37 Frames🚙 Walvis Bay → Spitzkoppe (via Swakopmund) → Onduli Ridge
The Early Wake-Up for Spitzkoppe: Was It Worth It?
Spoiler alert: Yes.
We left before the sun even thought about rising. Bleary-eyed. Clutching caffeine like it was oxygen. Chasing a mountain range that looks more like Mars than Namibia. Welcome to Spitzkoppe … aka The Matterhorn of Africa.
Gigantic granite peaks rising out of the flat desert like a fever dream. We wanted to be there for first light. And we were. Just. The golden hour hit those peaks and turned them molten.
The rock glowed. The silence hummed.
And for a second, we forgot about the lack of breakfast and general sand-in-all-crevices discomfort.
Totally worth it.
Even with the melty granola bar situation in the car.
Wait, What Is Spitzkoppe, Really?
Spitzkoppe isn’t just a pretty pile of rocks. It’s a 700-million-year-old inselberg … a “lonely mountain” that rises nearly 1,800 meters above sea level in the middle of the Namib Desert.
Here’s the cool stuff:
- Climbers love it … it’s Namibia’s most iconic rock-climbing site, with routes ranging from beginner to terrifying.
- Stargazers swoon over it … no light pollution, just Milky Way madness.
- Ancient San people left petroglyphs … hidden art galleries carved into rock, thousands of years old.
- There’s a hidden rock arch … the perfect frame for sunrise you’ll treasure forever.
- Locals call it “The Bushman’s Paradise” … for the shelter and mystique it gave to early inhabitants.
Basically? It’s a sacred, cinematic, surreal kind of place.
And if you listen closely, it has things to say.
Sidebar: Visiting Spitzkoppe from Walvis Bay
- Best Time to Visit: Sunrise or sunset for golden light
- Distance: 3–4 hrs drive from Walvis Bay
- Tip: Get there early — it’s just so beautiful
- What You’ll Shoot: Rock arches, massive domes, boulders, and textures that feel otherworldly
Then the Road Continued: Into Damaraland
We kept driving.
Through terrain that changed by the kilometer.
It’s hard to describe the in-between places in Namibia. The road gets rougher, the skies get wider, and the world starts to feel… quieter.
You don’t listen to podcasts here. You listen to the rhythm of your tires against the dust. The occasional bird call. The sound of the person beside you laughing when the GPS fails you again.
It’s a long day in the car. But not a wasted one. It’s a moving meditation.
But First, What is Damaraland, Really?
Damaraland isn’t just a stretch of dramatic earth between destinations. It’s a place that hums with quiet resilience and ancestral memory.
Home to the Damara people, one of Namibia’s oldest cultural groups, this vast, ochre-toned region has seen millennia of survival, storytelling, and adaptation. The land here doesn’t shout. It remembers.
You’ll feel it in the wind, in the ancient rock art etched by the San people thousands of years ago, and in the slow, deliberate way desert elephants navigate the terrain. It’s a living museum of geology and humanity, where volcanic peaks and petrified forests whisper the story of a continent’s deep time.
Driving through it, you’re not just passing through a landscape… you’re being invited into it.
Crystals, Coffee, and Curious Names
We stopped briefly in Uis on the long road north – a sleepy mining town known for its gemstone sellers who appeared like mirages with pockets full of sparkle.
They tried valiantly to sell us desert crystals and topaz from the roadside, and honestly, we admired the hustle. We needed caffeine more than quartz, though, so we ducked into the rather dubiously named Brandberg White Lady… a café, not a ghost. And it was fantastic.
Excellent coffee. Surprisingly good pastries. Proof once again that the most unexpected corners of Namibia often hide the sweetest surprises.
Stillness in Motion
What we’re learning on this trip is that stillness isn’t always about stopping. It’s a state of being … even while you’re hurtling toward the next horizon.
In our 30+ years together, we’ve always moved forward. In business and in life.
But the older we get, the more we realize that moving and rushing are not the same thing. Today reminded us that you can be in motion and still be completely grounded.
Arrival at Onduli Ridge: Did We Just Step Into a Movie?
We parked at the Onduli airstrip and waited for our pickup. When our driver arrived, it suddenly felt like we’d stepped straight into Out of Africa … equal parts vintage safari and modern elegance. That contrast we love so much. Then, as we turned the final bend and Onduli Ridge came into view, we both had the same thought:
“No way. This place isn’t real.”
But it is.
Perched on boulders. Draped in sky. Private suites open to the elements. Beds you can roll out under the stars. Views that don’t end.
We were handed cool drinks and warm smiles. And something inside us unclenched.
Sidebar: Why Stay at Onduli Ridge?
- Highlights: Open-air suites, outdoor beds, private stargazing, world-class design
- Location: Damaraland, near Twyfelfontein rock engravings
- Wildlife: Desert elephants, black rhino, oryx, giraffes, and endless birds
- Tip: Book early … only a few suites and high demand
Where Luxury Meets Purpose
We don’t always travel in luxury – though we’re absolutely here for it when it fits. Often, we stay inside the national parks, in more rustic accommodations, so we can chase the light and be first at the gate. It’s all about access. We get so much joy from the photography. We’ll happily trade a thread count or two when our souls are being filled with wonder.
But in places like Damaraland, where there’s no race against sunrise or permit, we lean into the other side of travel. The experience side. The one where others create the magic for us.
And that shift? It’s nourishing in its own way. A reminder that even those of us who spend our lives crafting memories for others need to be on the receiving end of something extraordinary.
Plus, we meet the most incredible fellow travelers in these places – storytellers, seekers, and wanderers from all walks of life. Each with their own path.
And somehow, for a night or three, they intersect with ours.
Onduli Ridge: Where the Moon Has Front Row Seats
We’ve seen a lot of views in our lives. From mountaintops to skyscrapers. From temples to treehouses. But nothing quite prepared us for this.
The view at Onduli Ridge doesn’t ask for your attention – it commands your reverence. And rewards it with silence.
A full moon rose tonight like it had a personal invitation to our suite. The stars didn’t twinkle – they spoke. And the only thing more infinite than the sky was the feeling that, just maybe, we were exactly where we were meant to be.
The Onduli team rolled our beds onto the deck (complete with hot water bottles inside). We wrapped ourselves in blankets and a bit of disbelief, and watched the night arrive in slow motion. No filters. No noise. Just the hush of a world undisturbed, and the quiet understanding that this is what peace actually feels like.
Sundowners, Giraffes, and New Friends
Before the moon show, there were sundowners – naturally. Our first here. Sipped slowly on the ridge, glasses catching firelight, conversation with new friends unfolding as effortlessly as the landscape.
Onduli means giraffe. And yes, we’re deep in giraffe country. They roam this land with the kind of elegance we all aspire to but never quite master. The staff? That same rare grace. Warmth, wit, and a kind of seamless hospitality that feels more like coming home than checking in.
This place doesn’t just pamper you. It reminds you. That life can still surprise you. That connection matters. That luxury isn’t about things… it’s about space. Space to breathe. To reflect. To be small under a big sky and love it that way.
What Travel Taught Us Today
- Beauty doesn’t rush. And neither should we.
- The middle of nowhere is sometimes the center of everything.
- Partnership is built in the in-betweens … not just the peaks.
- And if someone offers you a room with a bed that rolls out under the stars? Always say yes.
Closing Reflection: The Long Road Leads Home
Today we didn’t just cross miles. We crossed moods. Seasons. Inner landscapes.
Spitzkoppe gave us grandeur. The drive gave us quiet. Onduli gave us awe.
We’re changing here. Just a little. And we’re more than okay with that.
37 Frames
