Namibia takes its name from The Namib Desert. Indeed, the name ‘Namib’ means ‘vast place’ which is the perfect way to describe the country. The desert itself is believed to have existed for at least 55 million years, making it the world’s oldest. It stretches for roughly 1,243 miles along the Atlantic coast of Africa, spanning Namibia, South Africa and Angola. In the local Nama language, Namib means ‘an area where there is nothing’. It has some of the highest sand dunes in the world, most notably in Sossusvlei. It is also home to the largest canyon in Africa, known as the Fish River Canyon. There is a lot of space in Namibia given its one of the least crowded countries on the planet. As of 2020 its population is estimated to be 2.5 million inhabiting a country that is 318,261 square miles in size. To put that in context England has a population of approximately 56 million (as of 2020) inhabiting 50,337 square miles. Namibia’s population speak a total of 30 different languages. While English is the official language less than 1% of the country’s population speak it as their first language. Nearly half the population speaks Oshiwambo dialects, while the other main languages are Afrikaans, Herero and German.
Beautiful sunset over Damaraland from Mowani Mountain Camp
It only became ‘Namibia’ in 1990 when independence was granted from South Africa, which had taken over the territory during the First World War. Before then Germany was in control and committed what is considered the first genocide of the 20th century, described as ‘Germany’s forgotten genocide’. Between 1904 and 1909 Germany systematically exterminated around 80% of the Herero and 50% of the Nama people. It wasn’t until 2004 that the German government apologised.
Map of Namibia and the route we travelled
If you look at a map of the country, you’ll notice an odd strip of land in the top right above Botswana. The Caprivi Strip is a long, narrow extension of Namibia, running around 280 miles from the northeast corner to the Zambezi River. In colonial times the United Kingdom and Germany were carving up ownership of land in Africa. The UK ceded the Strip to Germany during the latter’s ownership of the country between 1884 - 1919. The Germans wanted this land to provide access to the Zambezi River and a route to Africa’s east coast. After the First World War the Strip became part of South Africa, and ultimately Namibia as we now know it.
The start of the Skeleton Coast at Swakopmund
Perhaps one of the most well-known areas of Namibia is its Skeleton Coast. This constitutes the world’s biggest grave site, with as many as 500 ships estimated to be scattered along the coast; from wooden Portuguese galleons submerged hundreds of years ago to modern steel-hulled ships. In modern times most give the coast this name because of the shipwrecks, indeed Portuguese sailors once referred to it as ‘The Gates of Hell’, but it actually got its name from whale and seal bones that once littered the coastline from the whaling industry. Namibian Bushmen are believed to have called this coastline ‘the land God made in anger’. It's 25 miles wide and 311 miles long, stretching from the old German colonial town of Swakopmund all the way to the Angolan border in the north.
Cheetahs at Okonjima Game Reserve
Namibia is the driest country in Sub-Saharan Africa, with deserts occupying much of the country. With a harsh climate of an average of 300 days of sunshine a year, it is perhaps surprising that wildlife flourishes. Look a little deeper and it's not as surprising as you might think. Namibia takes conservation seriously, protecting more than 40% of its land. It is the first African country to incorporate environmental protection into its constitution. Thanks to this the country holds the world’s largest population of free-roaming Cheetahs. This is good news considering these big cats are dangerously close to extinction, considered ‘vulnerable’ by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN). They have disappeared from roughly 90% of their historic range in Africa and only around 7,000 adults remain in the wild (as of 2020). Of this approximately 3,000 reside in Namibia.
Desert-adapted elephants at Hoanib
It’s not just Cheetahs - Namibia is the only country with an expanding population of free-roaming Lions. It has the world’s largest population of free-roaming Black Rhino, and the aforementioned Skeleton Coast has one of the world’s biggest breeding colonies of Cape Fur Seals. It also THE place to see desert-adapted Elephants and Giraffes, made famous by the BBC Natural History Unit and their documentaries narrated by Sir David Attenborough.
Wild Dogs at Erindi Game Reserve
Most, when planning a trip to see the wildlife of Africa immediately think of the great plains of the Maasai Mara in Kenya and Serengeti in Tanzania, or the world-famous Kruger National Park in South Africa. These are all for good reason and come highly recommended by both leading photographers and naturalists alike. Indeed, I have every intention of visiting these places at some point in the future. But I would encourage anyone considering Africa to seriously consider Namibia, from the small critters in the Namib Desert at Swakopmund to the mighty desert Elephants in the Hoanib Valley near the Skeleton Coast. It is a country that holds something different from the more well-travelled African destinations, and I hope this blog gives an insight into why.
