Namib Naukluft Park
In the Nama language, Namib means "vast" and that says it all. This park is the largest protected area in Namibia and one of the largest parks in the world, with a size of nearly 50,000 km ².
It consists of several different landscapes, the wettest being the lagoon at Sandwich Harbour estuary. Across this wet area is the scorched Namib desert with its numerous orange sand dunes where the blowing sand creates razor-sharp ridges.
The famous SOSSUSVLEI sand dunes of more than 300 meters high are the highest in the world, towering high above their counterparts in the Middle East. They ask to be climbed barefoot.
In this extraordinary desert also lies the NAMIB RAND NATURE RESERVE, one of the largest private reserves in Africa and certainly one of the most beautiful.
The northern part of the park has rocky which turn into a moonscape. The Naukluft mountain range has some monumental purple tainted mountains, rock pools and wildlife. A few dirt roads cross the northern part and others lead to the center of the dunes and Sesriem canyon. The best way to enjoy the grandeur of it all is to take the plane from Walvis Bay or Swakopmund.
Animals, insects and plants have adapted to life in this inhospitable region and are, with the exception of some irregular rainfall, dependent on the sea fog which extends far inland.
