The Beautiful Landscapes of Namibia
“Unbelievable.” “Spectacular.” “Otherwordly.” “Gorgeous.” “Stunning.”
We found ourselves repeating these sorts of words over and over in our two weeks in the fabulous country of Namibia. We knew less than nothing about Namibia before we came — how do you say it? where is it? — and it became one of our favorite countries of the whole trip. We loved it!
An arid, sparsely populated country tucked into southwest Africa, Namibia’s landscapes are many, varied, and just jaw-dropping. We climbed massive, swirling sand dunes and drove along a coastline so desolate it’s known as “The Skeleton Coast.” Namibia is rich in diamonds and uranium, so it’s a relatively safe, prosperous country (with great camping facilities). And because it was settled by the Germans, it had the best beer of the trip!
Let us share with you some of our favorites from this amazing country:
Etosha National Park
This word-class game park in the northern part of the country gave us the best game viewing of our safari. It’s mostly scrub and desert, but that only made spotting the wildlife easier! There are even (fenced off) man-made water holes adjacent to each of the campsites at the park, where we would spend our evenings watching elephant, rhino, and giraffe coming in for a drink. This is also where I spotted my first lion, much to the chagrin of Jordan who had gone to bed 15 minutes earlier!
Etosha Salt Pan
There is nothing here. Absolutely nothing. And it stretches all the way to the horizon. This absolute emptiness is kind of creepy, really disorienting, and as mesmerizing as the sea. You wouldn’t think you could just stare at nothing for so long, but our group did, triggering a hair-raising, beat-the-clock drive back to the game park’s gate before they closed!
Spitzkoppe
They call this “The Matterhorn of Namibia” because the rocks spring straight up out of the desert. In the light from sunset, the huge rocks glow red and, from the little ridge we scampered up, you can see for miles and miles.
Skeleton Coast
The most desolate place I’ve ever seen. Sandy, flat desert just ends smack dab in the Atlantic Ocean. The coastline is littered with shipwrecks (we even saw a recent one), and I can’t imagine the marooned sailors’ despair if this lifeless place is where they got stranded.
Cape Cross Seal Colony
Along the Skeleton Coast, there’s a massive colony of Cape fur seals. Tens of thousands of them lay on the shore, bleat at each other, fight, and swim out in the freezing water. And boy do they stink.
Sossusvlei
Cue the Lawrence of Arabia theme. We climbed a sand dune known as “Dune 45” one morning at sunrise. This is exactly what comes to mind when you think “desert.” It was stunningly beautiful!
Fish River Canyon
Fish River Canyon is the largest canyon in Africa. Jordan and I disagree over whether its better at sunrise or sunset. It’s well worth seeing, but our honest opinion is that it’s not as cool as the world’s largest canyon — you know the one, in Arizona.
Orange River
The Orange River demarcates Namibia’s southern border with South Africa. The landscape is more lush here, with trees and vineyards.
It’s an old chestnut that pictures don’t do a destination justice. But in Namibia, where the vast, stark beauty takes your breath away, it’s the gospel truth.
