To the Skeleton Coast – in a sedan!

A biting wind blows a fine drizzle against my cheeks as I stand on the pavement in front of a coffee shop in Swakopmund. It’s May and very cold. For a moment I pretend I’m somewhere in Europe. I’m wearing a double-layer jacket, trousers and a beanie, and I’m surrounded by German architecture. A few minutes later I sip on the most European of coffees, a strong espresso.

Back in my bakkie, the windows fog up. On the seat next to me is the book Skeleton Coast by John H Marsh, which I bought in Die Muschel Book & Art Shop in the Brauhaus Arcade. It tells the story of a rescue mission in 1942 when the Dunedin Star, a British steamship, ran aground about 600km north of Swakopmund in the middle of the night on 29 November. It took a handful of rescue boats, an aeroplane, a convoy of 4x4s and two people’s lives to save the 85 crew members and 21 passengers – over several weeks.

You might be able to explore close to half of the Skeleton Coast in a VW Polo (if you hit the road early enough, you can drive to Terrace Bay, the last outpost for visitors, in a day), but this region still has a formidable reputation and the weather can be pretty miserable – as it is now. Before I set off, I send up