Story#251
Dunes before sunrise
The gate opens at dawn and everyone drives too fast to Dune 45. We climbed the ridge in the dark, sat down at the top, and the desert turned from grey to orange in about four minutes.
Namibia
Dunes over 300 metres tall, trees that died 900 years ago and never rotted, and a road with two corners.
7 entries · 2 stories, 5 fun facts
Namibia at a glance
The practical numbers, before the stories.
- Capital
- Windhoek
- Currency
- Namibian dollar (NAD); South African rand also accepted
- Official language
- English official; Afrikaans, German and Oshiwambo widely spoken
- Climate
- Desert and semi-desert. Hot days, cold nights, and one of the driest countries in sub-Saharan Africa.
- Best time to go
- May–October
- Time zone
- UTC+2
- Driving side
- Left
- Plugs and voltage
- Type D / M, 220 V
Worth knowing: Distances are enormous and much of the road network is gravel. Check your rental agreement covers it.
Planning a trip to Namibia
The decisions that determine whether the trip works, whichever country you are going to.
Namibia was the first African country to write environmental protection into its constitution, and its entire coastline is now protected. The dunes at Sossusvlei reach over 300 metres and are coloured deep red by iron oxide that has been oxidising for millions of years.
At Deadvlei the camelthorn trees died around 900 years ago, but the air is too dry for decomposition, so they still stand black against white clay. The Hoba meteorite, at roughly 60 tonnes, has never been moved from where it landed 80,000 years ago. Sociable weavers build communal nests weighing a tonne.
Entries from Namibia
Story#254
A road with no corners
We drove for two hours and turned the wheel twice. The gravel road went straight to the horizon and then continued. We passed one car and both of us waved.
Fun fact#517
Namibia protects its whole coast
Namibia was the first African country to write environmental protection into its constitution, and its entire coastline is now protected.
Fun fact#519
Sossusvlei's dunes are among the tallest
Dunes here reach over 300 metres, coloured deep red by iron oxide that has been oxidising for millions of years.
Fun fact#521
Deadvlei's trees never rotted
The camelthorn trees died around 900 years ago but the air is too dry for decomposition, so they still stand black against white clay.
Fun fact#523
Namibia has the world's largest meteorite
The Hoba meteorite weighs about 60 tonnes and has never been moved from where it landed roughly 80,000 years ago.
Fun fact#582
Weaver birds build apartment blocks
Sociable weavers build communal nests weighing a tonne that house over a hundred birds for generations.
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Namibia is one of 36 countries in the library. Read straight through a continent, or start from the map of everywhere we have written about.