Sandboarding Namibia

The wakeup was abrupt. I barely had time to blink before we were piled on a bus and driven to the base of the 90 metre soft sand dune we'd be boarding for the morning. I was regretting inviting the Mexicans to the party the night before. You know the ones? You're casually enjoying a drink with your mates Jack and Jim and then someone suggests you invite Cuervo. So you let him in, just him, but before you know it there's ten of him tearing up the place and creating quite the mess in the morning. Tequila ... the dreaded gatecrasher!

But the main thing is I'd made it, which is more than I can say for everyone who'd booked and paid. No way was I missing sand boarding on some of the most famous dunes in the world. So I laced up my chunky snowboarding boots, grabbed my snowboard and started the gruelling climb to the top. Despite some similarities, unlike snowboarding there are no chairlifts to take you to the top, or compacted snow to secure your footing when you walk. It's a long, hot, heavy climb up the dune, as your feet sink in half a foot with every step you take, and during which I would have given anything for a blizzard wind-chill factor. But the searing heat and strenuous trudge was of course worth it when you got to the top and saw the view. Absolutely breathtaking! Rolling dunes to the horizon on one side, and the blue ocean on the other. And it was on the top that nature's air-con also kicked in making it quite the spot to lay out and recover.

After you'd caught your breath and the lactic acid had subsided in your legs it was time to strap in and head off. The dune face is quite steep and daunting for first timers, but being a snowboarder helped me a lot. Though the dynamics are heavier in sand than snow, the movements are much the same and I managed to give it a good go. I had some whopping stacks though and ate sand each time. Lucky it's a soft landing. A few brave people also attempted the jump and I'm proud to say it was a fellow Aussie girl who finally landed it.

One of the guides was a champion sandboarder who showed us some amazing tricks, and who'd never seen snow in his life. Imagine what he'd be like on a snowboard!

I really came into my own when the belly boards came out though. Everyone had a few attempts and I'm happy to report I got the fastest speed down the dune - 73kms an hour! Those who know me might agree it was due to the board being aerodynamically top heavy :) Gosh we flew down, becoming airborne as we went over the ridges. You dig your feet into the sand to turn or slow down but I kept mine up the whole way. Can't wait to upload the vid - but still waiting on it to arrive with the rest of the things I posted home.

The company - Alter Action Sandboarding Namibia - were great! They threw in the video for free and we all bought great souvenir t-shirts cheap. As we made our way to the bottom for the last time, utterly exhausted, we were presented with eskis full of cold drinks and scrumptious bread rolls. We ate our fill, scraped the sand out of crevices we could, and boarded the buses for our next stop... Quad biking!

There was a gorgeous dog up on the dunes with us all morning and he made me miss my Harvey. They really are mans best friend and will literally follow you anywhere.

Xxx