Desert landscape of Damaraland
The story starts on a rather cold morning at home in North Yorkshire on Friday 1st November 2019. The culmination of months’ worth of planning had now translated into sheer excitement and anticipation of the next 17 days. Having been incredibly fortunate to travel to rainforests in Costa Rica and Madagascar, I was keen to explore the opposite end of the spectrum; desert. I was travelling to Namibia with my parents; now more akin to best friends than parents (I had to grow up at some point!). They had visited previously in November 2017 and had shared stories of amazing experiences. They also had the added advantage of knowing our driver and tour guide for the trip, Siggi, having met him in 2017. Our itinerary was somewhat different to their previous trip, incorporating new destinations and, hopefully, new animals into the mix. For me everything was new, and I was eager to get there. Our first flight was a short one hour hop from Manchester to Schiphol in Amsterdam (we flew via KLM - great airline!) and a long six hour wait before our connecting journey to Windhoek in Namibia. Beer and G’n’T was the tonic during the wait - you’ve got to pass the time somehow!
Southern Giraffe, Erindi
Flight KL575 was a long one. Eight and a half hours into the overnight flight it makes a ‘pit-stop’ in Luanda in Angola. During this hour long stop the flight crew change hands and most of the passengers left. It was then back into the sky for another two and a half hours before finally landing in Windhoek at about midday on Saturday 2nd November. The wave of heat hit me as we stepped off the plane and walked from the runway to the terminal. This sensation is always something that puts a smile on my face wherever I go in the excitement of landing in a foreign country and what the trip has in store. Fortunately retrieving our luggage went without a hitch and we were greeted by Siggi in arrivals. The next leg of our journey started straight away with a four-and-a-half-hour drive from Windhoek to our first destination for two nights; Swakopmund. We got our first glimpse of wildlife with Common Warthogs and Southern Giraffes on the roadside! Hardly surprising that an early night was welcome on our first night in the country.
Exploring the Namib Desert in a converted 1950's British army ambulance
Swakopmund is a coastal city on the west coast, established by German colonists in 1892. It gets its name from the Swakop River that flows 290 miles from central to Namibia to the coast. Considered the launch pad for exploration of the Skeleton Coast and Namib Desert, it was here that we hoped to come across Namibia’s ‘little 5’; the Namaqua Chameleon, Sidewinder Snake, Shovel-Snouted Lizard, Cartwheeling Spider and Palmato Gecko. Guided by a local expert, Tommy of ‘Living Desert Tours’, we were lucky to come across four of these amazing animals, only missing out on the lizard. Frankly to the untrained eye this seemed an amazing achievement in what appeared to be a desolate landscape!
Namib Desert, Swakopmund
Tommy was a very comical character, constantly making jokes and making us all feel welcome on our first day. Driving us in a 1950’s British army ambulance (!) through the desert, he knew exactly what to look for, having grown up in the area and spent his life getting to know these lesser known African species. The two I’d most hoped to see were the Sidewinder and Chameleon, and the former was the first species on our search. Only 30 minutes’ drive out of the city itself and we were in the Namib Desert peering into shaded patches of scrub bush in the search for this little snake. Tommy was looking for the tell-tale pattern in the sand the snake leaves as it moves in its iconic S-shaped way. We had no luck so moved further into the desert.
Peringuey's Adder, otherwise known as the Sidewinder
Close to an old and abandoned railway line we were again on the search. Tommy directed us to an area of scrub claiming he had found one. I peered closer and couldn’t see a thing. Eventually, thanks to a lot of “if you look at that stick” and “follow it up” and “a bit to the left” I could see what I thought was part of a tail. It was tiny! When we saw the whole snake as it eventually moved I could see the head was smaller than my thumb nail. The snake slowly moved to an area of sand and we were lucky to watch how it buried itself - it seemed to almost invisibly caress the sand by massaging the ground around it until only its eyes, evolved to be on top of its head rather than on the side like other snakes, were visible. How you would ever find one like this is beyond me. We left the little guy and continued our search.
They have an amazing adaptation where their eyes are on the top of their head, so they can see above sand with their bodies submerged
Sidewinder
About half a mile further and Tommy stopped the jeep explaining he was going to hop out and search for the next critter. Sure enough not long after he had found signs of a Cartwheeling Spider burrow. These spiders build a tunnel 25 centimetres deep and use it to shelter from the sun. Amazingly, to stop the tunnel from falling in on itself they ‘glue’ the sand particles together with fine silk threads. Unfortunately, nobody was home, so we didn’t technically see the spider, but it was great to see these desert architects’ handiwork. Continuing on we reached the inevitable point of where nature calls - but where do you go for privacy in a vast open space like the Namib Desert? Well, Tommy had this sorted in the form of a portaloo on a well-used track! It was here that we were greeted by a couple of Tractrac Chats that had clearly become used to being fed. After a supply of a few mealworms we left these little birds to continue our search for the Palmato Gecko.
