ReitSafari HorseTrails Namibia - Adventure ride through the Sperrgebiet

Adventure ride through the Sperrgebiet - July 2008
by Miriam Schmidt

"What on earth have I let myself in for? Are you sure we want to go there?" I pose the question to my travel companion, Phillip. Looking at the landscape expanding in front of our eyes, I'm having second thoughts about our endeavour.
No trees, no water, just endless sand dunes and shimmering heat are stretched out ahead of us - right up to the horizon. And no sign that human feet ever walked this soil. This harsh desert landscape does not seem to welcome us. One reason for that could be the fact that indeed humans have not been welcome in this area for almost exactly 100 years.

My travel companion Phillip, a Haflinger gelding, does not seem to share my doubts, however. Without hesitation, as if it were a very ordinary cross-country ride, he trots off into this barren wilderness. I admire his courage and swallow my doubts. I quickly realize that I can trust him. In contrast to myself it isn't the first time, after all, that he crosses one of the deserts in Namibia. Furthermore, both of us have every confidence in our chief riding guide, Waldi Fritzsche. All right then, let's abandon ourselves to adventure...

We are on a pioneering ride through the Sperrgebiet (Restricted Diamond Area) with ReitSafari Horse Trails. In April 1908 the first diamond was found in the vicinity of Lüderitz. In the wake of this discovery many pioneers tried their luck looking for the glittering pebbles, and some became rich overnight. Half a year later the colonial government intervened and started to regulate the diamond trade. In order to prevent smuggling, a coastal strip of land with a width of 100 km was declared no-man's-land. Thus it happened that this harsh, but truly magnificent desert area was largely spared by human activity for 100 years.

To celebrate the centenary of the first diamond find, Waldi Fritzsche and Telané Greyling, a specialist on the Wild Horses near Aus, arranged a horseback safari from Aus to Lüderitz. The Ministry of Environment and Tourism (MET) and Namdeb, the diamond company, granted special permission for our 10-day horseback adventure through the Sperrgebiet. Waldi and her team have offered several days' riding excursions in Namibia for 16 years: the famous Namib Desert Trail, a tour through Damaraland, a trail at the Fish River Canyon and in Bushmanland. But this ride through the Sperrgebiet is something very special - it is a pioneering ride through a part of the country which has been left alone for a century.

Just this once, 'leisure riders' have also been permitted to join, instead of seasoned horsemen only. I am not the only one from Gondwana, by the way: Christine and Piet Swiegers from Klein-Aus Vista are also taking part. It's comforting to know that we are worrying about our legs and bottoms together. We also share the hope for good weather. Didn't Aus have icy temperatures and 60 mm of rain just a week ago?

We are briefed during dinner at Klein-Aus Vista, the starting point of our tour. The horses are allocated according to riding experience, or the lack thereof. And from then on the conversation revolves around, no, not horses, but around the diamonds in the Restricted Area.

The next morning horses and riders seem equally excited about getting started; everyone is rearing to go. Riding towards the Sperrgebiet we pass through the diverse scenery of Gondwana Sperrgebiet Rand Park. Granite mountains with huge boulders on their slopes alternate with wide open plains. A tender friendship evolves between horse and rider.

The legs feel rather wobbly in the evening when we arrive at the camp which has been prepared by the service team. But what luxury is awaiting us: a warm shower! Soon we sit down and enjoy supper, cooked over the fire by Waldi and her team. This night's dessert is baked pear with chocolate and vanilla sauce. Delicious! On each of the following days Waldi continues to surprise us with her skilful cookery over the fire - whether it is a special desert, a braai or a farmhouse breakfast. We set up our camp beds under the starry sky... Luxury is in simplicity.

Our camp near the deserted police station of Grillental, deep within the Sperrgebiet, also adds something special to the experience. It is not only that a hyena pays us an evening visit, eyeing us curiously from quite close. When we wake up in our bedrolls the next morning they are damp on the outside. The horses, even though they are closeby, are blurred by fog which rolled in all this way from the coast during the night. It creates an unreal, rather eerie atmosphere among the ruins of the police station where we have pitched our camp. We don't even want to think of how it would be if we were to encounter rainy weather during our ride - cold fronts and winter rains are nothing extraordinary in this area at this time of the year. But then the first rays of sun break through the fog and drive away our gloomy thoughts. Once more the landscape shows its sunny face.

The next days pass like a dream. We ride through ever-changing scenery. Wide open plains in soft pastel hues alternate with granite mountains and endless sand dunes. And we can't stop marvelling at the vastness of this desert landscape. Space for long stretches of galloping, space to breathe. This is the reason why many Reitsafari guests become 'repeat offenders': craving for Namibia's vast spaces they keep returning to the 'scene of action'...

We cover the last leg to the beach of Lüderitz at the fastest, most exhilarating gallop I ever experienced. As befits our ride deluxe and the riches which once were hidden here, we are handed a glass of champagne at the finish. And so we chink glasses in style and drink a toast to all and sundry: the team which took care of us in such a wonderful manner, our horses which proved so courageous and faithful, our bottoms which made it despite a few sore places, the marvellous weather which didn't leave us in the lurch, MET and Namdeb which granted permission for this expedition - and also to ourselves for joining in the adventure and enjoying it to the full.

(published in Allgemeine Zeitung, 2008)

Damaraland Trail
This is a truly exceptional trail: where else can you expect to see elephant, giraffe and rhino in a desert habitat! And you will be surprised at how they have adapted.
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