Every dawn and dusk magical

Stark beauty

Dawn in the Namibian desert

The Mama Afrika Herd

Today would bring the biggest heart warming surprise, but only after a heart racing start to the day. Up as usual at 6am, breakfast, stretching excercises and then ready to pack up the truck when there was a heart wrenching scream from one of the women. “Scorpion”! Now…, I’m not normally squeamish about bugs, that…

The Savannah elephant population in Namibia is said to be a healthy 24,000 elephants, but the Desert Elephant number is 300 to 350 animals and classified as, ‘close to extinction’. At one time the Desert Elephants were thought to be a sub species of the Savannah elephant but, for now, they have the same classification.…

First and favourite picture

We have come all this way to protect elephants and not seen any yet. So there was huge excitement when the elephant map and black elephant ID file came out on the dinner table at base camp. My first thought, how sad that you can get all their details in a 5cm deep black A4…

Of the 13 volunteers, it turns out that the black sheep of this family could have been me! Last night’s campfire chatter turned to the subject of group travel. We shared comical stories of bad experiences from the past, but equally remarking how well – despite our age/experience gaps – we were all getting on.…

After a week of building walls we are back at base camp. Top priority, to queue for the showers after a week of physical toil and yet no washing, and an opportunity to get your clothes washed of sand, sweat and cement dust. A nasty combination. Divine ( in picture) is the son of the…