20 Days Trail Safari in Vic Falls, Botswana & Namibia (Lodging & Camping)

Namib-Naukluft National Park is located on the western side of Namibia just south of the midway point. The park lies between the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean through to the beginning of the Great Escarpment which extends into South Africa. It borders the neighboring Dorob National Park to the north.

After summer rains, encounter large herds of gemsbok, zebra, springbok, ostrich and even giraffe in the northern section of the park. Go birding at the marine sanctuary, Sandwich Harbour, home to up to 50 000 wetland birds including spectacular flocks of greater and lesser flamingos.

In 1907 the area between the Kuiseb and Swakop rivers was proclaimed as Game Reserve No 3. Later, in 1941, it was augmented by the addition of Sandwich Harbour. In 1956 the Kuiseb Canyon and Swakop River Valley were added, along with the Welwitschia Plains, and in 1968 the park was renamed the Namib Desert Park.

Luderitz isn’t one of the must-see places that pop up on a Namibian Road trip route, probably because it involves a detour inland from Aus. This part of Namibia’s southern coast is worth a stopover though. Kolmanskop is magnetic enough, but Luderitz has a charm of its own which is also worth stopping for.

The Fish River Canyon is the second largest canyon in the world and is southern Namibia’s greatest attraction. Hiking is a spectacular way to explore the region and to capture mesmerizing photographs.

In the canyon you may encounter several species of mammals, such as wild horses, Mountain Zebra (Hartman zebra), Kudu, Klipspringer, Leopard, Steenbok, Baboon and Springbok. The most common rodents include mice, rats, dassies, and dassie rats.

Although the canyon is largely dry, there are pockets of green where more leafy plants, palms and trees grow in oasis-like patches. Generally, you will come across drought-resistant plants, like euphorbias, aloes and the occasional quiver tree.

During this period the glacial deposits and their cover of Karoo sediments were nearly completely eroded; the rocks exposed today in and around the Fish River Canyon belong to the Namaqua Metamorphic Complex (~1300 m. y.), overlain by flat-lying ~550 m. y. old sandstones and black limestones of the basal Nama Group.

How long is the Fish River Canyon hiking trail? The total distance of the trail is 86 km, the river itself is longer but due to many shortcuts, your walking distance is about 14 km less. You’ll need 4 to 5 days to complete the trail.

The Kalahari has existed as an inland desert since the Cretaceous period (65-135 million years ago). It has experienced both periods of greater humidity and more aridity, documented in fossil dune fields. It was during a period of greater rainfall that the Makgadikgadi Depression in northern Botswana was formed.

One of the most famous deposits in South Africa, hosting one of the world’s largest manganese deposits, and of course some of the best manganese minerals the world has ever seen

Is the Kalahari Desert Hot or Cold? The temperatures in the Kalahari Desert are extreme, with summers being very hot while winter temperatures can go below zero degrees Celsius at night.