Goodbye Namibia

Tuesday- We drove on from Swakopmund across the Tropic of Capricorn to a rest camp called Solitaire in the desert. It reminded me of an Anasazi village.
Wednesday- Woke at 4:45 am in hopes of watching the sunrise from the top of a dune in Namib-Naukluft National Park. Instead we waited one hour at the gate for the park to open at sunrise and drove 45 kilometers to said dune. We climbed Dune 45 and ate breakfast in front of it.
That wasn't enough for some and they just had to climb Big Daddy - world's tallest dune-at noon without water. I climbed an acacia tree instead. We walked with a nice guide and visited Sesriem canyon before continuing on a long sunset and then pitch-black drive. Before sunset we saw ostriches and oryx running across the desert.
We've become so accustomed to doing our business alongside the road in the middle of nowhere that when the truck stopped we all piled out and headed for bushes. Five minutes later we sat down to dinner at a roadside inn whose front lawn we'd just peed in. They actually had lovely restrooms, it was just so dark that we figured the truck had once again stopped in the middle of nowhere for a potty break.
Thursday- We spent the night in a nice German lady's guest cabins in the middle of nowhere. Our cabin was adorable but there was a dead skink in the sink. The German lady baked a chocolate cake for us.
In the morning we continued on to Fish River Canyon which everyone agreed would have been better oriented East-West to catch the sunrise and sunset.

Friday- Left Fish River Canyon and drove through a gorgeous forest of impressive kokerbooms. Peter stopped at a dead, or as he said, 'wilted' and lonely kokerboom for us to take photos. Jeff and I ran to the nearest live kokerboom and took photos until they honked the horn at us.
Now I write from the bank of the Orange River in South Africa. The sun has set and the afterglow has turned the river a brilliant orange. Our trip is almost over. I loved Namibia. I felt very much at home there in the desert. It was hard to leave.

Spitzkop, Cape Cross Seals and Swakopmund

Sunday- We woke before dawn again and went on a walk with a guide to see Small Bushman's Paradise, a San rock art site. We also saw an awesome butter tree and a lovely arch. This place looks a little like Moab, but it's pink granite instead of sandstone.




















Then we rolled on Cape Cross and visited the seal colony. It was amazing to see so many seals. They sounded like sheep, Tarzan, dying people... the ocean at Cape Cross was a frothy bath of pee and poo. The smell was unbelievable. A jackal patrolled the area looking for stray pups. We spent Sunday and Monday night at the Swakopmund Rest Camp where we traded our tents for A frames.






Monday- This morning we met our paragliding instructor at 8am, headed for the dunes and had to turn right around to get another guy who hadn't linked up with us. Mario from Switzerland was our instructor. He was nice and kind of kooky.
It was pretty amazing to fly alone and be your own pilot. Our reward for carrying the heavy parachute up the hill was about one minute of flight down from the top of the dune. We made four flights before running out of time.
In the afternoon we went quad biking with the others. I rode with Jeff which turned out to be a good decision. The dunes were TALL and we did 'rollercoastering' on them. At one point all of us flew off the top of a dune and caught air.
We at a lighthouse restaurant on the water.

Etosha and Spitzkop

Friday- We've moved camp from Namutoni Waterhole to Okankuejo Waterhole. The drive took so long that everyone was going car crazy and by the time we made it to Okankuejo, no one wanted to go on the evening game drive. I was looking forward to seeing the Haunted Forest of Phantom Trees, but I couldn't make myself get back on the truck. We did see a rhino on the drive. We watched sunset at the waterhole and a family of elephants came trotting in and slurped up water. The tiniest calf played and bubbled in the water. Another calf did calisthenic leg lifts and stretches.










We ate dinner at the lodge and went back to the waterhole. It was lit by a floodlight, turning everything gold. Two rhinos came by and stood against the reflection of the night sky in the water.
Vicky was sick overnight and all day on the truck. She is the third to come down with this mean 24 hour bug.








