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Post by bixaorellana on Apr 21, 2013 16:26:52 GMT
"Pale Chanting Goshawk" is easily the best bird name I've ever heard. And these are easily some of the best bird pictures I've ever seen, not least because pictures and text give such a good overview of the birds, their habits, and their habitats.
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Post by lugg on Apr 22, 2013 17:56:39 GMT
Wow - just brilliant photos / report.
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Post by nycboy on Apr 23, 2013 2:12:24 GMT
"Pale Chanting Goshawk" is easily the best bird name I've ever heard. And these are easily some of the best bird pictures I've ever seen, not least because pictures and text give such a good overview of the birds, their habits, and their habitats. Thanks but I don't think they hold a candle to Tod's! Incidentally, we're already thinking of reserving in Kruger for next summer. What's the best month to go?
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Post by nycgirl on May 2, 2013 5:36:36 GMT
The primary reason my husband and I wanted to go to Namibia was to see Sossuvlei, a clay pan surrounded by enormous red dunes. It is located in the Namib-Naukluft National Park in the southern part of the vast Namib Desert, the oldest desert in the world. The word “sossus” means “a gathering place of water” and the word “vlei” refers to a shallow lake or hollow. We camped inside the park the night we arrived, got up before dawn the next morning, and literally were the first ones out the gate. We drove past the dunes, which loomed eerily in the dawning light, and headed straight to Deadvlei. When we arrived, we had the place entirely to ourselves, except for a lone gemsbok galloping by. Deadvlei is a white clay pan that formed ages ago when the Tsauchab river flooded, creating an oasis where camel thorn trees grew. When a drought hit the area, sand dunes blocked the river from the pan and the trees died. There is not enough moisture in the pan to allow decomposition, so the sun-blackened skeleton trees, estimated to be 900 years old, are still standing today. The area is rarely visited by rainfall, but it does happen, as these preserved mud prints show. We took our time photographing the surreal landscape, which seemed to change every few minutes with the shifting light. When the temperature began to climb, we decided to tear ourselves away and explore the dunes before it got too hot. We said goodbye to Deadvlei (and the pied crow watching us like a sentry).
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Post by Deleted on May 2, 2013 6:01:08 GMT
An absolutely stunning set of pictures! I am really intrigued the circular drying patterns of the clay, not at all like the cracked mud of empty lakebeds in other places.
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Post by bjd on May 2, 2013 6:07:28 GMT
I'm impressed by the changing colours of the ground depending on the light.
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Post by mossie on May 2, 2013 7:18:47 GMT
A super set of pictures, what a tremendous variety our planet has?
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Post by htmb on May 2, 2013 10:12:31 GMT
I've never seen anything like it! Fantastic pictures.
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Post by tod2 on May 2, 2013 12:31:47 GMT
What a beautiful set of photos you have shown us Nycgirl! You just KNOW when someone is really good behind a lens Looking forward to the next ones!
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Post by nycboy on May 2, 2013 13:36:42 GMT
Maybe girl can post some pics of us enjoying ourselves in there?
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Post by bixaorellana on May 2, 2013 17:43:06 GMT
Those are simply some of the most astounding, and astoundingly beautiful pictures I've ever seen!
I can see how you could barely tear yourselves away. The changing light, colors, and shadows had to have been mesmerizing. Lucky us, that with your wonderful artistic eye you were able to photographically capture the magic.
Your text is graceful and helpful, as always. Thank you for letting us see this.
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Post by lugg on May 2, 2013 19:07:18 GMT
Outstanding and haunting photos
It is quite amazing that life exists there at all , the outcrops of grass and wildlife suggest that thee must be some water ? Is that in the form of mists or underground do you know ?
