Quad-biking in the dunes, Namibia

There’s time this morning for some quad-biking in the dunes near Sossusvlei Desert Lodge, before my flight to Windhoek. It’s another clear morning and spectacular conditions.

David is my pilot for the flight this morning to Windhoek in a 6 seater Cessna. I’ve got the plane to myself, and it is a pretty quick 1 hour flight from Sossusvlei to Windhoek. The scenery out of the window is spectacular, and the canyons visible explain why it is a 6-7 hour drive and a 1 hour flight to Windhoek.

Even though Windhoek International airport lacks the niceties of aerobridges, it still has the fundamentals covered – there is a large café on the landside of the airport, and British Airways has a comfortable business lounge on the airside. On a Thursday at 3pm, there are 5 people including me in business class on the 737, and economy is only about 40% full.

Flying into Johannesburg, the outskirts are greener than usual, and the persistent dust haze has gone. Unlike arriving at Johannesburg OR Tambo airport nearly a month ago in the middle of 3 plane loads full of people, immigration isn’t busy and I’m cleared in 5 minutes.

A quiet night at the excellent Intercontinental OR Tambo is in order before heading to Sydney tomorrow.