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Namibia - Sesrium & the DunesAug 1, 2005
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Dunes at Sunrise
Dunes at Sunrise
Kevin at Dune 45 - Soussesvlei
| This is Namibia's number one attraction, the sand dunes at Sossosvlei, the gateway to which is Sesrium. Dune 45 the most accessible of the red dunes from the camp had been our set destination for sunrise but unfortunately due to varying incidents of late tent pull downs, hangovers, queuing to leave the campsite and then the truck breaking down we missed it by miles and drove straight pass. Instead, we went straight to Sossosvlei, a large ephemeral pat set amid red sand dunes up to 200m high. We did a 5km return walk to Deadvlei, which is a white sand area holding a petrified forest at the base of a circle of red dunes. Out guide Boesman was incredibly knowledgeable about the dunes, the wildlife and the Bushmen that used to live in the area. These stories were really interesting, he told us how they would walk together to look for food (game)and sometimes the old or sick would hold them up so they would leave them behind, but worse was when the children slowed the group down and the women had to leave them behind. If they stayed with the kids then they would lessen the chance of further breeding within the group. They had no choice but to leave the child, and walk away, never look back, never talk about that child again. It's amazing how some people are forced to live in order to survive. Unfortunately after the walk we had to head out straight away, only stopping for a couple of moments to take photos of dune 45. This was probably the most important and famous of Namibia's attractions and we had less than three hours to see it in which is just ridiculous and possibly the most frustrating part of the overland trip. |
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