WRITING PROMPT RESPONSE
Boundless Beauty of the Namibian Vastness
A country with landscapes hard to describe and too beautiful to be real
It’s pure love. Nothing but love jumps out of my body when I think of Namibia. The country, nature, the animals, and of course, the people, all of it is the reason why I fell in love with the country.
And when I read of “boundless beauty” immediately I had to think of Namibia. Nothing else. I didn’t even know the correct meaning of the word boundless. Still, it’s gonna be Namibia I will connect it with.
Vast, endless landscapes are what I thought of when reading “boundless”.
After my initial thoughts, I decided I had to research the real meaning of the word though, and stumbled upon the explanation “having no boundaries, vast”.
So I wasn’t that far off. “Endless beauty” is what we’re looking for but I’m narrowing it down to endless beauty in vast landscapes.
The country of Namibia has stolen my heart like no other place on earth. The diversity of landscapes is what I love the most and what pulls me back there year after year.
To give you a taste of what Namibia has to offer I’ve spent more than 4 hours going through folders of seven years finding countless photographs representing the boundless beauty of this country.
Boundless roads
Yes, when traveling through Namibia you’ll be cruising along endless roads. Most probably rarely ever on tarred roads but mostly on dusty gravel roads. From white, over brown to orange and even red — the roads in the country are as diverse as its landscapes.
Those roads aren’t for everyone and every traveler. Especially European tourists do get caught in accidents with no other vehicle involved due to overspeeding on gravel roads.
Even if the roads are in good condition, you need to know how to drive on them. With reduced speed and on high alert those roads are stunning and always worth a trip through the country.
For those too inexperienced or insecure about driving themselves, I always recommend booking a driver or tour which will allow you to embrace those breathtaking views along the endless roads without any worries.
Boundless views
Talking of which. Yes, the views in the country are surely endless. If from the top of a mountain, the edge of a canyon, or simply on the ground looking into the distance — the views will leave you speechless.
If you grew up like me in a European town where your view never went further than the next hill or forest around the corner, you’ll be left speechless seeing a horizon that is more than an hour's drive away.
Boundless danger
Yes, my position on this rock was as dangerous as it looks. But I was too tired and too exhausted to care. And maybe too young.
The danger is real when exploring the raw beauty of this country. Hiking trips and climbing expeditions are taking you back to the basics. You’ll be relying on common sense and previous experiences in rocky terrain.
There will be no sign boards warning you from falling off a cliff or not stepping too close to the edge of a canyon. If you walk too far into the wilderness without water, food, and enough knowledge, you’ll be left at the mercy of mother nature.
It’s on you to survive.
Boundless coastline
Namibia is known for having the oldest desert in the world but it is also a country on the coast of the Atlantic Ocean. With the strong, cold, and rough Benguela current flowing up straight from Antarctica, the water isn’t for everyone.
Known as the skeleton coast, Namibia’s coastline is rough, mostly untouched, and full of life. You can swim with dolphins, watch thousands of seals in the water and even be lucky to see a whale at the right time of the year.
Countless seagulls will be flying above your heads next to cormorants and other birds found on the coastline. Flamingoes and pelicans can be found even in the coastal cities of Swakopmund or Walvis Bay.
Other animals to be found on land are jackals, different species of antelopes and even desert lions sometimes make their way to the ocean. It is rather rare but has been reported in the past.
Boundless canyons
Yes, we’ve got canyons too. Maybe not as big as in the States, but over there everything is extra large. The Fish River Canyon makes it at least on the second podium of the largest canyon in the world.
It is where temperatures rise to incredibly high levels in the summertime and where hikes are only recommended during the winter.
But Namibia has a canyon to offer at every corner. You can find it in green or in dusty and brown, depending on the season you’re visiting.
Boundless green
Yes, Namibia can be green. Very green.
After a long and harsh drought of almost 10 years, the country has finally received some significant rains in 2021 and in early 2022 as well. It was a relief not only for humans but for nature as well.
I was lucky enough to have been in the country when the first rains came down and watched the landscapes transform into a green paradise.