We drove almost all day and now we're in this gorgeous desert place, Spitzkop. Huge pink granite domes and peaks are our setting tonight. After the usual arrival confusion, we had just enough time to hike half way up a dome and watch the sunset. We found a long, low stone arch and I climbed under it. Far below, two men searched for firewood in a donkey cart. We climbed down in the dark.

GOOD MORNING BOTSWANA!

Tuesday- After breaking camp in Maun we headed toward the Namibian border. in the late afternoon we arrived at our camp, put up tents and were greeted by the San (Bush people of the Kalahari). Ten San led us on a short bush walk which turned out to be one of my favorite highlights of the trip. They showed us all kinds of plants for family planning, headaches, menstrual pain and strength. They dug up a water tuber, grated it with a stick and washed hands and babies and drank from its pulp. They started a fire using two sticks. It was awesome! They are the cutest, most animated little people. We really enjoyed our visit with them. Our last night in Botswana was spent camping in the San village among grass huts under a billion stars.
Wednesday- We were awakened half an hour early by Acacia's guide with her signature morning call, "GOOD MORNING BOTSWANA! Wakey, wakey, wakey wakeeeeeeeeyyyy!" maddening!





It was a full day's drive to Windhoek, Namibia's capital. Namibia has great rest stops. We stopped at one for lunch and I wandered over to a little shop to order some biltong (beef jerky) the Namibian National Snack. I wasn't sure what to order (there were many exotic choices) so I told the lady I'd have what the person ahead of me had ordered. The shop keeper leaned across the counter and whispered, "That was the Prime Minister of Namibia who ordered ahead of you!" I can't say I approve of her taste in biltong though. It was kinda grainy.
We really like Namibia. The country has space, nice people, and a safe, comfortable atmosphere.








This morning we broke camp and drove all day to Etosha National Park. We had a game drive in the afternoon and saw all kinds of animals; tons of giraffes, and elephants, kory bustards, dikdiks, rare black-faces impalas, lesser and greater kudu, bush hawk and jackals that roam the campsites. I hope Jeff feels better soon. His stomach has been in knots since he drank the diesel at Audi Camp.

Okavango Delta

So after the game drive Friday, we went on a game cruise on the river. We saw and incredible number of animals. Hippos (gross), huge herds of elephants, cape buffalo, and enormous fish eagles. I will never forget watching the elephant exchange-herds of elephants swimming between Namibia and Botswana. they were great swimmers with their trunks held high like snorkels.
we woke at the crack of dawn for our all day drive only to have the truck refuse to start. Because of the late start we had to fly past all of the giant baobabs including a small grove marked "Planet Baobab." I was somewhat devastated, as visiting a baobab was one of the top three items on my Africa 'to do list.'
the first part of the road between Kasane and Maun was a moonscape of potholes. We ride in what looks like a little house on top of a big ugly army truck. Mile after mile we flop up and down and side to side like sailors on a stormy sea. We spent Saturday night in the fantastic Audi camp in Maun where they actually have hot showers. Sunday morning we rode two hours into the Okavango Delta and loaded the bare essentials into mokoros (dugout canoes). We were poled upstream almost two hours to the wild bush camp in the delta. We set up camp and went on a bush walk to Hippo Pool where hippos lounged, snorting and flapping their ears. We watched the sunset and spotted a pair of giraffes walked back to camp.
Around the campfire that night the guides told us about their cultures. Peter, our tour guide, is form Zimbabwe. There was much talk of bride price. Weddings in Africa are apparently rough events for cattle.
We fell asleep to the sound of lions roaring in the distance.
Morning brought a somewhat fruitless game walk. Another group told us that it helps to tell the guides exactly what you're hoping to see, otherwise they'll just walk you around and show you bushes and trees. Then we packed up camp and loaded back into the mokoros for the trip out of the Okavango. Contrary to what the guides told us, mokoros aren't that stable and CAN capsize. Leslie and Caroline's poler lost her balance and all three of them ended up in the drink-a slightly closer encounter with Africa than they'd hoped for. Luckily, there weren't any crocodiles in the area. Ironically, Leslie had been very nervous about this part of the tour from the beginning, worried that she would end up in the water. She was a good sport about it though.
Now we're back at Audi camp. Jeff just drank water with diesel in it. They store our drinking water next to the gas tank and it is contaminated every time we fill up.

