Namib and Kalahari Deserts

The Namib desert outside of Swakopmund, Namibia.

Sandboarding in the Namib Desert, Namibia.

Quad biking is actually really fun out in the desert dunes.  Namib Desert, Namibia.

Catching the sunrise on Dune 45, Sousselvei, Namib-Naukluft Park, Namibia.

Atop the Sousselvei Dunes, Namib-Naukluft Park, Namibia.

One of the many dunes in the Sousselvei, Namibia.

A fisherman piloting a mokoro in the Okavango Delta, Botswana.

Cruising in a mokoro in the Okavango Delta, northern Botswana.

            The desert is a cruel and unforgiving place.  It’s also where a nation, Namibia, sits between two of the largest deserts in the world.  The west coast of Namibia is the sand dune Namib Desert which houses the world famous areas of the Sousselvei and Skeleton Coast.  To the east is the bushier Kalahari Desert.  This arid Kalahari plain extends from northern South Africa to the Congo border, and from Namibia to Botswana. 

            Look on a map of Namibia and you won’t see many settlements.  There is a reason: no water.  Namibia is (along with Mongolia) the least densely populated country on earth.  Coming here from Rwanda was a night-and-day situation.  Here is a land of vast stretches with nobody around.  In fact, on my drive from Swakopmund to Sousselvei (five hours on a gravel road) I came across one building: a gas station with no gas.  Now look at a map of Botswana.  Most of the country (with the exception of the east and south border areas) has very few settlements due to the Kalahari Desert.  It’s no different than looking at a map of Nevada.

            Undoubtedly the most famous part of Botswana is the Okavango Delta.  The largest inland delta discharges all of the Okavango River water into dry salt pans in the middle of the desert (this was the area that Planet Earth filmed their first hour of the series).  As a result Botswana has some of the best wildlife viewing opportunities in the world.  Traveling in a mokoro (carved out wooden boat), you rarely encounter water deeper than a few feet.

            The past two weeks have been a journey of going through these two deserts in search of their best activities and most scenic opportunities.  Enjoy the photos.