After three years, I was finally heading back to Africa – this time to Namibia. It’s late January, and after long, grey winter weeks, the fresh greenery caught my eye as we approached Windhoek. It’s the rainy season in Namibia and the savannah is already in bloom. My travelling companion and I are picked up straight from the airport and taken to the adventure lodge in the Khomas Highlands. We can already see the gentle mountain range in the distance. We leave the well-maintained motorway and turn into the nature reserve. Formerly used as pastureland for cattle, the land has now recovered and has become home to many wild animals. A twenty-minute drive winds its way through the 9,000-hectare estate to the lodge, and after a short while we spot the first wild animals. Giraffes, wildebeest, springboks and ostriches watch us from a distance. Overwhelmed by these first impressions, we arrive at the lodge and are offered a refreshing drink. The lodge owner shows me round the grounds, pointing out the accommodation, the horse paddocks and the off-site chalets. Here, too, I come across plenty of oryx, antelopes and impalas, making it feel like half a game drive. The initially fine weather turns into a heat storm towards evening, and we arrive back at the main lodge just in time for dinner. A delicious three-course meal is waiting for us. Game dishes are served for dinner. As a vegetarian, I’m given a delicious alternative. Afterwards, it was straight off to bed – the journey had been long, and an early morning ride was waiting for me the next day.

At around seven o’clock in the morning, I’m ready and go to help saddle the horses. I’m assigned the mare Zoe, who’s a bit of a morning grouch. We set off towards the riverbed at a leisurely pace. Before long, we spot the first herd of striped wildebeest, which are lingering along the river in the early morning hours. Now my horse Zoe has woken up too; she really likes the wildebeest. Afterwards, there’s a lovely sandy track perfect for a gallop. We spot more wildlife as it slowly gets hotter. My girlfriend, who doesn’t ride, has also made the most of the morning cool and explored the many walking trails in the area. We return to the lodge after an hour and a half, where a lavish breakfast buffet awaits us. Afterwards, we relax by the pool; not a cloud is to be seen in the sky – the perfect winter getaway.
A game drive awaits us in the afternoon. We set off a little earlier to avoid the typical evening heat-induced thunderstorms typical of this time of year. The terrain is vast and the biodiversity ranges from oryx and antelopes, through kudus, giraffes, zebras, wildebeest, hippos, ostriches, impalas, steenbok and springbok, vultures, to numerous different species of birds. We spot some of them, and the guide tells us a great deal about the flora and fauna. We also catch sight of the hippos, who are still cooling off in the waterhole to escape the day’s heat. We turn into a valley framed by hills and see countless giraffes enjoying the fresh greenery of the trees. We head up a small hill for a sundowner picnic; from the summit, there’s a magnificent view across the entire highland. Then it’s straight back for our final dinner. This time, the thunderstorm doesn’t arrive until later in the evening, so we’re able to watch a magnificent sunset from the dining room.

The next morning, we go on another ride. This time, rather than riding down by the riverbed, we climb a hill or two on horseback. There are sweeping views from here too. As the riding terrain is rather stony, we only manage a gallop on the way back. Here too, I have breakfast afterwards. For the afternoon, we’ve organised a transfer to Swakopmund, so we’ll have time at midday to relax by the pool.
We say goodbye to the team and are taken to the motorway. From here, the transfer company will pick us up directly; we don’t have to go back to Windhoek again.

To sum up, we had three lovely days at the Erlebnislodge in the Khomas Highlands and, despite it being the rainy season, it was a welcome winter getaway. The rain typically only falls in the evening or at night, so even in the low season in February, you can still enjoy the sun and warmth during the day.

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