Exploring the Sossusvlei Dunes

10.31.17 Exploring the Sossusvlei Dunes

We are climbing Dune 45!

Sally and I are so very close to the summit. (Photo courtesy of Colleen Cusick).

• 100 ft. high
• walking 4.3 miles
• 10,169 steps
• flights climbed - 18 floors

Wake-up call at 5 AM; breakfast at 5:30 AM; and off to the dunes by 6 AM - all in an effort to beat the heat - and this desert heat is definitely incredible!

What are the Sossusvlei Dunes? Phenomenal red-orange sand dunes - some as high as 1,000 feet above the flat desert - whose shapes are carved by the wind that erases daily the footprints from the day before. No photography can do them justice so I won't even try. Enjoy the sharp creases and amazing contours and colors!

It was heavy-going on Dune 45 - even trying to follow in someone else's footprints. I shared my water with Sally because her husband, who was carrying both their water bottles, was much slower and dropped far behind immediately. But we both made it to the top in 2nd and 3 place - 65 yr. old me with a 3-month old knee replacement (thanks to my awesome SMH nurses and my physical therapists Andrew and Cornelia); and 75-yr. old Sally in 3rd place. Our 60-yr. old whippersnapper, Colleen, finished first, so we were all happy to enjoy the views from the top before sliding down from the other side. Eventually we were joined by 4 others who managed to make it to the top.  

 Sally at the top.

 Some views of our surrounding dunes from our seat on the top of Dune 45...

 Celebrating their accomplishment, Sally and Colleen finally relax.

 Goofing around before descending - hard to believe I know. 

(Photos courtesy of Colleen Cusick).

 Other finishers: Dennis, Jackie, Colleen, Phil and tour leader Lloyd.

 Lloyd drags Jackie down the dune.

Dennis has had enough exercise for the day.

From Dune 45 we journeyed to the Dead Lake and its mineralized composites of lime and calcium - left to harden when the water dried up.  (As mentioned before, the Namib Desert is the largest and driest in the world. The last time there was significant rainfall was in 2012 - but remember...there is NO SUCH THING AS GLOBAL WARMING! (OK, hopefully you realize I am being sarcastic)

Our treks over for the morning, we return to a shaded picnic area for some beer, soft drinks and munchies after all that exercise. Then we head back to the lodge for lunch and another feeding (sigh, if we must...)

 Some ostrich and oryx sightings near a water hole on the return to camp.

We enjoyed hearing  Matteis, Richel and Anna share their tribal cultures during our afternoon "Learning and Discovery" session. In some tribes men are still allowed as many wives as they can handle; there are still arranged marriages; there are still strong tribal cultural practices, but like everywhere else in the world, things are changing because of technology and young people leaving their villages and learning that there is a much larger world out there that they prefer being a part of.