Ribbons of vibrant orange contrasted with rigid curves of shadow, Sossusvlei is striking in its desolate beauty.
This otherworldly place surrounded by the world’s tallest dunes and amidst its oldest desert dwarfs all who walk through it. A tiny insignificant dot pacing across sands that have been forming and reforming these landscapes for hundreds of millions of years, creating footprints that will be wiped away and forgotten with the ebb and flow of the wind.
Trees remain as skeletons, frozen in time against the parched white clay pan and vivid reds of the dunes; a sight that makes Deadvlei one of Namibia’s most iconic places to visit.
As we sat atop those dunes as those tiny insignificant dots waiting for the sun to appear, what touched us most was the solitude, immense silence and remarkable emptiness of it all.
These sands will continue to be shaped for millions of years to come and it is all we can do to bare witness to its majesty. In this vast expanse of desert, we are in every way irrelevant.
For us visiting Sossusvlei was an incredible experience. This was our journey in photographs.
Inspired to visit Sossusvlei? Check out our complete guide on everything you need to know to plan your trip there.
Thank you for the most wonderful trip through Namibia. We will be there in 5 weeks time, leaving from Australia, but born in Zimbabwe.
We have also hired a car/camper from ASCO Car Hire, so it was very good to hear your comments. Our trip is for 4 weeks, doing double what you did.
We will also be staying at Urban Camp on our return, so good to hear your comments.
I would like to ask a question, We are a little concerned about leaving our car unattended when we go into shopping centers should we or will our belongings be safe.
Regards Kev & Deb Clements
Hi Kev & Deb! That is so great to hear – with four weeks you’ll have an incredible time!
We were also a little concerned about leaving our stuff in the car unattended as car robberies are not uncommon in Southern Africa. We would definitely recommend not to leave anything visible on the seats of the car even if it isn’t valuable. In some areas, there are parking attendants which can watch your car when you’re out and then you tip them on your return.
In general though, one of us stayed with the car while we went to the shops, particularly in big cities – the branded camper cars make it very obvious who the tourists are. In smaller towns where we stopped at a cafe or restaurant, there was almost always a small parking area for customers that was a little more private or we would try and choose a table where we could keep an eye on our vehicle.
Perhaps we were a little paranoid, but we felt it was better to be safe than sorry, and in the end we didn’t have any troubles.
Have a great trip!