The next day we left Windhoek behind and began the journey south. We were barely 5 minutes outside Windhoek when we left the asphalt roads behind us. We were heading for Solitaire – a journey of a few hundred kilometres on dusty gravel roads. It took the morning for the boys to get some confidence on the bikes and the first natural stop for lunch came at a mountain pass. It was a bit of a surprise as we rounded a corner, came through a gate and were greeted with a spectacular panoramic view of the hills. Out came the cameras and then lunch – a couple of apples each.
Pretty soon we were back on the bikes and the scenery kept getting better. The road clung to the side of the hill and snaked back and forth as we dropped into the valley. Gareth decided to video the descent but gravel roads, hairpin bends and video recording proved difficult at best.
Once we were out of the hills there was yet another huge plain to cross. The land undulated just enough to hide a big gorge that the road suddenly dropped into. This provided a spot to rest and we weren’t the only ones to take advantage of the shade.
Once again we were back on the road and not far out of the gorge we crossed the Tropic of Capricorn for the second and last time. Yet another photo opportunity. Then it was a long straight run to Solitaire. This is a town which is known for its apple pie. Some would say that’s because it’s all you can buy there but it was pretty good – especially for a weary biker. This was to be our first night without tents as it was warm enough.
The airstrip was just beside the campsite and it was the viewing station for yet another amazing sunset. All around us were the sounds of the local wildlife – we never did figure out what they were but there sure were a lot of ‘em.
There was also a telly where the Springboks were playing Connaught. Again, it was weird to have another Northern Irish connection, but the commentary was provided by our own Jim Neely (I think). After the match it was off to bed to sleep under the stars.
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