This week’s photohunt theme is covered. Okay, I admit. I had a lot of difficulty with this theme. I had a couple of ideas and finally decided to go with the idea of covered with sand – the sand dunes of the Namib desert in Namibia.

Visiting these dunes were one of the most amazing experiences. The Namib desert covers over 30,000 square miles along the coast of Namibia. Some of it is dry dusty gray. Some of it is rocky. And some of it is brilliant red-orange.

The red sand dunes are in an area called Sossusvlei. Getting there is an adventure. It was a 6 hour drive from Swakopmund along the coast. We stayed at a desert resort about 45 minutes from the gates. The best time to visit the dunes is at the early morning when the sun just reaches the dunes. We got up and made it to the gates when they opened at 7pm and rushed towards the most famous dune – Dune 45 which is 45km from the gate. We arrived about 8am and started our climb. I was amazed at how cold and soft the sand was early in the morning. We climbed to the top for the vista above – everywhere we looked – it was covered with red sand.

Early morning sun shadowing the dune

Climbing the dune

Valley vista

Our footprints down the side of the dune

Farther up the Valley

Acacia Tree and Dune

Related post – Our drive through the Namib desert (Photohunt: Road)