Video: Kilian Bron Heads to Uncharted Desert Territory

After a first episode on the highest sand dune of the world and another one on the Chachani volcano at more than 6000 meters (around 20000ft), the third Mission will be absolutely different.

For this third episode, welcome to Namibia – South Africa with Kilian Bron, for a different goal. To get lost in the middle of the Savannah and to ride fantastic spots, as you all remember the famous The Lion King cartoon.




Starting in Namibia’s capital city Windhoeck, we're hitting the road with my filmmaker/photographer Pierre for a first week in autonomy. Nothing else but a satellite phone to get in touch with us.

Forget about 4g and Instagram! Welcome to the Savannah, surrounded by zebras and warthogs. The first stop of this journey brings us to Spitzkoppe. An unreal spot more than 3.5 hours away from Windhoek. 3h30 of straight road before the sight of these amazing silhouettes, drawn in front of a crazy sunset. This massive granite rock seems so close, while we’re more than 100km away. Looking around us, we’re surrounded by emptiness. As far as the eyes can see, there nothing but clouds and plains, put in music by the noise of the wind.



While it's a bit frustrating to arrive at night, we have very fond memories of our first Namibian sunset. To such an extent that we never missed any sunrise or sunset during our trip. Well, just this one time while exploring the deepest trails of Namibia in the Arnhem cave.



In the continuity of a fascinating trip, discovering the Spitzkoppe at sunrise was magic. We could compare this area to Moab – USA for its texture and colors to the famous Cervin (Matterhorn) in Europe with which it shares some similarities.

Between pink sky and orange rocks, we distinguish a large part of the spot through an impressive natural arch. No more time to waste. It’s ride time!



There is a thin line between stress and excitation. To be fair, I never rode such steep lines before... I can't climb most of the lines by foot, that's impossible!



These rocks are sharper than a cheese grater. And without any emergency services anywhere near me, I can’t make any mistakes.

By contrast, the grip here is crazy and there is an infinite amount of lines. Everywhere and for everybody. On my side, I have to be creative to imagine how and where I could ride the famous Spitzkoppe area.


Step by step, I found lines than I could have never imagined. That's a real drug and it seems difficult to be reasonable.

I'm under pressure, at this highest point near that rift. It looks like a long steep ridge of hundred meters with two holes on each side. The start is too steep. So steep that I can’t even check the line by foot. The first ten meters will just be crucial.


At the starting point, I'm feeling dizzy and I don't know how I will be able to jump on my bike and ride. Without a doubt, the most difficult part is to make the first move and clip my pedals... But I have also to control my speed and take care to the trajectories, that's crazy.

I'm feeling good on my bike on the first meters and I know exactly what the limits of my brakes and tires are. It's reassuring to be able to control your speed to keep the right way.

For a short instant, my head is somewhere else and I'm trying to enjoy my line. But the width of the ridge decreases as the speed increases. I'm scared but I have no choice to stay focus to finish my ride in one piece.

It was not easy but I did it! I'm taking a few minutes to catch my breath before finding another great and impressive line on the neighbouring summit.

About one minute of pure freeriding for one full day of practice, that's the deal! I found a new face to shred, just in front of the Spitzkoppe. The landscape is amazing from here... The starting point looks like a huge dome before diving into a long left off-camber with sketchy gaps.


The rules are the same, no crash permitted! First tries are always delicate and some areas are doubtful... That's frustrating, I don't know precisely where the limits are because all my usual landmarks are distorted. However, I know exactly where I have to put my tires to the nearest centimetre.

At this key moment, Looking at the bright red sand dunes of Sossusvlei, I’m not sure if we should be spending more time there. Pushing your own limits is a good thing, but you sometimes need to step back, take a break and breath, to be able to return to it later.

It seems difficult sometimes in the heat of the moment but with the benefit of hindsight, that's just vital.

By all means, the Spitzkoppe earned its number one ranking on my spot lists. It’s above any other places I’ve ridden in the past, for the quality of the ride as well as the surreal landscapes.


We're now on the way through the Namibian Savannah for the second part of the trip, the Arnhem cave.

As I was looking for even more originality for my Missions, It seemed interesting to discover the African underworld. In the middle of a mountain range, lost in the middle of nowhere, we found the entry of the cave with a local guy. « Boyboy » guided us through this huge cave :4km long, divided into various chambers.

Previously exploited for bats excrements, it's now abandoned. Wait... what? Yes, Namibians were turning excrements into fertilizer and Were selling it all around the country. Indeed, it was a flourishing industry, and it seems that they may restart it soon.


Let's enjoy it! What a surprise to discover that we can ride quite everything with a bike, except for extremely narrow parts that are going from one gallery to another one. Some spaces are sometimes so huge, that our lights are not sufficient. So that it's difficult to analyse the relief in detail.

It's even trickier when I have to cross these parts on my bike. But what a pleasure! The trail is really technical and is composed of rocks and And what seems to be sandy parts, but in reality, it’s bat excrements, with a putrid smell…But we have to pass over it !

I put a neck tube on to cover my face and avoid this bad smell. It helped me breathe alright. The temperature is rising, and after 4 hours getting deeper in the cave, the heat started to get to me.

We spent hours between each gallery, looking for jumps and atypical spots. "BoyBoy" Who knows every single inch of this place, is probably still wondering why I wanted to ride inside the cave with my bike. But for sure he had fun.


Pierre: "Behind the camera, I tried to ignore those faeces particles. Kilian is sending them everywhere... On my lenses, into my bag, stabilizer engines...my nose...I'm consoled by the knowledge that I never had the opportunity to do that before and you can’t put a price on that (nor sense to it)."


As a nod to my first mission of the season, we’re back in the sand dunes for the ultimate part of the trip.

In some ways the landscape here makes me think of Peru and Cerro Blanco... Just in time to enjoy a new sunrise, we are now sitting at the top of a dune in the middle of Namib's parc. As far as we can see, for hundreds of kilometres: There is only sand... with an amazing color panel: orange, red, violet...Below, on the floor, the contrast is really emphasised by the arid floor.


Deadvlei is obviously the most atypical spot of the region. Covered with some ossified trees, this landscape seems to be from another world. This zone also hosts the highest sand dune, which is about 325m high.

Under a blazing sun, the ascent is challenging. The sand is much softer than during my previous experience. But it doesn't matter, I have time eventually...


Several times during this trip, it was good to be reminded that our office was absolutely breathtaking and that we are lucky to be able to discover a lot of different spots, as the main job.


This last section notifies the end of our trip to Namibia. A country full of contrasts and the most surprising place I have ever visited. Time to say goodbye to the last animals on the road before going back home.


Stay tuned, for the next unconventional and disrupted Mission.

You can vote for me in the Pinkbike GoPro Evolution Contest here.

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