Boundless floral beauty
This leads me to the next topic. Desert landscapes and flowers. Those two go together like nothing else. With a good amount of luck and the perfect timing, you can experience one of the driest places on earth transform into a blooming meadow.
It sounds unreal and it looks and feels unreal when you experience it but it is one of the most amazing things I’ve gotten to witness on this planet.
When the desert comes alive…
Boundless sand
The one thing you have to love or at least be able to get used to is sand. When traveling through Namibia there’ll be sand everywhere. In your car, in your socks, in your bed, and most probably you’ll still find sand in your suitcase once you make it back home.
The country hosts the oldest desert with some of the tallest dunes in the world. It is something difficult to grasp. So much sand. Being blown around. What looks like mountains in the background are nothing but hills made of sand.
Next to the famous Namib Desert, the Kalahari, sometimes wrongly referred to as a desert as well reaches into the country. The Kalahari is a large semi-arid sandy savanna stretching across the countries of Botswana, South Africa, and Namibia.
Boundless water
Where there is water, there is life. Even if it doesn’t rain for most of the year in most parts of the country, if those rains do happen, they are magical.
Impressive cloud formations building up, rain storms blowing over the country and leaving plains flooded for days. It’s what the landscapes need and live off.
The above photograph is one of my most sold pictures on Shutterstock and it is a shot taken after an ephemeral river reached the heart of the Namib desert for the first time in a ten-year period.
Boundless sunrises
Now we’re coming to my favorite time of the day. The twilight hours are special. Anywhere in the world. I agree with you. But sunrises in Namibia are taking the lead.
If from the top of one of the highest sand dunes in the world or at the edge of a canyon, whenever the sun rises in the country it makes people stop whatever they're doing just to watch and be in awe for a moment.
Boundless sunsets
Some are early birds, others are sunset lovers. I’m different. I like them both. Sunrises and sunsets. They are both special in their own way. A sunrise marks the beginning of the day and makes sure I’m starting out with a smile on my face.
While the sunset is a perfect finish for another wonderful day in Namibia.
It’s that moment of the day you might not be able to talk to me because I’m running around with a camera in my hand trying to capture what isn’t to be captured with a camera.
You might be able to get the colors and contrasts onto a photograph. But you’ll never get the sounds, the smells, and the feelings of a sunset onto paper.
Boundless stars at night
And with the setting sun, another special time of the day will start. The moment the stars appear and light up the entire sky is when I am finally lost in awe of this country.
I have never been into night photography before seeing the milky way in Namibia and have purchased as a result a wide-angle lens I mainly use for capturing the countless stars at night.
I don’t use Lightroom, Photoshop, or any editing tools to process my night photographs. These pictures aren’t stacked or edited in any way. It’s the raw beauty of what appears on the back of the screen.
And it’s what I miss the most when far away from my second home. Those endless nights lying on a mattress in the desert staring at the starry sky.
Boundless wildlife
This is the one point I didn’t spend much time on trying to collect photographs. The abundance of wildlife in Namibia is vaster than what I can cover in a single article.
I just chose the above picture because it is one of my favorite ones I’ve taken over the years. It’s not just the way those four giraffes are standing at the edge of the large Etosha pan but also how that antelope is walking by in the foreground and the ostrich is trying but failing to hide in the vast and flat landscape.
I have displayed a selection of wildlife photographs I’ve taken in this, this and this article.
Boundless vastness
The last part of boundless beauty is just a selection of pictures that were either too stunning to be placed into one of the other categories or too special not to be the grand finale.
The vastness is what fascinates me the most when traveling through Namibia. I have never experienced such emotions before. The feelings of it are too beautiful to be real.
Final words
I know this was lengthy, full of color and text but it was as short as I could keep it. The boundless beauty of Namibia is surely endless and nothing to be captured in one picture, one word, or a single article.
I’ve tried my best in displaying the variety this country has to offer and in case you’re new to my profile, you find plenty more stories about Namibia in my list here.
This is a response to the June writing prompt of Weeds & Wildflowers. As always, I’m a bit late to the party but rather late than never. Thank you Dennett for the inspiring prompt.
I call it my second home, so here’s more of Namibia:
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