Monday, June 16, 2025
We got up at 4:30 to get ready. We picked up our lunches from the main building. The same woman who checked us in at 4pm a was serving dinner until at least 9pm was also passing out lunches at 5am!
Tammy’s parents, Kelvin, Sandra, Tammy, and I all piled into our vehicle to drive 45 minutes to the hot air balloon place. It was super dark and we could see many stars. When we arrived, we were all half asleep. They had coffee, tea, health shots, and crunchies (South African cookie bar made with oats) for us to eat while we waited. It was chilly, but we were okay in our down jackets. We met our pilot Ivo, and listened to the instructions. We went to the bathroom and got into the bus that would drive us to the launch site. There were 12 passengers per balloon and 4 balloons. Ten people fit into each shuttle bus. It sounded like a math problem!
We drove about 15 minutes and arrived to where they were setting up the balloons. We found our balloon. The sun was starting to rise and we took pictures. They tested the gas and it made a huge flame. I was glad they warned us ahead of time. We got to see how they tipped over the basket to attach it to the balloon, which was spread out on the ground. They used fans to blow air into the balloon and then started the flames. The balloon was huge! It took a long time to fill, but it was fascinating to watch! We took lots of pictures.
After the balloon was upright, they had us walk us to the basket and climb in. The balloon was tethered to a metal ring in a piece of concrete and there was several men helping hold it steady. It was a little hard to climb into the basket, but we all made it. Our pilot did a safety talk and taught us how to assume landing positions (you sit down on a step with your back facing the direction you are moving, lean your head and back against the basket or divider if you’re in the second row, and hold onto the rope handle that is in front of you. Ivo told us there are two kinds of landings… exciting and very exciting. In a very exciting landing, the basket tips over and you end up on your back. There was also a safety card in a pocket on the basket.
He reminded everyone not to get out of the basket until he told us to because if someone hops out too soon, the rest of us might take off again. We took off first and we stayed low for a long time, drifting just 2-6 feet off the ground until the rest of the balloons were ready. The flames above us were hot when he released the gas. There was a metal plate above our heads that shielded us from the worst of the heat.
After the other balloons were up, we increased our altitude as we drifted toward a tree line. The bottom of the basket brushed the top branches of the tree. We continued going higher and higher. It was beautiful! We saw several animals from the air including gemsbok (oryx), springbok, and a jackal who was trying to run from us. It was beautiful being able to take pictures of the other balloons. All four balloons looked the same so that was nice. Most of the pictures I took on the ground were of our balloon, but all the pictures taken from the air were the other balloons (unless the picture was take straight up). The moon was still out and we got a picture of a balloon next to the moon. We started being able to see the red dunes of Sossusvlei. We flew over a mountain. We could see the fairy circles on the ground. No one knows what causes them. The photos below posted in reverse order.
We were up in the air for maybe 45-60 minutes. It’s hard to know for sure because it was so beautiful and peaceful. We started descending and came down in a row (just like how we took off). We assumed our landing positions and had an exciting landing (not a very exciting landing). The ground crew pulled our balloon over to the road while we were a few feet above the ground. As Ivo opened the flaps to let the hot air out, the ground crew pulled the balloon to the side. We were told it was safe to climb out.
We walked over to the area where they had set up an elegant picnic for us with white tablecloths. They opened bottles of champagne using a machete and shot the corks into the field where someone tried to catch it in a hat. They had a lovely spread with vanilla chia seed pudding, yogurt/granola/berry sauce, cold meats (including zebra) and cheeses, toast, croissants, and more. They had coffee in thermos and orange juice. We ate a lot!
