One would picture the oldest desert on earth as a completely barren and lifeless landscape, but the exquisite Namib Desert is a flourishing ecosystem, with more life than one would ever expect.
Explore &Beyond Sossusvlei Desert Reserve on foot and by quad bike with your specialist guide who’ll uncover the secrets of the dunes. Hear about how the oldest and second driest desert on earth came to be and observe the many small and some uniquely adapted creatures that have managed to make this harsh environment – literally called “the living desert” – their home. Watch as your guide reads the signs in the sand and join him as he tracks diurnal lizards, endemic dune larks and even, if you are in luck, a Grant’s golden mole. The story of the desert’s ecology is literally written in the sand.
These creatures are not alone as they battle against the elements. The Namib Desert is host to a number of unique alien-looking desert-adapted plants. Catch the photogenic quiver trees in bright yellow bloom, the fascinatingly bizarre Welwitschia plant that lives up to 1,500 years and the scintillatingly poisonous false ink cap mushrooms.
After dark, under a blanket of stars, there are a number of nocturnal hunters that become active such as the web-footed gecko, dancing white lady spider, Peringuey’s adder, hairy-footed gerbils, barking geckos, and more.
During this activity, our guides will show you how the desert is teeming with life in places you would least expect it.
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