Day 2 - Ais Ais to Aus

Drive: 333km

We woke up early by what we thought were guys shouting very loud in in the valley, thinking how strange that was. Turns out it was baboons. We are in nature now!

Leo got out of bed to watch the sunrise turn the mountains pink. Finishing a book, brewing a pot of coffee and preparing a nice breakfast for us while Lars slept in a bit. After scrambled eggs and avo, we packed the car and took a little stroll to explore the canyon a bit and then it was time to head to Aus.

Cruizing at a smooth 120km on these silky gravels roads, we encounter their artist. A single man and his tractor - working on the roads, ensuring they stay smooth - driving on for days in the middle of nowhere. Thinking to ourselves he would be the perfect hero of a Namibian novel.

We were driving along the Orange River, the natural bordel between Namibia and South Africa, where the dry and rocky desert contrasts with the lush greenery of the river bed. Meandering inside the canyon, admiring the early spring flowers and birds in the river, we had our first set back.The dreaded flat tyre! Despite the very efficient team effort to replace the tyre, the spare tyre’s speed regulation slowed us down by 2hours.

Arriving a little later than planned in Aus, we had our second set back: the camp we wanted to stay at was fully booked (one of the few we hadn’t booked in advance). This turned out to be a blessing in disguise as our options were to book a bnb room or to go wild. We decided on the latter and found a secret wild camp spot tucked between an empty strip and massive boulders. We set up our camp just in time to climb up the rocks for the sunset. Truly in the middle of nowhere, not a soul in sight, only the massive red African sun coming down on the silent plain.

A wild camping wouldn't be perfect without a real gourmet meal! Pasta al' capers, Limone y oregano by the fire and under the spectacular stary skies. End of another beautiful day!

See below the picture and day recap videoRead more