthful of sand, feet acting as panic breaks. The guy at the bottom clocks your speed with a radar gun before leaping out of your way - 55 kph! Not too bad, but it's definitely intimidating to be racing that fast with no control. The highest speed of the day was around 63 kph after several attempts, and I think it was either Shay or Brittany, who were competing against each other viciously on their honeymoon.

Franny looking badass, surveying the dunes

It was a compact two days in Swakopmund, but now it's time to continue on through the Namib. The drive was constantly variable, with flat, barren desert, smooth, weathered rocks, to harsh peaks and cobble. A big highlight was crossing the Tropic of Capricorn, and travelling farther south than I ever had before. It was a long, hot few days travelling down towards South Africa, with no shrubs to pee behind on bushy-bushy breaks.

With Tom

With Franny

With Franny and Steve

We met up with a San Bushman who showed us his desert and spoke of their history of survival here, from the elements, the wildlife, and the persecution.
He dug out a trapdoor spider for us to see, simply by noticing a slight ripple in the sand that was the hidden entrance to its burrow. He spoke of growing up in the desert and avoiding snakes, and how they rely on so little water. When the men would go off hunting and make a successful kill, they would cut off the tail and bring it back to the tribe as proof, and the whole group would move camp to this new spot to process the animal. Other hunters stumbling upon a kill without a tail would honour the other's hard work and move on. Food could be scarce, and to reach the meat in time might mean leaving those who could not travel behind. New mothers forced to leave cumbersome infants, unhelpfully consoled by those suggesting you can always have more children later.
When the Dutch first came to Namibia, they began dividing up the land into sections. Where previously this nomadic tribe had wandered freely, travelling the same hunting routes, they were suddenly trespassing, or blocked by fences. Bushmen were seen as a nuisance animal, and hunted. This was shocking to learn about, and it sounds like racism still runs high in this country, but the Bushman heritage is proud and preserved.

Photo: Shay Dodds

Lastly, I had been dying to try nighttime photography for ages, but I just wasn't figuring it out on my own. Shay gave me an excellent tutorial with patient detail about how to start getting star photos. Each photo had a thirty second exposure, the highest it can go on my Canon T3i, and the camera sat very still on my tiny tripod in the sand. Any light could ruin or enhance the shot. Ultimately, the amazing photos require some more special equipment, but I'm still very happy to get anything showing what the nightly light show was like under the big African sky.