Chobe National Park

We're spending my half birthday in Chobe National Park, Botswana. This morning we went for a three hour game drive in the park. for the first hour or so we froze our butts off and saw nothing but two kudu. It was still dark and at least we had a big beautiful full moon behind the acacia trees. then we turned and the driver forced the Range Rover up a sandy hill and out of the brush rose two giraffes. From then on we were seeing animals-tons of impala with their companion baboons, maybe six elephants and two or three more giraffes. Of course we were all thinking, "It's great to see animals, but it would be awesome to see some lions..." Then on our way back, as if on cue, we ran right into a lion jam. There were two lionesses with their three cubs outlined in gold against the rising sun. The Chobe River spread out behind them with hippos fighting in the distance. It was the perfect ending to the game drive. We camped at the Thebe River Safari Camp two nights.

The Smoke that Thunders

We made it out to the US Embassy to get our extra passport pages on Tuesday. I called first thin g in the morning and a very comforting, very American voice telling me that it would all be OK, just to come down to the embassy. So we rented a VW Citi and drove across Cape Town to the Embassy. The stars and stripes flying over South Africa was a beautiful sight for two stranded travelers. Security to get in tighter than Ft. Knox. Once inside, we received VIP treatment and left with a fat new edition of pages taped into our cluttered old passports. Afterward we crossed Table Mountain and explored the Cape of Good Hope. We visited a penguin colony. They were cute with their bigger-than-mom chicks. They laied around like lazy house cats. I really like Cape Town. It is one of the most beautiful cities I've ever seen. I loved the way the mountains blend into the city. We stayed at the Hotel Ritz two nights. Wednesday we flew from Cape Town to Jo berg to Livingston. We saw Victoria Falls from the plane and I nearly cried. It was so beautiful. Mosi oa Tunya, "The Smoke that Thunders." We stayed at Zambezi Waterfront where we met up with our tour group last night. There are about 12 of us - all mostly young professionals from England, Canada and the US. They're all really nice and interesting. We visited Vic Falls again this morning and now we're at the border crossing getting stamps and changing money. It's so nice to have a guide for this stuff. Border crossings always freak me out. A guy with a hose is herding women through a little door in the border gate. Africa makes me a little sad. Zambia was so expensive for us and yet the people are so poor. What is wrong?

And Now Africa

We've finally reached Cape Town after a LONG series of flights made longer due to worry over whether I have enough pages left in my passport for all of our onward travel. The issue was pointed out very bluntly by a Delta agent at JFK who told me without empathy that I couldn't go on my honeymoon. He was extremely rude and had no authority in the matter and he was actually wrong. I made it into South Africa without incident.

