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You are here: Home / Photo Blogging / On The Road / Namibia / On The Road – lashonharangue – Namibia – Part 2

On The Road – lashonharangue – Namibia – Part 2

by WaterGirl|  March 1, 20235:00 am| 16 Comments

This post is in: Namibia, On The Road, Photo Blogging

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lashonharangue

We got up before sunrise to drive from our lodge into the heart of the Namib-Naukluft Park.  4WD vehicles are mandatory and our guide Jeremia partially deflated the tires to aid traction in the sand. The desert is considered to be the oldest on earth and is one of the most popular destinations in Namibia. It did not disappoint.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 9

This photo of an oryx was taken from our vehicle just before sunrise. The sand is red due to the iron oxide content.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 8

Jeremia indicated that most of the animals graze either early in the morning or as the sun is going down.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 7

It is hard to process the scale of this geography. Those are full sized trees near the base of the dune.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 6

That is another dune just a little further down the road as the sun was coming up over the horizon. It was impossible to get a shot that included both animals in the foreground and the top of the dunes.

The nara plant (Acanthosicyos horridus) on the slopes stabilize the dunes and help them achieve their incredible heights. It is a leafless, spiky thicket that grows only in the Namib Desert. It has no leaves to prevent water loss. Instead, it conducts its photosynthesis directly through its green stems and spines. The plant also absorbs moisture from fog directly through its stems.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 5

This is Dune 45, one of the most visited dunes in the park. People hike up and take pictures at the top. Very important to start before sunrise and carry water. We settled for a photo from the main road.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 4

Close up of a few of the hikers. The drop off on the shaded side is pretty steep.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 3

This is Deadvlei (dead marsh), one of the most famous locations in the park. At one time the area was a clay pan that filled when the Tsauchab river flooded. As the dunes moved the source of water was cut off and the trees died – about 600 years ago. The area is too dry for them to rot and instead they slowly turned black from the scorching sun.

As we were hiking to this area Jeremia picked up a little bit of sand. He placed it on a piece of paper. Then he moved a magnet under the paper. The sand separated into black and red. The black sand was magnetite. The red iron oxide sand hides that color in the dunes.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 2

A very unique landscape. Notice the nara plants on the dunes.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2 1

Jeremia said there had been an unusually wet rainy season in this part of Namibia. We drove to this area that had almost dried up. Namibia has no perennial rivers or any other permanent water bodies.

On The Road - lashonharangue - Namibia - Part 2

We spotted this large gourd growing wild near the water. Citrullus ecirrhosus, commonly known as Namib tsamma, is a species of perennial desert vine, and it’s a relative of the watermelon (Citrullus lanatus). The plant relies on water deep in the ground and morning fogs. I have read it is bitter tasting but desert fauna eat it for the moisture the gourd contains.

Next Stops –  Walvis Bay and the Skeleton Coast

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Reader Interactions

16Comments

  1. 1.

    Betty

    March 1, 2023 at 8:05 am

    Amazing that life can survive in those conditions. Beautiful scenery.

  2. 2.

    Baud

    March 1, 2023 at 8:06 am

    That second picture is otherworldly.

    Also too,

    Follow the Gourd! The Holy Gourd of Jerusalem!

  3. 3.

    Kevin

    March 1, 2023 at 8:20 am

    I second Betty’s comment. Hiking the sand dune sounds amazing.

  4. 4.

    J R in WV

    March 1, 2023 at 8:20 am

    Obviously a very strange place, other-worldly for sure.

    Wasn’t there a book/movie about Dune with a landscape like this?         ;~)

  5. 5.

    stinger

    March 1, 2023 at 8:47 am

    Fascinating installment!

  6. 6.

    CaseyL

    March 1, 2023 at 8:49 am

    What an astonishing landscape.  I didn’t realize the Namib desert is possibly/probably the oldest in the world, 55 million years old and maybe 80 million.  That’s staggering, an area unchanged for so long.

    I love the colors.  Those dark reds are gorgeous.

  7. 7.

    OzarkHillbilly

    March 1, 2023 at 9:04 am

    Those first 2 pics… Stunning.

  8. 8.

    Steve from Mendocino

    March 1, 2023 at 9:15 am

    Nice work on the photos.

  9. 9.

    delphinium

    March 1, 2023 at 9:18 am

    Wonderful photos of a harsh landscape. Loved the contrast of the black/white against the backdrop of the red dunes in the first photo.

  10. 10.

    YY_Sima Qian

    March 1, 2023 at 9:25 am

    WOW! Now I am really itching to go!

  11. 11.

    arrieve

    March 1, 2023 at 9:28 am

    These pictures are wonderful. I don’t think I will ever get there, but I would certainly love to see those dunes.

  12. 12.

    cope

    March 1, 2023 at 10:32 am

    Wonderful pictures of an other-worldly place, thank you. Whenever I see large, ancient dunes like these, I wonder what’s underneath them.

    Thanks again.

  13. 13.

    kindness

    March 1, 2023 at 10:39 am

    That melon & it’s plant look just like what is referred to as pig melons out here.  They grow wild.  No one eats them because they are really seedy and taste bad.  In the old days people would gather them and feed them to their pigs, hence the nickname.

  14. 14.

    BigJimSlade

    March 1, 2023 at 2:52 pm

    Who left those sand dunes out there to just rust like that ;-)

    The melon looks like the good ol’ vine of Sodom, which I’ve come across in eastern Jordan (or something similar, at least).

  15. 15.

    Yutsano

    March 1, 2023 at 3:51 pm

    “A beginning is a very delicate time…”

    Although to my knowledge Frank Herbert never visited the Namib before writing Dune he took inspiration from hills such as these and also the delicate ecology behind them. The pictures are simply stunning!

  16. 16.

    way3blue

    March 1, 2023 at 7:46 pm

    Just watched the film, Beast, flying from San Francisco to Houston.  Which is supposed to be set in Namibia.  Not harsh desert rather more similar to southern Kenya. (Note to WaterGirl: it features Idris Elba.).  The landscapes were quite lovely.  Looking forward to your next set…. (Ack.  way2blue )

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