Skeleton Coast of Namibia

Namibia’s Skeleton Coast is desolate. It’s the graveyard of ships, and anything else that dares to come close. Its isolation and age old gravel plains, does not render it to the 4×4 explorer, but to the pilot and his passengers – this is heaven.

Swooping low over the salt pans north of Swakopmund, returning for a second look, I realised this was going to be four days of absolute beauty and true adventure. A few minutes later it was time to admire our pilot, Andre’s skills when landing softly on the beach for a picnic lunch close to a forgotten shipwreck. Exploring the shoreline, I came to understand – it was not only shipwrecks that lined our beach, but also the bones of many a whale and seal. After lunch we continued, crossing the desert to the Ugab formations – a nearly lifeless moon landscape of numerous black ridges in stark contrast to the white desert floor. Again, we could only admire the skill of pure perfection as we landed in the very Ugab River that minutes ago looked so unwelcoming. Walking among rock formations too beautiful to capture, plants too old for museums – I became one with the soil and left a piece of my soul behind. From here we proceeded to the Kuidas camp in the Huab Valley where we stayed for the night. (more…)