FAIRYLAND EXPEDITION III

We met our crew at the Canyon Backcountry Office two days after the wedding. They were great! The "Geezers" turned out to be awesome and incredibly fit. Here's the crew: 'Runner' Dave, 57, 'Rustic' Dave, 54, Marvin, 4? and Michael 'the Excuse Caboose', 24. Runner Dave is an ultra runner who does 50 mile trail races like they're a walk in the park. Rustic Dave sells knives that he makes by hand, Marvin builds houses and Mike works in the laundry at Flagg Ranch. We hit the trail at 10 am and got into 4B1 at about 3 pm. Everyone loved the SteriPen. It was so easy to use compared with the arm workout pump and sit and wait methods of water purification. We went to bed as soon as the sun set to escape the mosquitoes and rest up for day two.
We woke before dawn and set out around 7 the next morning. We hit Coffee Pot Basin around 9 am after a minor navigational error. We'd gone up the "Chimenea Rock" which took us through the live forest.
The hike between Coffee Pot and the Promontory seemed to go on forever. Jeff did a really good job of navigation with the map and GPS. We were surprised to find that the Promontory had several drops of burnt, forested slope before we came to the craggy cliffs we were expecting. We spotted a mountain goat and her twin kids perched on a cliff across Broad Creek. We found the chute, a rock slide, that would deliver us into Fairyland. Marv and I went ahead to make sure it was the right way.
The faintest of trails wound down the slide and as I edged my way down, I found clouds of silvery white fur tangled in brambles. We were following a mountain goat trail into Fairyland Geyser Basin! Fairyland came into view from behind the 'Cliffs of Insanity.' In that moment all of the miles melted away and at last I found myself in Fairyland. A little patch of yellow monkey-face flowers bloomed at the base of the cliff.
In the basin, several of the cones were flowing while others stood dry and bright white. One looked like a tiny active volcano with orange and green algae 'lava' flows. Off in Shallow creek, a pair of perpetual spouters bubbled cheerfully. Also on Shallow Creek side I found a small emerald pool and a beautiful white cone with tiny terraces like a mini Mammoth Hot Spring. We thought briefly of visiting Golden Fleece Falls, but it was hard to say just how bad of a climb it was above the basin.
People asked me afterwards, "It was so difficult, was it really worth it?" I guess if you have to ask you may never understand. There is something truly magical about following a rumor of a lost paradise deep in the wilderness and, after great struggle, discovering it for yourself. In this day and age of instant communication on a crowded planet, it's nice to find yourself deep in the wilderness, beyond the reach of cell phones, where only the clatter of mountain goat hooves and the rush of waterfalls break the silence.
We made it to the legendary Fairyland Geyser Basin and back without incident or injury. After a total of 100 miles of trying, it was a sweet victory and a dream come true for me. And what a great way to start our marriage! FAIRYLAND IS REAL!

Our Wedding in Yellowstone

We are married! Yesterday for me began with my much talked about trip up the mountain at 6 am. I decided after a sleepless night that I'd had enough of starring at the ceiling fan. So I headed up the mountain to collect fresh lupine for the bouquets. It turned out to be a single, quiet, calm moment before a very long, busy day. Our wedding was perfect and beautiful in every way, but if I could change one thing, I just wish I hadn't been so nervous! I didn't like being the center of attention. Being a bride is nerve-wracking for a shy person!
The best part of it all was how everyone pitched in and took care of everything. Lexi and Andrea did my hair. Cass, Stephanie and Angela prepared the wildflower bouquets. My Mom, Aunt Janelle and Marsha organized the food. The guys ran around marking all the cars with hearts so our caravan could stay together on the way to Canyon. Lexi and Andrea rode in the Element with me and Daddy drove. We spotted a pair of sandhill cranes and took it as a good omen. At the Backcountry Office I was greeted by a kind NPS volunteer lady who let me change in their office. Andrea and Lexi had to put my hiking boots on me because the dress was so puffy. Then it was off to Artist's Point! Everyone else had arrived ahead and we walked up the trail toward Point Sublime as Dan played his guitar and sang Tom Petty's Wildflowers. We popped out in a cliff side clearing where everyone had gathered. Jeff looked very handsome in his suit and I felt much calmer as soon as I saw him. Dennis performed our ceremony from a pop-up book Andrea made for us. Everyone had a good laugh when a bee stopped in to visit the guy's boutonnieres mid-ceremony. We said our I dos, kissed and posed for photos with the group and with the Roaming Gnome.
After that we stopped at Lake Hotel for lunch and photos. Then we moved on to Old Faithful for ice cream and more photos. Three bikers offered dollars for a dance with me. Everywhere we went, I received congrats, compliments and adoring gazes from little girls. I tried to use my princess for a day status to score a trip up to the crow's nest above the Inn's lobby but it didn't work.
The reception people let us borrow a room to change out of our wedding clothes. Then we headed back to Gardiner, stopping at Grand Prismatic to ooh and aah over the colors. Our reception was in our living room back at Above the Rest. The dinner and cake were catered by the Gardiner School lunch lady. David, Lexi and Daddy made very touching toasts to us and everyone danced the night away to Dan's guitar music.

Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness

ABOVE THE REST LODGE/GARDINER, MT:
Tomorrow we get married! This whole experience is very surreal. When I look around and realize how many people came all the way here for us, I am amazed, touched and overwhelmed. Today we hiked to Monument Geyser Basin. I felt really bad because it was a long, steep rocky hike and everyone kept falling. I hadn't remembered it that way. I have to keep in mind that this isn't the summer mountain goat Yellowstoner crew I made the hike with last year. But almost all of them made it. I have the toughest flower girl ever. I was a little worried that they wouldn't like Monument or wouldn't feel it was worth the hike. But the people who made it to the top seemed to understand why I like it so much. And now they've joined the 1% of Yellowstone visitors who leave the pavement.
On the way down the mountain, Makaela (my 6 year old niece-to-be and flower girl) was slip-sliding and I was doing my best to keep her from falling. She paused about halfway down, looked out at the mountains across Gibbon Meadows and said, "Aunt Andi, when I see that snow on the mountains, it makes me want to live here." She's a child after my own heart!
My mom and Marsha made BBQ sandwiches for everyone tonight. Most of the wedding guests are staying on the mountainside above Gardiner. We're in a little group of five cabins called Above the Rest Lodge. The owner is a character, but the place has a great view of the historic park entrance. You can even see the top of Mammoth Hot Springs. When night fell we drove down into Gardiner to set off fireworks at Arch Park. The TX crowd loved that. In Dallas they're all outlawed but here you can buy and set off all the illegal goodies.
Twelve more hours and I'm a married woman!

Old Faithful Inn

Well, I didn't manage to get a room in the Inn for our wedding night but we have one tonight. It's in the original 'old house' part of the the Inn with an awesome view of Lower Geyser Basin. It doesn't have a bathroom in room, but there's a big old claw-footed tub in the shared bathroom next door. I LOVE the Inn, the creaky floors, the red doors with the giant doorbell, the piano player on the second floor, the dim hallways lit with a warm yellow glow and all that lovely twisted lodgepole pine. The place is like cuddling next to a campfire. It feels like home. As I child, I always imagined it to be my castle in the forest. A real American castle.
It's been a really good drive up to the park. We left TX Wednesday and made it to Southfork, CO the first night, went through Durango and Moab (another favorite place) and made it to Park City by the second night. We staied in PC Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We went on a bunch of hikes trying to get ready for Fairyland III. We haven't exactly been training for it... here's hoping.
Today we left PC around 10 am and headed up through Wyoming, stopping in Jackson Hole for our marriage license. The lady at city hall was really nice. We stopped at West Thumb Geyser Basin on our way into Old Faithful. We saw a snowshoe hare and some elk in the basin. Fishing Cone was underwater. It's been a really big snow year, I'm a little worried about trail conditions and the crossings on the way to Fairyland.

On the Eve of Adventure

"And then it was Summer, warm, beautiful Summer." - Hans Christian Anderson
And what a summer it promises to be! Our wedding, Fairyland and a honeymoon in Africa - three dreams come true all rolled into one unforgettable summer. The adventure begins tomorrow when we start our drive up to Yellowstone with a stop in Park City.
I don't know which to be most excited about! Our wedding confirms something that Jeff and I have known for the past 8 years. It will be so nice having everyone in Yellowstone together. I'm excited to have everyone see where I'm from and share Yellowstone, a place dear to my heart.
I've been dreaming and obsessing over making it to Fairyland Geyser Basin ever since the place slipped through my fingers twice last summer. It's something only another adventurer or explorer can really understand. The place is truly mythical, guarded by cliffs, canyons and waterfalls, seen only by soaring ravens and the few adventurers brave enough to find their way there. It is my Lost World, my Garden of Eden, my Shangri-la. A place that mostly exists in dreams.
And then there's Africa. As a child I could think of nothing more exciting than tracking lions across the Kalahari. I was glued to PBS shows like Nature, watching cheetahs fly past in pursuit of gazelle. From a very young age I knew that I really wanted to go there, not just see it on NOVA. Now here's my chance!
So here's to the Summer of Dreams Come True. I couldn't be happier!