1 September 2025
Today we rise before dawn to journey towards the majestic Sossusvlei dunes that one of the most photographed areas of the Namib Desert. Namib means ‘open place’ in the local language, which is quite apt as the desert stretches for 2000km by 150km. We are picked up in our open 4WD vehicles (meeting our guide Saki) and are extremely grateful for the extra blankets we are provided with because we have a very long drive at speed on the open road before we reach the dunes.
This area of the Southern Namib comprises a vast dune sea with some of the tallest and most spectacular dunes in the world, that range in color from pink to vivid orange. In the Sossusvlei area, several dunes exceed 300 meters in height. The complexity and regularity of dune patterns in its dune sea have attracted the attention of geologists for decades, but it remains poorly understood. Most of the sand comes from the Orange River to the south and is blown mainly in by the winds from the west. The dunes themselves don’t move like they do in other deserts because they are anchored on rock formations underneath. The original sand from the river was grey in colour but is now red because of the iron has oxidised. It also contains quartz. Saki shows us a great trick where he puts red sand next to the lighter colour sand on someone’s hand and uses a magnet underneath to move the red iron particles.
A sparse grass grows on the sand alongside the road but there are mysterious ‘fairy circles’ – literally round circle areas where nothing grows. There are lots of different theories about why this should be – particularly odd as soil taken from there does allow other plants to grow. One theory is that the poisonous Euphorbia damarana bush produces a toxic substance to keep other plants at bay.
We are also fortunate to see a sidewinder snake doing its characteristic movement and then watched in amazement as it effortlessly dug itself into the sand so you would hardly know it was there. Thankfully it is only a small snake or I certainly wouldn’t have been standing still watching it. We saw lots of mouse footprints and where their tails had dragged behind (and saw three little mice rapidly scuttle into the bushes). There were lots of beetle tracks in the sand. We also see springbok, oryx, ostrich on the plains as we drive.
Sossus means ‘gathering place of water’ in the Nama language and Vlei means valley in Afrikaans. The Sossusvlei dunes are numbered for their distance from park entrance. Dune 45 used to be the only one you could climb – and is the one most often used in promo material. Photos taken in the very early morning show dramatic lines of sun and shadow along the sharp lines of the dunes. Many people are already climbing up Dune 45 to try to beat the heat of the day but as only a few of our group are interested in the climb, we decide that we should visit Dead Vlei first and stop only for photo shots on the way into the valley.
The Tsauchab River is an intermittent river that flows from the Naukluft Mountains that we passed yesterday. This means that it only flows when there have been rains in the wet season, but for most of the year it ‘flows’ deep underground. You can tell where the river would flow because of the row of green camel thorn trees; these trees are incredibly hardy and their roots go down 60m. Over 900 years ago, the Sossusvlei dunes formed and blocked off the river completely. Eventually even the hardy camel thorn trees in the ‘Deadvlei’ area died but it is so dry that they can’t decompose so the ghostly dead trees remain – and provide a drawcard for photographers.
The drive into the Deadvlei is an adventure in itself – we follow the old riverbed in. It is now completely on very soft sand so we have to let air out of the tires and engage 4WD. You could tell that the drivers loved this part of their job as they found the best path along the river bed. I tried to take a video showing how bumpy the ride was and was definitely amused to discover that my camera had held the horizon steady and showed the vehicle lurching up and down.
Even though we have reached Deadvlei relatively early so that we can walk out there before it gets too hot, the temperatures are climbing rapidly and the walk is uphill on soft sand. It is so worth the walk out there! It is spectacularly otherworldly and the contrast of the dead trees against the towering red dunes makes you just want to keep taking photos. How many photos could you possibly take of dead trees – quite a few I can assure you. We can also see the Big Daddy dune, which is the largest in the area (over 400m), and some very hardy souls making the climb.
Once we have photographed our fill of dead trees we head back to Dune 45 for a few keen souls to climb to the first ridge. Anne went up but I decided that it wouldn’t be a good idea for me, especially as temperatures were in the high 30s by that stage.
On our way back we stop to see the Sand Sea special monument. In 2013, the entire Namib Sand Sea became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in recognition of its exceptional natural value. It is the only coastal desert in the world with vast dune fields influenced by fog. This creates a unique ecosystem where endemic creatures, from insects to reptiles and mammals, have adapted to survive on moisture from the fog.
Our final stop for the morning was Sesriem Canyon, a remarkable geological feature carved by the Tsauchab River millions of years ago. You can see the aggregated rocks and also the smooth sides where the river rages through when it rains. Saki showed us a video of the river in March when it was definitely raging. We descend into the canyon and are very grateful for the shade. Further along we head up a side passage that gets very narrow and leads a few pools of water at the end of the canyon.
We have time back at the lodge for lunch and an afternoon rest before heading out in our bus to visit Elim Dune at the edge of the park for sundowners. Wian had gone and got us our preferred drinks while we were out. Lots of orders for gin & tonic but the shop didn’t have any left so he paid an exorbitant amount at our lodge. He set up a table with all our drinks, ice, local snacks – such a treat. We watched a herd of oryx under a tree and then as others joined they moved across the plains grazing. It was very peaceful until other vehicles joined us so we headed off without watching the sunset – would have been behind the dune anyway.
Dinner is at the lodge again this evening.
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