Links
On Wednesday evening we flew into Windhoek, and got a few quick snaps of the lunar eclipse before heading for bed. Just before 4am we were up and away, driving without incident to Walvis Bay. Along the way the sun rose spectacularly over the desert just as we drove past Spitzkoppe and we stopped for a few quick pictures. A number of birds sat on the lines next to the road and we identified Karoo chat, Southern pale chanting goshawk and Lanner falcon before getting to Swakopmund. The dunes rose above the Atlantic as we entered and then drove past Swakopmund. We soon reached Walvis Bay and drove slowly along the esplanade, picking up Cape wagtail, Kelp and Hartlaub's gulls, Cape cormorant, Greater flamingo, Great white pelican and African black oystercatchers. Towards the Saltworks we saw Caspian tern and Common whimbrel and a great many waders too far off to ID. The road towards Paaltjies seems to disappear in the red algae-tinted evaporation ponds and we only added White-fronted plover here. Back in Walvis Bay we paid a visit to the Tourism centre to pick up a street map and learned to our dismay that the "Bird Paradise" at the sewerage works doesn't exist anymore. So we decided to make a quick stop at Dune 7 where I scrambled halfway up before taking the fast route down - great fun! We bought brotchens and landjaegers back in town and sat at the esplanade eating lunch, watching a kite-surfer make excellent use of the stiff sea breeze. The tide had now risen significantly but instead of pushing the waders closer to shore, it seems they found better feeding grounds elsewhere. We decided to check in at Spindrift Guesthouse for a lazy afternoon. At 4pm we took another quick turn around the lagoon and added a pair of Cape teal to our list before heading back for dinner.
Early on Friday morning we were up to visit the lagoon once more. We added most of the same birds but then struck gold on the road to the Saltworks. Among a bunch of Common whimbrel we noticed a very straight bill with red and black variation; a careful look confirmed it - Bar-tailed godwit! Very happy with our first lifer for the trip, we got breakfast at the guesthouse before driving to Swakopmund. We wanted to visit the Saltworks at Mile 4 but the confusion of new developments north and north-east of town made it so difficult that we eventually just left for Spitzkoppe. On the entrance road to Spitzkoppe we found both Karoo and Tractrac chat but had to look very carefully as the Namib form of Karoo chat also has a white rump. The towering granite of Gross Spitzkoppe and the Pondoks was something to behold and we took lots of pictures. After paying for camping we drove around the sandy tracks, picking up Capped wheatear, Short-toed rock-thrush, Namaqua dove, Scaly-feathered finch, Black-chested snake eagle, Dusky sunbird, White-backed mousebird and a few others. Nicola saw her first Rosy-faced lovebird before we had lunch at the Small Bushman's Paradise. A Common scimitarbill was added on the way to the Rock Bridge where we took lots of pictures and added Rock kestrel, Bradfield's swift and Black-faced waxbill. With the afternoon creeping along we made our way to the campsite immediately south of Gross Spitzkoppe where another large granite dome encroaches to form a narrow pass. We found a stunning campsite under a large overhanging boulder, parked the car and went for a short walk. After adding a pair of over-flying Verreaux's eagles we returned to the car to prepare our beds for the night and cook dinner. Monteiro's hornbills flew in to roost and after dinner as we took pictures of the rising moon, Spotted eagle owl, Barn owl and Freckled nightjar calls were heard between those of a myriad dassies.
Saturday morning before dawn we were up, had a quick breakfast, packed up and then parked ourselves among the granite boulders south west of Gross Spitzkoppe in the hope of finding Herero chat. Unfortunately, even after visiting all the other places we did yesterday, we still didn't hear or see any. We did get great views of Pririt batis though and when we drove to the Small Bushman's Paradise again, Nicola ID'd two White-tailed shrikes, a much sought-after endemic! We left Spitzkoppe by around 09:00 picking up a Ruppel's korhaan just before the tar road, drove to Windhoek, arriving at Daan Viljoen Game Reserve around 11:30. A lot of construction was going on and the dam at the camping area only had African palm swift, African jacana, Little grebe and lots of White-browed sparrow-weavers. On the one-way drive around the park we added Sabota lark, Familiar chat and Long-billed pipits. Just before we joined the tar road again, a number of Violet-eared waxbills were joined by a single Tinkling cisticola. Just before 2pm we headed back to Windhoek to my uncle and aunt's place in Klein Windhoek. My uncle, Hendrik Vrey (Link to his website), re-discovered the pyrography artform more than 40 years ago and a passionate hobby turned into a lifetime of stunning creations ranging from desert landscapes and animals to portraits and commissioned works. We spent some time looking at my uncle's latest artworks and watched him creating a stunning Welcome sign for us. My grandmother also visited and we chatted the afternoon away before going to Joe's for dinner, generously paid for by my uncle.
Sunday morning we had breakfast before sadly saying goodbye to my family. We headed to the airport just before 8am and made it safely back home by 4pm. Although we dipped on a number of endemics like Rockrunner, Ruppel's parrot, Herero chat, and all the endemic larks, it was still a magic weekend. Camping under the stars at Spitzkoppe was everything I hoped for and the visit to my family made for an excellent end to a short long-weekend. 95 birds for the trip with 9 lifers for Nicola and 7 lifers for me.
