Namibia - Skeleton Coast
The world famous Skeleton Coast
is one of the main draw cards for tourists to
Namibia. The Skeleton Coast is named because of
the skeletons of numerous ships that were wrecked
along the remote and inaccessible shores. This
2 million-hectare (20,000ēkm) park is one of the
most inhospitable and least visited places on
earth and is divided into northern and southern
sections.
The windswept dunes and flat
plains give way in places to rugged canyons and
extensive mountain ranges with walls of richly
coloured volcanic rock. Such is the extraordinary
geology of this area, that some beaches contain
a profusion of multi-coloured pebbles consisting
of agates, lava, granites and others.
The attraction for visitors to
this park is its untouched and mysterious barren
beauty, swept by cold sea breezes and often enveloped
in a dense fog. This sea mist accounts for the
many maritime shipwrecks.
Desert elephants have been seen
in the interior of the Skeleton Coast Park and
have even been filmed surfing down sand dunes
like snow-boarders. Desert dwelling oryx are completely
at home in such dry conditions and springbok,
giraffe, brown hyena, ostrich, rare black rhino
and even lion are found inland where riverine
bush supports the grazers and fresh water can
usually be found. Cape Frio seal colony contains
several thousand Cape fur seals, and whales and
dolphins swim this coast on their way to and from
breeding grounds. Immense whale skeletons are
sometimes seen washed up on the sands.
Recommended Camps & lodges
Please select from the list below
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Skeleton
Coast Camp
six luxury tented rooms on raised wooden
decks. This area has everything including
soaring sand dunes. |
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