Hiking in Sossusvlei, Namib Desert

I love to hike anywhere. Almost every weekend my friends and I plan a day hike somewhere in Southern California. One of my hiking highlights this year was in Sossusvlei, Namibia. It was extremely windy and hot that day, making the trip more difficult, but I am so glad I fought through the elements and saw the unbelievable beauty of the Namib-Naukluft National Park. Dune 45 is the only dune that visitors are allowed to climb. I made it to the top and what a beautiful view I had. Then I headed over to hike to Deadvlei. Not that far of a hike but the heat was grueling. Deadvlei is an amazing act of nature. Nestled inside the red dunes is a small clay valley resembling a giant sugar cookie, supporting dead camel thorn trees estimated to be almost 1,000 years old. I didn’t see much wildlife in this area except for a few groups or Oryx feeding on sparse tufts of grass growing in the sand. Thankfully, I missed the large white spiders of the dunes that I was warned of! If you are lucky enough to travel here, make sure to arrive early before the heat gets too intense, use sunscreen, wear a hat, and bring lots of water. You can drive your car to Dune 45 but unless you have 4-wheel drive, you must take transportation to the Deadvlei area after paying a small fee to the vendor. A definite Bucket List event!