Fish River Canyon hike 2016

20160704_093932_pano — The Canyon, seen from the starting point

Our group of 8 people started the Fish River Canyon hike on the 4th of July 2016 and finished on the 8th of July 2016.

We covered a distance of about 74 kilometers over just over 4 days, slept 4 nights under the stars, carried way too much food, drank river water and survived despite aches, pains and blisters.

Will I do it again? Yes!

Notes on the admin around the trip:

I booked the permits in May 2015, R300 per person from NWR Cape Town.
We stayed in Ai-Ais the Sunday evening before we started, as well as the Friday evening after the hike (Camping fees per person – R169 per night)
We found 2 willing gentlemen who drove with us to the start, and brought our vehicles back to Ai-Ais. We decided not to make use of the shuttle service, which was a bit expensive at R260 per person.
At Hobas, we had to pay an additional R60 per person conservation/park entry fees. The whole fee structure is still a bit unclear to me.
I did not know what to expect of the condition of the Ai-Ais Resort. There were various reports of issues at the resort. I found that service was friendly, all was in working order, the restaurant food was excellent and the kiosk was well stocked.
Important… there was cold beer and they were willing to serve plates of chips on request.

3 July 2016 – On the road

20160703_082822 — In the bakkie – all still awake. It’s a long drive. We decided to drive straight to Ai-Ais without sleeping over.

20160703_101121 — The road is long, but the landscape varies from winelands, semi-desert, and 90% desert.

20160703_132922 — Northern Cape – You know it’s hot when you see two crows sitting in the shade of a telephone pole.

20160703_140042 — Crossing the border into Namibia.

20160703_151629 — Namibia – nothingness. Beautiful nothingness.

20160703_161300 — The road towards Ai-Ais.

20160703_165455 — Setting up camp at Ai-Ais. Park your car, find a place to sleep. Easy!

Notes on our trip to Ai-Ais:

We left Cape Town at about 6:30 am
Distance to Ai-Ais, about 800km.
The gravel roads in Namibia are mostly in an excellent condition. But ensure you have a spare wheel and a jack!
The border crossing at Vioolsdrif and Noordoewer went without issues. Take a pen to fill out forms in Namibia. Also ensure you have all your vehicle docs with you, as well as money for RAF in Namibia.
Arrived at Ai-Ais late afternoon (17:00 +-)
Informal camping arrangement. Just pitch your tent – anywhere!
Braaied enough boerewors to eat for dinner of day 1. Well, we had enough for day 2 to 4 as well. Had to discard the leftovers.

4 July 2016 – Towards Hobas and down into the Canyon

20160704_072517 — Getting ready. Checking everything. Throwing out stuff that feels too heavy.

20160704_093947 — Compulsory selfie. I was emotional. And nervous. Hiked the canyon about 16 years ago. Would I make it. Would it be as I remembered it for 16 years.

P1070190 — Me, Lelani, Mathys, Elsabe, Franco, Johannes, Cesco, Elaine.

P1070184 — Not a leisure walk. It’s hard. But good for body and soul.

P1070194 — First steps. Follow the chain.

P1070200 — Lots of loose stones when you start the footpath down. It was dry and dusty.

P1070202 — Looking back towards the starting point.

P1070216 — Down by the river. The water was cold. We took a long lunch-break before carrying on.

P1070221 — On our way. Getting used to the different types of terrain. Soft sand, rock plates.

P1070223 — The beginning is a lot of up and down and finding your way on the slopes. The canyon is still narrow.

P1070236 — First overnight stop. Whisky time!

Notes on Day 1:

We left Ai-Ais at 8am. Only started the descent at 10am. Could have started earlier.
We saved a lot of time not having to bring the vehicles back to Ai-Ais.
Had to do admin at Hobas and pay fees. They don’t take cards. Take cash.
The descent is tough on the legs. Take your time!
Had a good rest once we reached the river. Maybe too long, but we enjoyed it.
Did not have the GPS tracker on for the day. Should’ve done that.
Used the offline Google map and GPS on my cellphone to pinpoint our location on the printed maps.
Slept on a high sand bank. Good thing / bad thing. Had to climb back up every time you went down to the river to get water.