When they started taking people back in the buses, we hopped aboard and went back to the base where we started. We drank water, used the restroom, and explored the gift shop. The hot air balloon company, Namib Sky Safaris, runs a school that is free for children. The owner of the company has a daughter and he was going to get a teacher for her because there aren’t any schools around. When other people heard about it, they asked if their kids could join. He said yes, and more and more kids kept coming. Now they are up to 49 kids in five different classes. The proceeds from the gift shop help support the school. Tammy and I bought t-shirts with hot air balloons on them. We waited for a school tour. The owner, Dennis, showed us around. You could tell he loves sharing about the school. It was beautiful! There was a central courtyard area with a small playground and the classrooms surrounded the courtyard. The children get breakfast, snack, and lunch every day. They have two weeks of meals that they rotate between. We saw the art room that was filled with art supplies.
We got to see the workshop where the parents can sew items for the gift shop. Once they are trained, they are allowed to come work 24 hours a day (whenever it’s convenient for them) and they are paid daily for the items they complete.
We observed the upper elementary class who were doing a video correspondence lesson. There was a teacher there supervising the students, but the teacher on the board was instructing. We saw a preschool class and it was super well-equipped with nice toys and kid-sized furniture, including tiny toilets and sinks. The school was very attractive and is run entirely on donations, sponsors, and gift shop proceeds. It was a very neat model. The classes were small with 12 kids or less. There are so few people in Namibia that it’s hard to have enough kids for a school. They provide a school bus and it goes 200 km a day picking up the kids.
After the tour, we headed to Sossusvlei and stopped along the way to buy more water. We had to pay for our entry to the park.
We accidentally overpaid because Kelvin and Colin each paid for a vehicle in addition to the people. We then drove about an hour on a super great paved road. The speed limit was only 60 kph. We were amazed by the dunes we passed.
We went to Dune 45 and started climbing.
Kelvin, Colin, Tammy, and I made it to the top. The sand was very hot. We saw lots of big black beetles running around on the sand. The ridge of the dune was very steep. I felt like I was going to fall and the slope super steep, if I didn’t already say that! We took pictures at the top.
Kelvin and Colin decided to run down the side of the dune. Tammy videoed them.
They didn’t fall so we decided to do it, too. It definitely was the faster way down. I didn’t go very fast, but it was fine. I think if I had run down it first, I wouldn’t have been so nervous at the top. We walked around the dune and saw the dry, cracked earth.
We ate the lunches that the lodge had packed for us (instead of breakfast). It was a chicken curry wrap with vegetables, which was very tasty, a mediocre green apple, a delicious juice box, peanuts and raisins, and a cranberry oatmeal granola bar. I saved my granola bar for later and shared my raisins/peanuts. It was about 3pm by the time we ate. We then drove to Deadvlei. It was less than an hour away. When we got close, the road was covered in a foot of sand. We needed all wheel drive, but they couldn’t figure out how to turn it on. Thankfully, a man in a Fortuner was coming the other direction, so we were able to ask him! We drove through the sand for awhile and then reached a parking lot. We couldn’t see any petrified trees, although there was a sign. The sign said that 900 years ago, the river changed its path and it is so dry that the trees didn’t decompose but instead dried out.
We had to hike for 20 minutes or so to reach the area with the petrified trees. It was smaller with fewer trees than I was expecting. The trees were neat and each of them was unique. The red sand of the dunes made a cool background. We took lots of pictures and then hiked back after maybe a half hour there.
We reached the picnic tables near the parking area and were dumping the sand out of our shoes when we saw a springbok in front of a dune.
We got in the vehicle and started driving and soon saw some gemsbok. Kelvin got out and chased after them with his camera and got some great shots!
We still had about an hour to get out of the park. The road was excellent but the speed limit was only 60 kph.
The sun had set when we made it to the gate, although it was not quite dark. The park closes at sunset. We had to present our park permit to the gate attendant to get out. He was confused because our group had paid for two vehicles. It took him some time to go through the paperwork before he would let us out. We drive the rest of the way back to the Elegant Desert Lodge. We got back in time for dinner. We had pea soup, cabbage salad, rolls, beef, gem squash with creamed corn in it, broccoli, and a poached pear with cinnamon (way too sweet and not very good).
We showered and packed a bit before going to bed.
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