Another few days of catching up on trip planning, the internet, and so forth, in an Oceanside Airbnb. Rather dicey getting the dual-cab Hilux in the garage!We joined a kayak tour (fun, with hundreds of playful seal pups frolicking around our kayaks) and the next day Tommy’s Living Desert Tour. This was one of the best tours during our travels; they show you all the living things in what initially looks like a barren desert. The main point is conservation, as most of these animals live or breed or are otherwise dependent on a very small area of land where the sand dunes meet the gravel plain. It’s easy to do serious damage by driving a 4×4 on it, but takes years or decades to repair. We heard our guide Charlene’s story – she was one of the people who, in her youth, drove her Volkswagen all over the place, unknowingly doing much damage, until she met Tommy (the owner of this guiding service and the originator of this kind of tour), who took her on a tour for free. She was hooked, and determined then and there to eventually become a guide for Tommy. She’s been with Tommy’s company for six years now. We also met Tommy, a committed Christian and all around good guy, at the end of the trip. For various reasons, mostly health, next season may be his last.
