We arrived for our second stop in Namibia – to Walvis Bay. Walvis Bay is Namibia’s main seaport and located between the mouths of the Swakop and Kuiseb rivers on the Atlantic Ocean. For the excursion in Walvis Bay (which our tour guide pronounced as Walfish Bay), I went in a shuttle bus around the area to explore the remarkable desert environment and local flora and fauna. Our first stop was to Flamingo Lagoon where a bunch of flamingos were hanging out. They were fun to listen to and watch, as they made cute honking sounds to each other as the milled around and interacted with one another. We stopped for some quick photos before carrying on.
Our next stop was at Dune 7, the region’s largest sand dune, so named because it is the seventh dune one encounters after crossing the river Tsauchab. In some ways, Dune 7 just looks like any other dune, but it is impressive in that it is one of the tallest dunes in the world at a staggering 1256ft high, and is of course in the Namib Desert, the oldest desert in the world. The picture doesn’t really do it justice, but here it is, massive Dune 7.
Continuing on, we went to the Namib-Naukluft National Park, which includes part of the Namib Desert and is the country’s largest nature preserve. We saw the striking rusty-hued sand dunes, whose colors vary due to the iron in the sand oxidizing to a darker shade as the dunes age. In spite of the seemingly harsh conditions, we saw flora and fauna thriving here, such as the raggedy welwitschia, which resembles wilted lettuce and produces only two leaves in its 400-1,500-year lifespan. The welwitschia (pronounced velveetcha) is interesting in that its two leaves are the same leaves it has as a seedling and they just grow and grow, being tattered to ribbons in the wind but still living nonetheless for hundreds of years. The sexes are separate, i.e. there are male plants and female plants. The male cones are salmon-coloured, small, oblong cone-like structures, and the female cones are blue-green, larger and more tapering. Given it doesn’t ran a lot in the desert, it is a wonder they survive. How? They depend on fog for their moisture. In fact, these plants are seldom found more than 100 to 150 km from the coast, and their distribution coincides with the fog belt. They are actually pretty rugged and common to see in the area. Here’s a photo of our tour guide standing beside a welwitschia that was estimated to be over 1,000 years old.
After marveling at the welwitschia, we made our way to Moon Landscape, a vastly eroded valley that is reminiscent of the lunar surface.
For our last stop, we went to Goanikontes Oasis rest stop, an area seemingly in the middle of nowhere with a lovely restaurant, beer garden, and grounds for weddings and whatnot. We were treated to some juice while we relaxed momentarily in the beer garden. I opted to try a local beer – a Windhoek draught ale. I took the juice box back to Ryan to enjoy on the ship.
After the brief rest, we boarded back onto the shuttle bus and headed back to the port. At that point, I grabbed Ryan and we headed back out to the mall (where the ship shuttle was taking passengers). We roamed the mall a little before heading back to the ship for the face-to-face immigration prior to departure. It was a nice stop to end our Namibian adventure.