Sossusvlei

One of the most unusual areas to visit in Namibia is Sossusvlei with its magnificent large sand blown dunes. These red coloured star-shaped sand dunes are some of the tallest on earth and surround the salt and clay pan that on rare occasions get flooded by unusual non-seasonal rain that bring the water down the Tsauchab River to the pan. Geologists researching the origin of these dunes say that the Benguela current along the Atlantic Coast eons ago deposited the red sand from the Orange River along the shore where the winds carried it inland to the area. It is one of nature’s wonders to see the dead trees with their barren branches sticking out of a water covered pan. This is a photographer’s paradise. Sossusvlei is part of the larger Namib-Naukluft National Park – Sossus refers to “marsh” in the Nama language while “vlei” is the Afrikaans word for pan.