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Post by nycgirl on May 3, 2013 13:54:35 GMT
Thanks for the comments, everyone! It sure is a unique place. A very popular morning activity is to hike Dune 45, which I'll show soon, and watch the sunrise from the top. I would have loved to have done that as well, but I'm glad we opted to see Deadvlei at sunrise, especially since we had it all to ourselves. It is quite amazing that life exists there at all , the outcrops of grass and wildlife suggest that thee must be some water ? Is that in the form of mists or underground do you know ? Yes and yes. There are some underground and seasonal rivers, and the plants and lots of little creatures get moisture from the morning coastal fogs. It is really surprising that the gemsbok, which are really big, can thrive without drinking water. They derive moisture from the plants they eat.
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Post by fgrsk8r1970 on May 3, 2013 14:22:33 GMT
Fantastic photos NYC Boy/Girl!!! I have always been intrigued by Africa, Botswana, Kenya, Namibia and South Africa and these photos are so exciting that I want to book a vacation right now !!! Can't wait to see more !! ;D
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Post by Deleted on May 3, 2013 17:16:19 GMT
I can only echo what everyone else said. Amazing photography. What an interesting place out planet is.
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Post by nycgirl on May 4, 2013 16:06:26 GMT
At nycboy’s request, here are a couple more Deadvlei photos. Next we headed to Big Mama, one of the largest dunes in the park. (Big Daddy, the highest dune in the area, is around 1,000 feet, but I can’t find a definite figure for Big Mama). Mom waited for us at the bottom while we hiked along its sinuous crest. A little lizard skittered by, occasionally pausing to rest on his belly with his feet lifted off the ground to cool them. We huffed and puffed and the sun beat down on us, but the climb was relatively easy and only took about 15 min. At the top, we were rewarded with a sweeping view of the undulating, wind-sculpted dunes surrounding us. Going down was a lot faster than going up; we simply ran down the face of the dune. I was really alarmed at how quickly I picked up speed, so I zigzagged like a skier to slow down. By now we were hungry and the heat was pretty strong, so it was time to go. On our way out the park, we stopped by the iconic Dune 45. This is the dune I mentioned earlier that is a popular sunrise hike. Photographers like to capture it early in the morning when half of it is shrouded in shadow. You can see it in Kimby’s thread here. We were too late for that, but my husband snapped a photo of me starting the hike. I didn’t go all the way up this time, though. Back at camp, we ate lunch and cooled off at the pool, before packing up and heading out. I was reluctant to leave and would have liked to spend another day there, but I was looking forward to our next destination.
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Post by htmb on May 4, 2013 18:49:08 GMT
Oh my goodness. So beautiful!
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Post by Deleted on May 4, 2013 19:34:03 GMT
The sand is all so perfect.
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Post by nycgirl on May 4, 2013 19:43:55 GMT
What's really neat is the wind sweeps away all the footprints at night, so early in the morning the sand looks new and untouched. Makes you feel like you're an explorer going where no one has gone before.
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Post by mossie on May 4, 2013 20:40:27 GMT
The wind makes sand dunes live. Thanks for some wonderful photos.
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Post by bixaorellana on May 4, 2013 23:04:25 GMT
Those colors! Those vistas! Those photographs! So glad you showed us more of Deadvlei. If you scroll slightly on Reply #46 -- enough to just cut off the fence line and the vehicle -- you have a perfect cover photo for The Sheltering Sky.