5 July 2016 – Day 2

P1070242 — Morning, day 2. Finding the most comfortable path along the river. Choice of high sand or big rocks

P1070260 — A friend left a note and Fastbar for us at the Vespa

P1070264 — Same Vespa, same friends, 16 years later

P1070275 — Lunch break in the shade. It gets hot when you’re walking

P1070280 — Baboons. We saw a few, but none bothered us.

P1070291 — Water. Although the river stopped flowing, there was more than enough water and we had no issues drinking it. We did use purification drops (sometimes)

P1070294 — Day 2 overnight stop. Palm springs. The temperature is about 48 degrees where it flows into the river. We reached the spot a bit late, but some braved the hot water and cool wind.

P1070297 — Palm Springs / Sulfur springs

Notes on Day 2:

We started a bit late, so we reached Palm Springs a bit late to really enjoy the warm water. It was already near sunset, which is early in the canyon.
Sleeping at Palm Springs – choose carefully, because everybody stop there, there’s a toilet behind every bush.
There were driftwood, so we could make a fire for the evening.

6 July 2016 – Day 3

P1070304 — Packing up. Ready to tackle day 3

P1070309 — Wild horses. They were in a good condition, despite the dry landscape.

P1070314 — Easy terrain. We even had a few drops of rain during the morning.

P1070332 — These boots were made for walking. Didn’t have any issues. I would recommend good quality hiking shoes.

P1070342 — Gravel footpaths – better than sand and boulders

P1070344 — Sometimes you walk far from the river

P1070349 — Nothing like sleeping under the stars, on the sand!

Notes on Day 3:

Slept under the stars again. Nice!
A sandy spot that feels soft and looks level, does not feel the same when you’re in your sleeping bag.
Started hiking at about 8am.
Followed the river and other footprints, with a few shortcuts at river bends.
Overnight spot was a bit far from the water. But on day 3, I must admit swimming / bathing wasn’t my top priority. Cleanup, eat, sleep!
We could once again make a fire. Didn’t see any spider, scorpions or snakes.

7 July 2016 – Day 4 (the day of the shortcuts)

P1070350 — Morning view of the area around the overnight spot

P1070352 — It was a bit chilly. Some needed a beanie and a hat!

P1070354 — On the road – early morning boulder hopping

P1070359 — Mathys and Lelani looking strong!

P1070363 — Walking along the mostly hard sand in the river bed

P1070375 — Shortcuts on day 4 means cutting km’s. But it involves a bit of up and down.

P1070394 — That’s Four Finger Rock, seen from the back

P1070402 — Four fingers at Four Finger Rock

P1070405 — At the grave of Lt von Trotha. Pic taken by patrolling park rangers. I didn’t want to see a bakkie and other people. Wasn’t ready yet!

P1070410 — Cesco and Elaine at the low water bridge

P1070413 — Gravel road just after the kiosk. No, the kiosk does not operate any more. No cold beer!

vis_dag4_altitude — Altitude map – day 4. The last shortcut was a bit tough!

Notes on Day 4:

Started at 8am
The day of the shortcuts. That means cutting km’s, but a bit of up and down.
It was a long day – 20km.
Slept at the point just before we had to cross the river at the ‘skaapkraal’ shortcut.

8 July 2016 – Day 5

P1070423 — Morning, day 5. Getting ready to hit the road.

P1070429 — Navigating around the big pool to find a place to cross without getting our feet wet. At the end this meant we missed the whole ‘skaapkraal’ shortcut.

P1070432 — Wet sand can be deceiving. You have to cross quickly, or sink in.

P1070441 — At the 80km mark for the Fish River Canyon Ultra Marathon

P1070451 — Almost there. The last stretch is almost a bit disappointing.

P1070454 — At the water tower. Almost there. Just a few steps to go.

P1070455 — Been there, done that! Beer and chips at the restaurant.

Notes on Day 5:

Started at 8am
Followed the river for most of the time.
Reached Ai-Ais at about lunchtime.
Had some chips and beer
Set up camp and had a soak in the warm swimming pool
Had supper at the restaurant – Springbok ‘lion’ with ‘randy pudding’. Very nice!
The ground at Ai-Ais is not softer than in the canyon.

9 July 2016 – Back to civilization

20160709_085119 — On the road again – Filled with gratitude – Blessed – Till we see you again

Notes on our trip back:

Left early – probably 7am
Had coffee and rusks in the car (and other leftovers from the trip to Nam)
No issues at the borders
Lunch at Wimpy Springbok
Reached Cape Town at about 18:30