We were up before the sun this morning. There were still a few stars out and it was cold enough to need down jackets while we had breakfast. The early start was to try and give us a chance of hiking/scrambling up to a pinnacle called ‘The Madonna’ before things got too hot. Driving out of camp was pretty special, with the rising sun making the long grass glow and bringing the surrounding cliffs to life. A big Redbilled Hornbill was sat silhouettes on the branch of a dead tree as we slowly bounced along the desert track. A short while later, we came across a mother and baby giraffe! Right by the roadside.

After our impromptu safari drive, we reached the parking spot that we’d identified yesterday. There was no obvious path and the guide book said ‘make your way across the desert to the base rocks’. This felt rather intimidating, so with a stick out in front to scare off any snakes, we pushed into the long grass. There was much relief we when found a few painted stones and cairns indicating we were on the path. A path of sorts anyway, and one that hadn’t been walked years. 

Scrambling up the lower slopes took some time and between the odd cairn, we had to pick the best line, between boulders and trees and the heat of the morning and our rucksacks bore down on us. As we neared the ridge, the Madonna was clearly in view. We were getting close, but had to back track around a band of cliffs to find the right way up. 

As we crested the ridge by the base of the Madonna, we were both taken aback by the view on the far side, which stretched out for hundreds of miles. Pan flat, with the odd mountain and no real trace of human activity. Incredible.

Nothing like I’d ever seen. At this point, we’d have been happy with the day and could have gone down with the wonderful view imprinted in our memories. 

But above us loomed another adventure! Did we have the nerve to try and climb to the summit?

There were three bolts which looked do-able, if somewhat intimidating. After that, the route climbed out of sight, so the final section remained unknown. We had to try at least! 

We got the ropes out before it got any hotter or we lost our nerve. 

After a tentative start, I made it past the third bolt via an expand traverse and pulled up on the the arête, now out of sight of Clare. There were no more bolts, but I was able to slings couple of spikes of rock which boosted confidence. The final moves lay ahead and I gently pulled upwards, making sure I’d be able to reverse any moves if there was no anchor on top. Joy of joys, a shiny Petzl Bolt greeted me at the summit, with a summit book box behind it! We’d made it! And more importantly, we could get down safely!

I had to take a moment to myself as I tried to take in the view and then the ropes. Clare was soon up sat next to me and we beamed as we looked around and around in every direction.

As I was pulling the ropes up, I was even further delighted to find a double bolt abseil station. Getting down would be both safe and simple for us! But first we soak up the views…

And write our name in the ‘summit book’. We guessed that it hadn’t been climbed much – we were the 7th team on the top!! And the first British ascent. A couple of local climbers and visiting New Zealanders were the only other humans to have been here!

Eventually we had to go down. The views are impossible to describe and the land so vast it was hard to comprehend. 

A simple, single abseil got us back to our bags where we soon devoured our lunch and lay back on the rocks to digest the food and our achievements. 

The walk down felt tiring. We had planned on climbing a steep bolted climb in the ‘Music Area’, but we could see an enormous eagle nest near the top, so thought it best avoided. And besides, we were knackered! 

But that wasn’t the end of the fun. After tracking back to the truck, we passed Impala, a mongoose, a huge giraffe and a warthog just driving back to our campsite!

We arrived utterly spent, and only just had it in us to brew a coffee in the shade to recover. This gave us enough energy to enjoy the open air shower on the camp viewing balcony! What a place to freshen up! Luckily no safari trucks passed by!

Everything takes time at camp, so by the time we’d purified more water, chopped veggies and cooked dinner, the light was beginning to fade again. 

Time to get the tent up before some more star gazing. An absolutely unforgettable day! 

The Madonna, Erongo Mountains, 15****