Namibia

Birds and wildlife in Windhoek, Namib Desert, Erongo Mountains and the Etosha National Park

Rosy-faced Lovebirds - photo: © Warwick Tarboton Geologically speaking, Namibia is an ancient land of bizarre rock formations and weathered landscapes dating back to 2,000 million years ago - imagine that! It's home to the oldest desert, the second largest canyon, the largest iron meteorite and the highest desert dunes in the world. In the austral winter months, with its warm dry days and cool nights, Namibia is indeed 'Big Sky' country. Wide horizons of sprawling savannah and seemingly endless desert-scapes are set against azure skies by day and a kaleidoscope of stars by night.

During our 17-night holiday, run at a leisurely pace in spite of the vastness of the country, we would hope to see over 40 mammal species and up to 300 species of birds, including most of the Namibia endemics and a significant proportion of Southern Africa's near-endemics.

White-tailed Shrike - photo: © Warwick TarbotonStarting in Windhoek we travel through the rugged Komas Hochland Mountains to the alluvial gravel plains of this weathered land. Here we will visit Sossuvlei, famous for its red barchan dunes and isolated camel thorn trees which form the essence of many a photographic composition. From Sossuvlei we traverse the Namib desert to Walvis Bay, situated at the delta of the fossilized Kuiseb River. Salt deposits laid down over the millennia along the southern end of the bay are home to thousands of flamingo and a wide variety of waders and shorebirds, while Pelican Point at the mouth of the bay offers the chance of a whale, dolphin or fur seal sighting.

Our itinerary then takes us inland to the Erongo Mountains and the rampart-like cliffs of the Waterberg Plateau and on to the edge of Bushmanland where we search the scrub and arid thornveld for a variety of bird species unique to this habitat. Nomadic Bushmen of the Central Kalahari frequent the immediate area and we may well have the unique experience of interacting with a clan of these fascinating and artistic people, so at one with their arid surroundings.

Continuing west we come to the internationally acclaimed Etosha National Park where African Elephants and Black Rhino will be on our 'must see' list. Our holiday finishes back in Windhoek after a medley of wildlife and other Namibian experiences never to be forgotten.