Palmato Gecko
Tommy was looking for tiny disturbances in the sand which would be the giveaway sign of a gecko’s burrow. Again, to the untrained eye you would simply walk past, and it was only when you looked a little closer that you could make out the difference in the colour of the sand and its direction pointing towards an invisible hole. These geckos have adapted their webbed feet not only to help stay atop, but to bury beneath the sand to avoid the heat of the day. They emerge at night to look for crickets and spiders to eat. With a little digging Tommy was able to show us one of these beautiful geckos, but only very quickly and in the shade. After a couple of minutes, he put him back in his burrow.
Namaqua Chameleon
So came the search for the final species we saw on this morning trip. It took a while in the jeep driving around to find what we were looking for. Tommy advised that, considering we were nearing late morning, we should look for a white ‘blob’ on a bush. The Namaqua Chameleon is black in colour first thing in the morning to absorb sunlight and warm up. Once it has reached the correct temperature it then turns grey/white to reflect the sun. We eventually spotted one perched atop a bush in a great position, and it casually looked at us with curiosity as we watched trying not to burn ourselves on the sand - Tommy had a temperature recorder and it measured 58 degrees Celsius on the sand in the sun! Considering we achieved all this in one morning was remarkable, and the day wasn’t over.
Greater Flamingos, Walvis Bay
Arriving back in Swakopmund after an amazing drive through the sand dunes of the Namib Desert we had a quick turnaround before venturing to Walvis Bay, about 25 miles south. Walvis Bay is well known for large flocks of Lesser and Greater Flamingos as well as a colony of Cape Fur Seals. With only one afternoon in which to explore the area we made a couple of quick stops to watch the flamingos, opting for longer with the seals out on a spit of land called ‘Pelican Point’. To get to ‘Pelican Point’ you have to drive to the end of the road south-west of Walvis Bay and drive across bumpy sand. Fortunately, Siggi was well used to this type of driving and, having let air out of the tyres, we headed to the Point. By reducing the air in the tyres, they have a wider footprint and ‘float’ better over soft sand than hard, fully inflated tyres. They have less resistance and therefore less chance of getting stuck.
Cape Fur Seals, Pelican Point
Tommy had warned earlier in the day that the forecast was for the wind to pick up in the afternoon and he wasn’t wrong. On arriving at the Point and winding down the windows the wind howled through the car bringing sand with it. Quickly realising the error of our ways we kept the windows facing the wind shut. The seals reminded me very much of the Grey Seals at home on the Lincolnshire and Norfolk coasts. Reminding myself that the best vantage point to photograph them would be from the ground I stepped outside and immediately got a mouthful of sand. Using the car as a windshield and what is normally a waterproof rain cover for my camera and lens which provided some protection, I was able to watch the seals lying down.
Cape Fur Seal Pup
After a while I came across a young seal pup. Given the howling wind the sand whipped up and covered the poor pup. Combine this with the pup’s wet fur and it was clear he was struggling to see and find his mum. Initially I feared for his survival but was soon relieved to see mum waiting in the surf and, as the pup gradually got closer to the waves, the seawater washed off the sand. The two were eventually reunited and I ventured back to the car. What a first day in Namibia!
Windswept seal pup
Our time in Swakopmund was short-lived having only had two nights there, but it was all we could afford with other areas taking priority; our next stop being one I was particularly looking forward to. We were travelling to Erindi Private Game Reserve, about a three-hour drive from Swakopmund. Erindi, the Herero name for ‘Place of Water’, was a new destination to us all. Having done a lot of research on the place and following some of the game rangers on social media the place appeared to offer an awful lot.
Sunrise at Erindi Game Reserve
Erindi is vast. It's 65,178 hectares. For those, like me, where a hectare doesn’t mean a lot; one hectare is 10,000 square metres. Think of an international rugby union field and that’s one hectare. Erindi has over 621 miles of roads/dirt tracks to explore. It's 396 miles to drive from Edinburgh to London! Hardly surprising then that the reserve is a haven for wildlife and notably reliable for seeing Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Elephant, Giraffe, Hippos, a whole variety of antelope and even Wild Dogs. In fact, we had managed to see Leopard, Impala, African Elephant, Giraffe (including drinking at a waterhole), Warthog and Waterbuck before we’d checked in!
