Just after Olifantshoek, we turned onto a gravel road towards Witsand.
70 km later on a scenic and good road sadly littered with road kill, we arrived at the nicely designed reception at Witsand nature reserve. We met my parents at chalet number 1, really nicely laid out with 3 bedrooms facing a large outdoor seating braai and bonfire area, and a separate building with kitchen and lounge. There was even a water trough for animals to drink from. And no fences as there aren't really dangerous animals in the reserve...
After settling in and having a bite to eat, we hopped 6 into the Bakkie and went exploring. First we visited a viewpoint, from which we could see the huge mound of white sand the reserve is famous for. It was apparently blown in, and is the only white sand for miles, the rest of the sand is very red. The we drove around to the "brulsand" or roaring sand - apparently when the conditions are right, i.e. very hot and dry, the sand actually makes a very loud roaring sound.
We got out the car and climbed up the very steep soft white sand, all panting as we reached the top. From there, all we could see was a sea of dunes, dotted with grass and even the occasional tree. The view all around was awesome, with the Skurweberg to the north and Langeberg to the south, and acacia trees all around. We walked around, taking pics while some kids arrived to try out sand boarding.
On the way back down, we giggled at some tannies struggling to make their way up, on hands and knees. Next we visited another lookout, providing a different view over the dunes, and some supposed boer walls which we never found... And then a bird hide full of twitchers getting excited at every LBJ flying into the drinking hole. They did point out a beautiful purple eared waxbill which caused great excitement.
3 of us later decided to return to the dunes for sunset sundowners, and were rewarded with a glorious orange sky, changing the colour of the dunes. An adorable little bokkie crossed the dunes in front of us as we sipped our drinks.
As we arrived back at the chalet, the fire was going and we relaxed and enjoyed the warm evening. Dinner was braaied kabeljou and dorado fish, with potato salad, coleslaw and green salad, followed by delicious tipsy tart and cream.
As we were eating, we were visited by a beautiful genet, a small cat-like animal with exquisite markings, horizontal stripes and an almost lemur like ringed tail. He snuck some scraps from our braai, and later brought back his mate, hoping for more...
We ended the evening admiring the amazing stars, and slept soundly, the first day of our trip completed.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
Location:Witsand, Northern Cape
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