excursion to southern africa, pt. 6 – dune 45, sossusvlei, sesriem canyon

sunrise at dune 45, sossusvlei

talk about an early start into the day: at 6:40 in the morning, we were already at the foot of dune 45, sossusvlei [G] – heading towards a good spot to watch the sunrise.
within just 5 days, it had become kind-of a tradition to watch the sun rise or set whenever possible. :-)
a sunrise in the red dunes of the sossusvlei was something very unique.

it was pretty chilly that morning, and we hadn’t been in namibia long enough to remember that it can get cold overnight. at least it wasn’t as cold as when two friends were there in 2006: they ended up trying to unfreeze the windshield using hairspray and a butane lighter…

even after sunrise, the view was still almost unbearably stunning!

sossusvlei panorama, dune 45

we spent enough time up on dune 45 for all kinds of crazy photo motives (i’ll admit that i had prepared for that specific opportunity).
after breakfast, there was some botanizing (of course) done in the area, and then a hike in the dunes, to get to the actual sossusvlei salt-pan [G]. every few years, when there’s enough rain, it is transformed into a short-lived lake.
during our four-hour walk through the red dunes, we got a good impression of what “desert” actually stands for.

in the evening, we made a quick stop at sesriem canyon [G] and – naturally – took some extra time to watch the sun set.

[view photos: dune 45, sossusvlei, sesriem canyon]
[view photos: the botanical side]

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