Namibia Desert Trek

Sesriem · Namibia

Challenging7 daysAfrica~£1,800 est.

Save ✓ I did this

Overview

The Naukluft massif rises like a fortress from the gravel plains on the eastern edge of the Namib — the world's oldest desert — and its multi-day trail is one of Africa's toughest and least known. The full circuit run by Namibia Wildlife Resorts covers about 120 km in eight days (a four-day version exists), dropping in and out of dolomite kloofs where fixed chains assist the scrambles, past black pools that hold water year-round, and up onto plateaux where gemsbok and Hartmann's mountain zebra watch you pass. Nights are in simple stone shelters; you carry everything, and the marked water points are the trail's one mercy. Pair it with dawn at Sossusvlei, ninety minutes away, where the dead camel thorn trees of Deadvlei stand black against 300 m apricot dunes — the desert's two personalities, dolomite and sand, in a single week. The trail opens only in the cooler months (March to the third week of October) and group sizes are capped, so book ahead through NWR. It is hot even then, and the kit check exists because people have come badly unstuck here. Around £1,800 covers park fees, trail permits, nights at Sesriem and a hire 4x4 — there is no public transport within 100 km.