After 100km we filled up with fuel and left the tarmac - the next three days would be on gravel roads and petrol stations would be "few and far between". The scenery was generally hilly with vast areas of scrubland bordering on desert. It was a novelty to see "wild" ostriches as we drove by. Mike was helpful navigating and good company. It was 1500 when we reached Desert Homestead Lodge (run by Andrew and Melissa) in the middle of nowhere - 40km from Sossuvlei National Park and at US$67/night not nearly as expensive as any of the others in the area. It was decorated with driftwood and scrap metal sculptures - rather successfully I felt.

Although I had booked a single room for two nights Mike realised that he didn't have many options but to stay with me (there was hardly any traffic on the roads we'd driven and nowhere cheaper to stay anyway). We renegotiated the booking for a twin, which was obviously cheaper for me too. We checked into our luxury chalet and Mike slept for a couple of hours before we went on a "sundowner drive". This involved an African driver/guide called Colin, a sawn-off Land Rover (as if it had been under a very low bridge), a cool box and a picnic table. We drove slowly for 40 minutes over bumpy ground. Colin told us with pride that they have their own borehole at the lodge. "It is 30m deep and the water is pure - not like the diluted water you get in Windhoek." The Land Rover rather impressively (for its age) got us part way up a hill and parked on the saddle. We walked on up to the top and took in the views. By the time we returned the picnic table had been decorated - like a school nature table - rocks, weathered wood, dry grass but importantly supplemented with a choice of drinks and snacks. The sunset was quite good too!

It was nearly 2000 by the time we got back and the other guests had already started dinner. The stars in the night sky were fantastic.