Windhoek sits at about 1,700 metres in the middle of Namibia, in a bowl of hills that gives it a cooler, drier climate than most of the country. It is the capital and by far the largest city, with a population approaching three hundred thousand, and a mix of German colonial buildings, modern shopping centres and sprawling townships. The Christuskirche, a Lutheran church with a pale stone facade, stands on a hill in the middle of the town and has become the city's best-known landmark.
Namibia was a German colony until the First World War, and the legacy shows in the architecture, the bakeries, the beer and a language still spoken in some quarters. Beer is a good example: the country brews under the old German purity law, and a cold lager at a terrace in the evening is a fine end to a day. Game meat, from kudu to oryx and springbok, appears on menus alongside the sausages and schnitzel, and biltong, the air-dried meat, is sold everywhere.
The road to Windhoek from the Gamsberg and Kuiseb passes is a ride across the edge of the Namib. The Gamsberg Pass drops from the highlands toward the desert, with long views over a landscape of red rock and pale grass, and the surface is a mix of gravel and tarmac. Gravel here can be loose, corrugated and deep in places, so ride within your limits and keep your speed down. Wildlife, from kudu to baboons, can step onto the road, and long distances between towns mean a breakdown is a serious matter.
Windhoek has everything: fuel, repairs, supermarkets and hotels, and it is the place to stock up before any long ride. Beyond the city, stations can be hundreds of kilometres apart, and you should fill at every chance, carry water and tell someone your route. Cell coverage is patchy outside the towns.
The dry season, roughly May to October, is the best time to ride, with clear skies and cool mornings, though nights can be near freezing at altitude. Summer brings heat and occasional thunderstorms. The sky at night, far from city lights, is spectacular.