Namibia - Sossusvlei

 In July, 2025, I went on a 26 day trip to Africa, starting with Namibia then to Kenya.  Other than a few days in Morocco as a side trip to a Spanish tour more than 20 years ago, this is my first trip to the continent as a destination and I was looking forward to it with a mix of anticipation and anxiety.  

With a 10 hour layover in Frankfurt, it was a two day journey just to get to Windhoek, the capital of Namibia.  From there it was a 400 km trip on gravel roads to Sossusvlei, the base for visiting Dead Vlei, the highlight of my trip to Namibia.  It was a tortuous journey through a barren landscape,  There was little sign of life along the way except for a brief encounter with a herd of goats crossing the road.  I only realized two weeks later what a stark contrast this was to Kenya where the roadside was full of a diversity of life, all the way from the Mara to Nairobi.

But Dead Vlei was worth the bumpy ride.  The clay pan valley with dead acacia trees (believe to have died 600-700 years ago but preserved by the dry climate) was as stunning as I had expected, made even more dramatic by the occasional wind gusts.  We were lucky the wind was not so bad that we couldn't access the valley but we were indeed worried when we woke up to howling winds outside our lodge that morning.  Thankfully it calmed down as the morning wore on.

Looking out from Dead Vlei

Leaving Windhoek for the desert

Landscape along the way

Every time another car passed us, a lot of dust would be kicked up on the gravel.  By the time we got to the lodge in the desert, the jeep was covered in red dust, as were the luggage in the trunk - and no doubt the passengers too!

Goat crossing

As we get closer to Sossusvlei, the landscape became more interesting.

Individual cabins at Desert Home Lodge - the roofs echoing the landscape backdrop

We went on a sundowner tour of the property and enjoyed our first golden hour and sunset in the desert

Huge weavers' nests on this tree

Close up of the nest

A dune caught in the golden light

Heading towards the desert sunset

Post sunset glow

The road to Sossusvlei is partially paved but then the last 60 km to the parking is not and requires a 4x4 vehicle to access.  The alternative is to wait for the shuttle service - a tough call on a windy day.  

The hike to Dead Vlei from the parking lot is supposed to be about 1 km but it definitely felt longer as it was walking uphill on soft sand.  

Looking back from the top of the dune - the parking lot has already disappeared in the windy gusts. 

F

First view of Dead Vlei from the top of the dune

The one shot I had always wanted to take

Then came the surprise shot - I was dreading the wind gusts but it turned out to be an unexpected bonus to be able to capture the wind...

And the unexpected panoramas...

Shifting sand as we speak

We were not able to stay for the golden hour as the inside park gates close at 5pm and it is an hour's drive from Dead Vlei. The outside gates close at sunset.  But we had had a good day of photography in the valley so we just took it in stride, after being reminded time and again that we were not on a photo tour.   If we were to do it again, we would stay inside the park...

We were able to enjoy another golden hour and sunset at the lodge before we head out to the coast in the morning.