Description of the attraction
One of the oldest and largest deserts, the Namib stretches inland from the Atlantic Ocean and encompasses large swathes of Namibia, Angola and South Africa. This arid place is home to a surprisingly diverse number of plants and animals, some of which are not found anywhere else in the world.
Although much of this desert is protected, it still faces threats from unsustainable land use, mining and illegal harvesting of plants.
On a vast plaza, in a bleak landscape, there are fauna and flora perfectly adapted to life here, including the mountain zebra, oryx, short-eared hopper, Grant's golden mole, Karoo the bustard, and the Peringuey viper. An extraordinary variety of succulent plants is presented here, as well as a one-of-a-kind mirabilis velvithia shrub that has only two leaves and can live for over 1000 years.
In the desert arid climate of the Namib, there is a unique population of elephants that have adapted to difficult and inhospitable conditions. These "desert" elephants can go for several days without drinking water, feeding on moisture obtained from the plants they eat. They are not distinguished as a separate subspecies of other African elephants, but they have larger legs, which help to walk on the sand, and live in small herds.
The remains of shipwrecked ships can still be seen near the Atlantic coast of the desert. Frequent disasters are associated with the changeable seabed next to the desert, in fact, these are the same dunes that change their configuration. There is evidence that a ship that anchored in the evening found itself cut off from the sea by a strip of land in the morning.
The Namib Desert in Angola is an amazing land. Its total area is about 80,000 sq. km, which is approximately equal to the whole of Austria. This is one of the largest arid places on the planet, and also one of the largest nature reserves in the world. A famous attraction is the famous Sossusflei area, where bright orange sand dunes surround sparkling white salt lakes, creating a mesmerizing landscape.
You can get to the park only on gravel and dirt roads.