Elephant on the drive in to Erindi
We stayed at the Old Traders Lodge, perfectly located by a river (albeit dried up during our stay due to drought leaving just a lake at the far side) on one side and a couple of waterholes on the other. Wildlife would come and go throughout the day to both sides and I managed to get some decent ground level images of Elephants and Giraffe before finding my room. Combine that with the restaurant overlooking the river (dried) and lake inhabited by Nile Crocodiles and hippos, and visited by elephants, Wild Dogs and baboons by day and White Rhino by night, and you hardly felt you need to venture further. However, we were obviously keen to explore the reserve and see what we could find, so arranged morning and afternoon game drives for the duration of our three-night stay, starting with the first afternoon drive on the day we arrived.
Springbok
Knowing Erindi was the only likely place I’d hopefully come across Wild Dogs I made a specific request to try and find them that evening. The dogs had other plans though and despite searching some of their territory they were nowhere to be seen. So, we opted for a general explore to see what we could find. Almost immediately we came across more giraffe, Springbok with their beautiful striped markings and Blue Wildebeest.
King of the male lions in Erindi
Unbeknownst to us our guide, Hano, knew the area we were in had sightings of lions earlier in the day. As we drove slowly and carefully through the bush a couple of large light brown/yellow ‘rocks’ showed in the distance under a tree. One of these ‘rocks’ flicked its tail into the air and then, hearing us approach, casually lifted its head to reveal a large male Lion looking at us. These ‘rocks’ turned out to be a dominant male, a Lioness and their three-month-old cub. The experience we had with these lions was just magic, and one I’ll forever be grateful to Hano for.
Little lion cub approaching our jeep
Initially sleepy, the lions lazed around for most of the time. As the sun started setting the little cub started to get more active, wanting to play and explore. At one point he came right up to our jeep and just sat there looking at us. His mum and dad didn’t seem bothered at all. After a while he must have got bored watching us watching him (we didn’t do much after all) and went back to playing tug-of-war with dad’s ear and having a bath from mum. The beautiful golden light we all crave in photography gave us an amazing hour before the sun sank below the horizon. All in all, we spent around three of four hours with these lions. Watching animals for that length of time really pays off to witness interaction that you would otherwise not see. I could have spent weeks watching them. Eventually, as it started to get dark we made the journey back to the lodge arriving after nightfall. I was counting my lucky stars having experienced so much in just two days.
Lion cub
Our experience also highlights how worthwhile it is to get private game drives (if affordable). With most non-photographic game drives the focus is all about racking up the number of species seen and, as such, only a very limited time is given to staying with any one animal. Indeed, while we were with these Lions a couple of other jeeps arrived and left after five minutes. With a private drive we could focus purely on what we wanted to see, and with such an obliging opportunity as this we had absolutely no intention of moving on. Fortunately for the three of us it was only £20 extra per drive per person!
Wild Dog at sunrise
The next day started early before sunrise. All morning game drives at Erindi start with coffee at the restaurant before heading out into the reserve at 6am. The sight from the restaurant balcony got me jumping with excitement - the pack of African Wild Dogs were play fighting in the distance and, before long, came down to the lake overlooked by where we stood. A group of Blue Wildebeest (apparently their collective noun is known as gnu) had come down to the lake to drink. The dogs, rather than in full hunting mode, seemed to be teasing them by strolling into the group and then running away when a Wildebeest gave chase. They did this a few times before giving up and moving out of sight.
Wild Dog in gorgeous light
Naturally when we got into the jeep for the drive our focus was on the Wild Dogs, and we caught up with them within five minutes of setting off. They were making their way back to the den they had used earlier in the year to raise their pups. Constantly on the move, we would drive ahead and watch as they trotted towards and past us, and then we’d race forwards again. Occasionally they would come and sniff the side of the jeep and the tyres, completely unperturbed by us. So much so that eventually, in late morning, they stopped to rest and sleep.
Playful nature of Wild Dogs
I really wasn’t sure whether we would have enough luck to see them during our trip. African Wild Dogs, or Painted Dogs as they’re sometimes called, are listed as ‘threatened’ by the IUCN with only around 5,000 animals left in the wild. They’re considered one of the world’s most endangered animals, facing threats such as human population growth and loss of habitat. They’re very capable hunters, successfully bringing down around 80% of their prey, and as such are killed by farmers fearing for their livestock. They’re also very susceptible to disease, vulnerable to most of the same diseases as domestic dogs. So, as they become increasingly in contact with humans their risk of infection only increases. Fortunately, Erindi focuses on conservation of all endangered species in its reserve and the pack, around 30 strong, which call it home are doing well.
