Day 16: Orange River camp to Felix United.

I took it slow on the first section of this day so that I could enjoy the scenery of the Orange River next to me before I had to turn away from it. It really was an unforgettable experience riding and camping beside it. The road then veered away from the river somewhat which led me towards some agricultural areas. This was now a place used for growing grapes and it had all the water it needed from the Orange River. There was a long fairly straight section of road that passed and cut through many grape farms before it headed towards the Orange River again.

Sky, mountain, green, water. Outdoor perfection!!

Getting a little rocky.

Last stretch before veering off.

You get that land ready for agriculturing.

One of a few villages I passed by.

Agriculture closer up.

ON THROUGH THE NEVER, WE MUST GO!!

Slops will do for this part.

I cracked this stone with a mind bullet.

This path led to another camp, but I couldnt see it so just carried on going.

I arrived just outside Noordoewer and was at odds to go through and just exit Namibia or sleep this side one more night. Clearly I wanted to stay for one more day.  I had heard about some camp sites previously in this section so that was running through my mind. I ended up checking into a place called Felix United which was pretty awesome. It is run by super friendly people and had an awesome view of the Orange River. Once I arrived I bought an energy drink and some ice-cream as I needed something sweet. I had a good chat with some of the people who worked there while eating and drinking. You can do all sorts of things at this place but their main highlights are the canoe trips they do down the river. This sounded sweet but I wasn’t planning on doing one of those, at least not now. They have multi day trips where you go down the river in sections, then camp beside the river all the while heading towards the mouth somewhat as I can’t remember how far they go. I swear, next time I’m here, I must remember to bring a canoe. Must be hella fun to do?

Kinda looks like a big blue beetle in someway.

Orange River!!! You beauty.

Just walk down and you in the goodness.

After setting up tent I went for a swim in the Orange River again before trying my luck with this cable tied between two trees. I initially thought it was a dividing line but it was some kind of balancing rope. I think it is called slack-lining. The guy who did it made it look easy and did all these wobbles causing the rope to sway quickly from left to right, but all while keeping his head still. That was the trick. I tried but I couldn’t manage more than 2 or 3 steps at most. Luckily I didn’t fall and hurt myself. Seeing as I wasn’t going to master this thing I just let it be with the plan to try again later. What I liked about Felix United other than the friendly staff was that it was quite a decent looking place to stay with an awesome location. Overall, a well run resort.

Shine on you crazy diamond. Felix United.

I was also lucky enough to be able to purchase some canned goods from the storage at Felix United. This was all food they used for when they do the boat trips up the river. I figured I didn’t want to ride into town or look for a place tomorrow so I may as well just get it over with now. 

To end the night I decided to eat something other than rice, lentils and tuna, so I got an awesome veggie burger and a Tafel beer. Plus it was cool to see some Namibian currency. It’s linked 1-1 with the SA rand so you can pay for anything in the country with Rands but you cannot use Namibian currency in SA. I went to bed thinking this place was a cool way to end my stay in Namibia. And I shall definitely be back.

Distance: 55kms