Orange River to the Namib in the Kombi

Driven in 2021 · VW Kombi, two of us

Best months: April to September. Cooler months. The south and the dunes pass 40°C (104°F) in summer.

Cape Town to the Orange River at Felix Unite, the river road to Aus and Lüderitz, Kolmanskop, Klein-Aus Vista, Helmeringhausen and the dunes at Sossusvlei. Two Gondwana nights at The Desert Grace and Dune Star Camp, apple pie at Solitaire, Swakopmund, Le Mirage, the Fish River Canyon and home past Ais-Ais.

Change the dates, stops and your vehicle. The planner works out fuel, night stops, sunset, weather and the grade of every road. Then drive it: GPX for your GPS or phone, or Google Maps and Waze on your phone.

Distances and grades from the planner's route on OpenStreetMap roads. Your plan may differ.

Hardest stretch: Pre-single, rocks, steep climbs, sand, river crossings. The grade reads differently by vehicle: what's fun on an adventure bike can be slow and hard in a car.

Day by day

1. DAY 1 · 708 km (440 mi) · 15% gravel
   Cape Town → Felix Unite Provenance Camp
   Via Piekenierskloof Pass, Springbok, Vioolsdrif border, Noordoewer border
2. DAY 2 · 441 km (274 mi) · 21% gravel
   Felix Unite Provenance Camp → Lüderitz
   Via Aussenkehr, Rosh Pinah, Aus
3. DAY 3 · 128 km (80 mi) · 3% gravel
   Lüderitz → Klein-Aus Vista
   Via Kolmanskop
4. DAY 4 · 372 km (231 mi) · 98% gravel
   Klein-Aus Vista → Desert Quiver Camp
   Via Helmeringhausen
5. DAY 5 · 164 km (102 mi) · 18% gravel
   Desert Quiver Camp → The Desert Grace
   Via Sesriem gate, Sossusvlei
6. DAY 6 · 13 km (8 mi) · surface unknown
   The Desert Grace → Namib Dune Star Camp (via Namib Desert Lodge)
7. DAY 7 · 297 km (185 mi) · 39% gravel
   Namib Dune Star Camp (via Namib Desert Lodge) → Swakopmund
   Via Solitaire, Walvis Bay
8. DAY 8 · 373 km (232 mi) · 52% gravel
   Swakopmund → Le Mirage
   Via Walvis Bay, Solitaire, Sesriem
9. DAY 9 · 443 km (275 mi) · 90% gravel
   Le Mirage → Fish River Lodge
   Via Helmeringhausen, Bethanie
10. DAY 10 · 275 km (171 mi) · 82% gravel
    Fish River Lodge → Canyon Roadhouse
    Via Seeheim, Hobas (Fish River Canyon)
11. DAY 11 · 193 km (120 mi) · 76% gravel
    Canyon Roadhouse → Felix Unite Provenance Camp
    Via Ais-Ais, Aussenkehr
12. DAY 12 · 698 km (434 mi)
    Felix Unite Provenance Camp → Cape Town
    Via Noordoewer border, Vioolsdrif border, Steinkopf, Springbok, Klawer

The story

April 2021. Felix Unite on the Orange River for the first night, then the river road through Aussenkehr and Rosh Pinah. Lunch at Aus under the old diamond area warning sign and the night in Lüderitz at the Cormorant, with a room over the bay. Kolmanskop in the morning, sand right through the houses, then Klein-Aus Vista. Tea at Helmeringhausen on the way north. Desert Quiver Camp for Sossusvlei and Deadvlei, then The Desert Grace, all pink and very good, and a night on top of a red dune at Dune Star Camp with the bed wheeled out under the sky. The apple pie at Solitaire lives up to the name. Swakopmund, back down to Le Mirage, across to Fish River Lodge on the canyon rim, the Canyon Roadhouse, and home past Ais-Ais and the river.

Good to know

• South Africans: get the Gondwana Card before you book. It brings Gondwana's rates down a long way.
• Dune Star Camp is one night only and no children 12 or under. You leave the car at Namib Desert Lodge and go up by the lodge's 4x4 transfer.
• Fish River Lodge is on the west rim, off the D463. The C12 takes you to the east side and there is no road across.
• Fill up at every chance: Aus, Helmeringhausen, Sesriem and Solitaire. It is gravel almost all the way from the river to Swakopmund.

More misadventures on the blog ›

Roads change. Check conditions before you go, and report what you find in the planner so the next rider knows.