Older lion cub
As if that wasn’t enough the morning drive wasn’t over. We left the dogs to their slumber and made our way back to where we’d seen the lions the day before. We didn’t make it that far though as a different lioness had been spotted with three older cubs, estimated around one year old. Erindi has a policy of only two jeeps per sighting which is very welcome. I’ve heard horror stories in more well know national parks in places like Kenya where there can be up to 20 or 30 jeeps all crammed together. We waited our turn to approach these lions and patience was rewarded with the three cubs receiving a bath from their mum in the shade of a tree. The interaction between them all was brilliant to watch. Not long after this they decided to get on the move again, which alerted us to yet another lioness, this time with two young cubs resting in the shade of some scrubland.
Lioness with two young cubs
As with most game reserves by lunch time we made our way back to the lodge for lunch to be ready for an afternoon drive later in the day. It was on my first lunchtime that I had a stroke of luck - deciding to spend the time watching the hippos and crocodiles in the lake by the lodge I followed a path that led to a shaded area of seating at the end overlooking the water. Before I got there though I noticed some thrashing in the water below me. After a few seconds it became clear one of the crocodiles had caught a catfish of some kind. While completely in the wrong position for a water level shot (there was no way of getting down to the water’s edge given an electric fence and I’m not sure I fancied getting that close to a Nile Crocodile with no barrier!) it was a great few minutes watching it thrash about with its prize. Reaching the end of the path into the shaded area proved great for getting close-up shots of the crocodiles (using a 500mm lens) as they basked in the midday heat.
Up close and personal with a crocodile
Before long it was time to venture back out into the reserve again and, having had such amazing luck with the lions so far, we opted for an explore of the area. We managed to see a number of antelope species including Steenbok, Springbok and Impala. While trying to focus on other species the lions had other ideas and we came upon the lioness with two young cubs from the morning again. This time the cubs were suckling in an area of scrubland while the male, the same from last night having fathered all the cubs we had seen so far with three lionesses, watched close by. It was amazing to watch how peaceful they all seemed, only occasionally raising their heads to watch what we were doing.
Playful cubs
The other lioness with three older cubs (again from the morning) then ventured over to where we were, stopping under the tree we spent the evening the previous night with a different lioness. It definitely seemed to be a favoured spot of theirs! Watching two of the three cubs play fighting together was brilliant to witness and my camera went into machine gun mode to capture it - the facial expressions were priceless!
Play-fighting
We decided to follow in our own footsteps from the previous night and spend the evening watching these lions as they got progressively more active the later it got. Watching the two young cubs walk over dad while he slept is a memory that will be with me for a very long time.
Dad wasn't happy
I think lions are taken for granted by most people. Iconic to Africa and made famous through the film The Lion King and the documentary Born Free, most don’t realise they’re vulnerable to extinction. In some parts of Africa, they’re considered ‘critically endangered’ as their numbers are plummeting. Expanding human populations and the resulting growth in agriculture are amongst the main causes of their demise, as well as being prized as hunting trophies. Estimated to be roughly 20,000 left in the wild, their numbers have reduced from 110,000 50 years ago. To come across the lions we saw at Erindi came as quite a surprise to me, and one I’ll be forever thankful for.
Cheetah
Our final day in Erindi arrived and what a way to finish. In the morning we chose to look for Cheetah which, without realising, meant a two-hour drive to the other end of the reserve where they were often found. Using telemetry, whereby a radio collar is attached to the animal and a signal is transmitted to a receiver, we were able to track them down. Our guide used what can only be described as a TV aerial, pointing in different directions, waiting for a tell-tale ‘ping’ to give the animal’s direction away. As the ‘ping’ got louder we knew we were getting closer. Once our guide was comfortable the Cheetah was close by we stopped and got out of the jeep. From here we would be walking into the bush to find them. Armed with a rifle, our guide led us on as the hot sun bore down on us. It wasn’t long before, hiding in the thicket, we had our first glimpse of one. Given it was almost midday by this point they were understandably sitting in the shade and pretty much asleep. I could hardly blame them - in fact I had a snooze on the journey back to the lodge later that morning!
Leopard
The afternoon’s plan was to use telemetry again, but this time to find an animal I was very much hoping to find during our trip to Namibia, second only to Wild Dogs; the Leopard. Our guide from the morning was surprisingly confident that we would, saying we had a 90% chance of finding one. I liked those odds! So, our afternoon was spent once again listening out for ‘pings’ on the ‘TV aerial’ and staring into bushes and trees hoping for a sign. After about an hour of searching and coming close to one (or at least the ‘pings’ suggested we were) we had to give up our search as the bush was getting too thick. Plan B - go and search for another one!
