On the road along the C14 in Namibia: via Solitaire to Swakopmund

We leave the beautiful red dunes of Sossusvlei to continue our journey to Swakopmund. On the way we pass the small rest stop at Solitaire, which offers plenty of photo opportunities. Then we continue on to a seemingly endless, pretty nasty ‘washboard track’ – the C14 in Namibia. What we experienced on this stretch and what there is to discover is what you’ll find out in this article.

After a relaxed breakfast we pack our things and leave the campsite in Sesriem. We don’t set off too late so that we reach our day’s destination, Swakopmund, in the afternoon. A long day of driving lies ahead of us. In total it is 344 kilometres from Sesriem to Swakopmund. We drive through beautiful scenery towards Solitaire. The rocks of the Naukluft mountains in the background and the savannah grass in front may look barren but they are still wonderfully beautiful.

We keep stopping, either to take a photo of the landscape or to watch animals in the distance through the binoculars. We are really lucky! On one of the many rocks we spot three zebras. It is fascinating how little water and food the animals manage with here.

Great photo opportunities in Solitaire

After a drive with plenty of stops we get there after about 2 hours. Solitaire is basically a roadside stop consisting of a petrol station with workshop and a bakery. There is also a campsite and a lodge. This tiny place is famous, however, for its apple pie, which has been sold here for ages. They really do bake fresh here! We don’t try the famous cake though. Tobi treats himself instead to a slice of blueberry tart, which tastes pretty good. What we both really love are the old car wrecks scattered all over the lovingly maintained grounds. The cars make for great photos and so quite some time passes here too before we finally drive on.

The Tropic of Capricorn

From here it is another 260 kilometres to Swakopmund. That actually doesn’t sound like a very long drive. But this stretch has it all! We spend the next few hours on a ‘washboard track’ that really gives us a good shaking. The sun is beating down mercilessly as we roll on kilometre after kilometre in the Toyota.

We don’t meet many cars on this road. Maybe one every two hours. On this stretch along the C14 in Namibia we cross the Tropic of Capricorn for the second time. At the summer solstice on 21 or 22 December the sun is at its zenith here. We stop for some photos and use the break to grab some cold drinks from the fridge.

An adventurous drive along the C14 in Namibia

We then approach the Kuiseb Pass, which the C14 in Namibia crosses. The pass is a washed-out gorge that is usually dry for years at a time. Now we wind our way down the hairpins and then back up again. The road snakes through the pass without any real protection. Only in some places are there short sections of crash barrier. Just as we are heading downhill again, I spot a big pothole far too late. I can’t avoid it and our Toyota slams hard into the hole with the right tyre. The tyres seem to be a bit off kilter but the Toyota forgives us this mishap and battles on tirelessly. Phew!

I am relieved when we have left the pass behind and the road continues straight on across flat ground. Despite the better road, some extreme emotions surface here. The landscape is a desolate, vast, sandy plain. Nothing, absolutely nothing for your eye to rest on. I feel as if the desert has sucked all my happy thoughts out of me. The extreme heat, the dryness and the solitude all blend together and I have to imagine what it would be like to depend on outside help out here. An emergency doctor would probably take several hours to reach the scene of an accident. And how would you call for help out here without mobile reception? You would probably have to rely on help from passing cars.

These thoughts vanish into thin air when Walvis Bay finally appears in the distance. At last there are signs of life again. Lots of people are walking around and suddenly we find ourselves on a busy road. Another 30 minutes and we reach our campsite, Alte Brücke, in Swakopmund. A day full of thoughts comes to an end and that, too, is part of travelling.