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Sossusveil, the Namib Desert
2012.03.28
The Namib Desert Lodge is close to the dunes. The sunset drive gave us lovely scenery if no animals,including the fossilized dune in the foreground here. There is newer loose sand on top.
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The wind created lovely ripples in the sand.
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The colourful dune ants are almost an inch long and do bite......
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As we were driving, a large storm was coming in from the northwest. The rainy season in this area is usually in April, but an early storm was coming. The setting sun lit up the rich red of the sand while the dark clouds behind gave a stunning contrast.
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The edge of the approaching storm picked up the colour of the setting sun.
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The storm overnight was quite violent and soaked the ground to a depth of about 2 inches. The rain continued into the next day, making an unusual drive to the dunes.
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The rarely seen puddles of water along the side of the road brought a lot of animals. A rarely-seen desert porcupine is retreating from the camera
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These were very different dunes from what we had seen 3 years ago. Look at our entry for October 22, 2008 to see what I mean. Now, the sky was very overcast and there was light rain. So unusual for this desert. The colours were stronger but there were no shadows to give it such depth
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The last time we were here, we were told that it never rains in this area. Approaching the Sossusvlei area, we could see the rain falling ahead.
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A swallow-tailed bee-eater was reacting to the rare rainshower.
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Despite grooming, he is still wet.....
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Barbara and I at the dunes in Sossusvlei
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Others climbing the dune. Normally it is an easy climb but the wind and rain made this more difficult
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Dead Vlei, wet and getting wetter.
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Deadvlei with rain.... so unusual
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The classic photos from this area cannot be taken due to the light rain.
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On our way out of the area, we passed the largest dune, No. 7. Although it looks no larger than the others, it is 2-1/2 km from the road.
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Two members of a small herd of springbok were cautious about our vehicle, but anxious to drink from the water by the road.
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The arrival of a tour bus behind us was more than they could manage, so they took off at a run.
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From Sossusvlei, we headed across country to get to the capital, Windhoek. The sky was really omenous, and the gravel road already wet from earlier rain. The drive was very slow, taking over 6 hours on the often-flooded roads with poor visibility.
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This was a very common sight. We were glad to get to our lodge at the edge of Windhoek. Off to Swaziland tomorrow.
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We stayed overnight at the River Crossing Lodge, a wonderful place overlooking Windhoek and close to the airport.
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This was the view from our lovely chalet. We arrived tired after the long drive, so regretably decided not to take advantage of the game drive through these hills. Horseback riding, mountain biking and hiking are also available. Next time, for sure......
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Wow!!!!!!!!! Wonderful, breathtaking post! I love all of it! Just perfectly! ¤6 to my favorrite :) Thanks for sharing!!
AllieOska · 2012-03-28: 09:25
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