Namibia: Deadvlei

Deadvlei, Namibia. This place was on the bucket list I never thought I had. This was the main objective here and I am so happy I made it all the way to this stunning spot.

The first time I discussed travelling in Namibia with somebody, I got to see the photos from here and I just knew I had to visit this place. The striking beauty has been haunting me ever since, and nowafter spending days travelling here, and then walking through sand, I finally descended into the place.

So what is Deadvlei? To start with, it does not really mean "Dead Valley"; it means "Dead Marsch". It's a pan located between the dunes, the ground is made of white clay in stark contrast with the bright orange dunes.

This place formed hundreds of years ago. A river gave this clay an abundance of water, so trees were able to grow here. Most are camelthorn trees - and these usually look lush, green and welcoming with a shade. When they are alive, that is.

But as changes to the river and the dunes came, the dunes came closer and the river disappeared from here - so the water was gone and the trees died.

While dead, they could not decompose because of the harsch climate with heat, extreme dryness and cold during winter. So the skeletons are left there to witness their own eternal death.

This very place has been used in the movie "The Cell" to create the virtual reality, as well as in many other films.

Do you remember the scene from Mad Max: Fury Road that involves the protagonist party coming into the former garden area where only acid swamps are left? It does have the same aesthetics, but it wasn't filmed at the exact location. Rather, it was much closer to the coast, near Walvis Bay. It does make sense, given that there is an international airport nearby. Here, only a small airstrip is located for tiny planes; I guess it's either luxury tourists or ambulance.

As I mentioned in the previous post, I made sure to arrive quite early in the morning, just as the gates to the nature reserve opened. From there, it takes oven an hour to drive to the spot, maybe more depending on offroad ability - and then you may want to have time to use the early cooler hours to climb dunes, or to photograph during the Golden Hour. It was definitely worth coming in this early.

The colors were brighter, the tourists were fewer, the temperature was just perfect, not too hot yet, and already not too cold as the sun's first rays were warming us. Otherwise it would be just a few degrees above freezing point. Also, it was very beutiful to see the huge shadows of the dunes move away to reveal the bright white colors of the ground here, as opposed to the more grayish colors of dawn. And then, the sun peeked out from behind the dunes.

The trees themselves are very peculiar. It's not allowed to touch them, they are 600-700 hundred years old - however, they are not petrified, just scorched. Some are organic in shape, others more aggressively sharp. Here is a mandatory photo of myself tryin g to mimic the trees. I gather it's a must around here.

Another film I have been thinking about is of course The Dune. While walking on sand, it's difficult not to be reminded of that masterpiece. Also, just hearing the worb "Namib" makes me think of the Fremen and their "Lisan al Gaib". But not only because it rhymes. There is this anscient vibe to the place that cannot be ignored, even though it does tend to get veiled a bit by today's civilisation sometimes.

I will post more about Namibia, including the Ghost Town and the volunteering gig. Some more stunning photos to come. But this place will forever stay with me in its stunning aesthetics. See you soon!