On Wednesday evening we flew into Windhoek, and got a few quick snaps of the lunar eclipse before heading for bed. Just before 4am we were up and away, driving without incident to Walvis Bay. Along the way the sun rose spectacularly over the desert just as we drove past Spitzkoppe and we stopped for a few quick pictures. A number of birds sat on the lines next to the road and we identified Karoo chat, Southern pale chanting goshawk and Lanner falcon before getting to Swakopmund. The dunes rose above the Atlantic as we entered and then drove past Swakopmund. We soon reached Walvis Bay and drove slowly along the esplanade, picking up Cape wagtail, Kelp and Hartlaub's gulls, Cape cormorant, Greater flamingo, Great white pelican and African black oystercatchers. Towards the Saltworks we saw Caspian tern and Common whimbrel and a great many waders too far off to ID. The road towards Paaltjies seems to disappear in the red algae-tinted evaporation ponds and we only added White-fronted plover here. Back in Walvis Bay we paid a visit to the Tourism centre to pick up a street map and learned to our dismay that the "Bird Paradise" at the sewerage works doesn't exist anymore. So we decided to make a quick stop at Dune 7 where I scrambled halfway up before taking the fast route down - great fun! We bought brotchens and landjaegers back in town and sat at the esplanade eating lunch, watching a kite-surfer make excellent use of the stiff sea breeze. The tide had now risen significantly but instead of pushing the waders closer to shore, it seems they found better feeding grounds elsewhere. We decided to check in at Spindrift Guesthouse for a lazy afternoon. At 4pm we took another quick turn around the lagoon and added a pair of Cape teal to our list before heading back for dinner.
Early on Friday morning we were up to visit the lagoon once more. We added most of the same birds but then struck gold on the road to the Saltworks. Among a bunch of Common whimbrel we noticed a very straight bill with red and black variation; a careful look confirmed it - Bar-tailed godwit! Very happy with our first lifer for the trip, we got breakfast at the guesthouse before driving to Swakopmund. We wanted to visit the Saltworks at Mile 4 but the confusion of new developments north and north-east of town made it so difficult that we eventually just left for Spitzkoppe. On the entrance road to Spitzkoppe we found both Karoo and Tractrac chat but had to look very carefully as the Namib form of Karoo chat also has a white rump. The towering granite of Gross Spitzkoppe and the Pondoks was something to behold and we took lots of pictures. After paying for camping we drove around the sandy tracks, picking up Capped wheatear, Short-toed rock-thrush, Namaqua dove, Scaly-feathered finch, Black-chested snake eagle, Dusky sunbird, White-backed mousebird and a few others. Nicola saw her first Rosy-faced lovebird before we had lunch at the Small Bushman's Paradise. A Common scimitarbill was added on the way to the Rock Bridge where we took lots of pictures and added Rock kestrel, Bradfield's swift and Black-faced waxbill. With the afternoon creeping along we made our way to the campsite immediately south of Gross Spitzkoppe where another large granite dome encroaches to form a narrow pass. We found a stunning campsite under a large overhanging boulder, parked the car and went for a short walk. After adding a pair of over-flying Verreaux's eagles we returned to the car to prepare our beds for the night and cook dinner. Monteiro's hornbills flew in to roost and after dinner as we took pictures of the rising moon, Spotted eagle owl, Barn owl and Freckled nightjar calls were heard between those of a myriad dassies.
Saturday morning before dawn we were up, had a quick breakfast, packed up and then parked ourselves among the granite boulders south west of Gross Spitzkoppe in the hope of finding Herero chat. Unfortunately, even after visiting all the other places we did yesterday, we still didn't hear or see any. We did get great views of Pririt batis though and when we drove to the Small Bushman's Paradise again, Nicola ID'd two White-tailed shrikes, a much sought-after endemic! We left Spitzkoppe by around 09:00 picking up a Ruppel's korhaan just before the tar road, drove to Windhoek, arriving at Daan Viljoen Game Reserve around 11:30. A lot of construction was going on and the dam at the camping area only had African palm swift, African jacana, Little grebe and lots of White-browed sparrow-weavers. On the one-way drive around the park we added Sabota lark, Familiar chat and Long-billed pipits. Just before we joined the tar road again, a number of Violet-eared waxbills were joined by a single Tinkling cisticola. Just before 2pm we headed back to Windhoek to my uncle and aunt's place in Klein Windhoek. My uncle, Hendrik Vrey (Link to his website), re-discovered the pyrography artform more than 40 years ago and a passionate hobby turned into a lifetime of stunning creations ranging from desert landscapes and animals to portraits and commissioned works. We spent some time looking at my uncle's latest artworks and watched him creating a stunning Welcome sign for us. My grandmother also visited and we chatted the afternoon away before going to Joe's for dinner, generously paid for by my uncle.
Sunday morning we had breakfast before sadly saying goodbye to my family. We headed to the airport just before 8am and made it safely back home by 4pm. Although we dipped on a number of endemics like Rockrunner, Ruppel's parrot, Herero chat, and all the endemic larks, it was still a magic weekend. Camping under the stars at Spitzkoppe was everything I hoped for and the visit to my family made for an excellent end to a short long-weekend. 95 birds for the trip with 9 lifers for Nicola and 7 lifers for me.
