Skeleton Coast (1)

The Skeleton Coast is one of Namibia's most mysterious and bewitching places.

Europeans feared its incomprehensible size, vastness and isolation, which kept Namibia out of reach to European colonization for so many centuries.

Today, the same feelings are aroused, luring travelers towards the treacherous coastline and large desert wastes.



Beginning in the far northwestern corner, bordering Angola from the Kunene River, the desert stretches along the Atlantic coast until it touches the northern side of the Ugab River to the south.

The narrow tract of desert is approximately 40-50 km wide and 500 km long.

In 1971 it was declared a nature reserve , and today the nature conservation authorities manage its wilderness with tight regulations, limiting both development and the number of visitors able to enter the area.

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Henties Bay ((2)

Over 200.000 Cape fur seals call Cape Cross home.

Each year, from April to November, the government sponsors an annual seal cull, which employs several hundreds less fortunate Namibians but unfortunately also kill hundreds of seals each season.



The annual culling sparks controversy and debate each year.
The seal's genitals are sold to the Asian market, the skins are flipped into high quality products for the European market and the meat goes to Taiwan, while the rest goes into cattle feed.

Cape Cross is also home to a very intriguing lichen reserve.
Explore this interesting organism on foot, and watch them come to life with a little sprinkle of water.

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Henties Bay (1)

Located 80 km north of Swakopmund, Henties Bay is a fishing town popular among anglers (the best way to visit Henties Bay is in your own vehicle).

The Delta of the Omaruru River is here and provides a nutrient rich environment for hungry fish offshore.
It's most popular for Cape Cross (another 46 km north of Henties Bay), whose history dates back to 1485 when Portuguese explorer Diego Cao was the first European to set foot on Namibia.



Here he planted a 2 m high stone cross in honor of king John I of Portugual.
The original cross was taken down by German sailors and taken to the Oceanographical Museum in Berlino, but in 1974 a second cross was replaced in the same spot as Diego Cao's original.
The cross is made of Namibian Dolerite, blending in beautifully with the rocky outcrops.
Cao's original inscriptions can now be read in Latin, Portuguese, English, Afrikaans and German.

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Walvis Bay, Sandwich Harbour

Namibia's only Marine Reserve and one of Namibia's four Ramsar sites, Sandwich Harbour was once a natural harbour for whalers and fishermen who used the natural cove to gain easy access to the fresh waters.



Sandwich Harbour is a natural lagoon on the Namib Deserts coast approximately 55 km south of Walvis Bay.

It is one of southern Africa's most recognized wetlands because of its ability to attract and support thousands of birds throughout the year.

Since 1969, the harbour has been without any kind of permanent human settlement, although you can still see remnants of an old whaling station at the foot of the dunes along with other buildings slowing being engulfed by the blowing sands.

The entire area is a Marine Reserve and is within the boundaries of the Namib - Naukluft Park.

It's beauty and serenity is comparable to the rest of the park, as well as the Skeleton Coast.

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!Nara Melons

According to archaeologists, pieces of pottery found near Walvis Bay had thick layers of soot believed to have come from cooking 
!Nara melons.


This is how it is done: the flesh of the melon was removed with bone knives and stewed over a lowfire until it became a thin soup, when the seeds were separated from the concentrate.

When cooked, the melon concentrate was tipped from the pot into a thin puddle on the sand, where it was left to dry before being stored.

The dried concentrate remains edible for more than a year.

The food energy value of dried concentrate is more than three times as high as that of the fresh melon.

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Around Walvis Bay, Rooibank

Located about 20 km to the southeast of town, Rooibank was named after the red rock formations surrounding the area.



The Topnaar peoples have lived here on the banks of the Kuiseb River for many years, and are commonly known as the !Nara people because throughout their history they have harvested the !nara melons that are so abundant along the Kuiseb River.



Traditionally, the people fished, hunted seals, birds and turtles.

Here is one of the best places in Namibia to visit a Topnaar settlement.

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Around Walvis Bay, Dune 7

Easily marked with signs along the C14 and about 6 km from town, this is the coastal area's highest dune.

Challenge yourself by climbing to the top ...... it may look easy, but is quite 
exhausting .... !

Enjoy a magnificent sight from the top,
and then tumble, roll and slide your way
down.

There is also a picnic area with tables, long
drop toilets and palm trees to shelter you
from the sun.

Many of this facilities are being slowly 
engulfed by the sand .....

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