CULTUREFOCUS: Namibia photos. Namib Desert and Etosha wildlife pictures.

THE WILD BEAUTY OF NAMIBIA
The scenery in Namibia is marked by rugged and stark beauty. Time and nature have created extreme and diverse landscapes in this part of southwest Africa. Inland from the desolate Atlantic coast are sights that include the surreal dunes of the Namib Desert and the vast salt pan and surrounding bush of the wildlife-rich Etosha National Park

Dunescapes of the Namib Desert
The vast Namib Desert in western Namibia is one of the oldest and driest deserts on Earth. It includes a sand sea reputed to contain the most picturesque dunes in the world. The highest dunes are set around ephemeral clay pans at Sossusvlei. Over time, the Namib dunes have been sculpted by the wind into bizarre and complex shapes.

More than nature's abstract art. This apparently barren and arid landscape is home to a complex ecosystem supported by precious moisture gleaned from fogs that roll in from the Atlantic.

ETOSHA: The 'Place of Dry Water'

Tricks of geology can have dramatic effects on a landscape. Etosha in northern Namibia is a parched wilderness left behind after a river changed course in the distant past. The fate of an immense lake was sealed and its waters eventually dried to leave an expansive pan that now bakes in the hot sun. But in this land of extremes, the barren landscape of Etosha is surrounded by an Eden where rains and underground springs allow vegetation and wildlife to flourish.

A land of mirages
The vast pan that lies at the heart of the Etosha National Park in Namibia is a place of limitless horizons. This dusty depression is a stark, flat wilderness of sun-baked clay and minerals that covers over 6000 square kilometers. The name Etosha is derived from the native Ovambo language, and has been translated as 'Place of Dry Water' or 'Great White Place'.

Gemsbok on the parched Etosha pan - the vestige of an ancient lake

In a dramatic contrast, the dry Etosha pan is surrounded by bush and grasslands. Thirsty animals are lured to water holes fed by precious underground springs.

Giraffes gather at a water hole as
the sun sets on a hot day at Etosha

Experiences of early travelers to the wildlife-rich Etosha area were typified by the comment of an American trader in 1876. He famously wrote "all the menageries in the world turned loose would not compare to the sight I saw that day." Hunting was to take a heavy toll on animals before the German colonial administration established a game reserve early in the 20th century.