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Post by nycgirl on May 6, 2013 6:44:31 GMT
From Sossusvlei, we had a grueling six hour drive to Walvis Bay. Well, my husband did, I mostly slept. On the way, we stopped for gas and bakery goods at a tiny settlement called Solitaire. Scattered in front of the gas station were abandoned cars from long ago. North of Solitaire, we passed through the Tropic of Capricorn. At one point we spotted this robust succulent, standing nearly 10 feet tall, on the side of the road. I looked it up and learned that it is Euphorbia virosa, also called Gifboom, meaning “poison tree.” The Bushmen use its toxic juices to coat their hunting arrows. Later in the day, we saw smoke from a distance. We followed the twists and turns of the road... ...and were alarmed to see this huge conflagration. We asked the other people who had pulled over what happened and they said the driver somehow swerved off the road, overheated his brakes, and managed to get out his car in the nick of time. That must have been terrifying. We continued driving late into the night on a bumpy, poorly paved road. It did cross my mind how unfortunate it would be to get a blowout, especially since the likelihood of anyone driving by at night was slim. In fact, people on Tripadvisor strongly advised against driving in Namibia after sundown. But we fortunately made it to Walvis Bay safe and sound, checked into our cozy guesthouse, and got a good night’s sleep. The next day we took a day trip to the nearby coastal city Swakopmund. We found a tour company and booked a shark-fishing excursion for later that day, then spent the afternoon exploring. We visited a nice crafts market, where I picked up a small elephant. It was a mild, lovely day and we took our time strolling the city. Founded by Germany in the late 19th century, Swakopmund uniquely possesses German colonial architecture surrounded by the Namib desert. We walked down this long jetty, then had a nice seafood lunch overlooking the ocean. After lunch, we met up with the tour company and they drove us to the beach where we would be fishing. The sand there was really pretty. I dipped my feet in the water and was surprised how warm it was, much warmer than the waters at the Cape. Here’s the bait we used. On its underside... ... is a peculiar little face. The fishermen set up the poles for us and also built a little bonfire. They were fun to hang out with and we really hit it off with them. Unfortunately, the sharks didn’t bite that day. The guys put up a valiant effort, but we eventually had to throw in the towel. They felt really bad about it and even offered us a complimentary trip the next day, but we were already locked into a kayak tour. Oh well, can’t win ’em all. This was a good group of guys, though, and if I ever go back there again, I will definitely give it another go with them.
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Post by tod2 on May 6, 2013 7:29:42 GMT
It is wonderful to see photos of places I've been to but only two or three are the same shot as mine! You captured the sand dunes and stark 'nothingness' to perfection. Solitaire fascinated me with the old derelict motor cars. Swakopmund was my favourite city with it's old buildings - did you go past the old railways station that is a lovely hotel? The seafood is amazing but I cannot pass a Chinese restaurant without at least one meal. I still think about the best Chinese food I have ever had in my life, at a little unassuming place in Swakopmund. And that includes places in Hong Kong, Singapore, the UK, France, Holland, Australia, and America. How they did it I wish I knew, but it was marvelous ;D The craft bowls are so pretty aren't' they? So glad you got a little elephant to take home! You certainly did something different by going fishing from the beach! Most tourists, like us, went on the seal boat trip. It might not have been so much fun after a nice lunch - the ocean gets a little bumpy now and again! The shot of you walking up the dune is similar to the one I have of my husband - I stood and watched from the shade of those trees below Looking forward to more beautiful pictures.
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Post by nycboy on May 6, 2013 14:36:04 GMT
I'll give a little more back story with that car fire since Ilia won't let me make fun of mom. We were meandering on the way from Sossusvlei down to Walvis Bay through some particularly interesting geology (which is saying something after Sossusvlei and being a fan of the American Southwest!). I saw a large and very thick plume of black smoke that I assumed was a car fire and one we'd eventually come to since there were no other roads in the area. The road kept meandering up, down and around bald rolling hills and while the smoke seemed like it'd be around any corner miles kept passing by. Finally we started down a steep descent that looked like it wasn't going to stop until we crossed a draw of some kind. Apparently, the SUV that was on fire was pulling another one on a trailer and the weight was too much for the brakes to handle and they overheated. From talking to them I got the impression that the driver had not downshifted or used low gear to assist the descent. He managed to keep it on the road until he hit a turn that was much too sharp and that's were he went off a 3ft or so drop and slid down some scrabble and, according to the driver, he jumped out as it burst into flames before coming to a stop! My goodness we were so relieved there was no one in the car and that he was uninjured! This is where the car came to rest: maps.google.com/maps?q=-23.302288,15.776016&num=1&t=h&z=19&iwloc=near Babe, maybe you can post that pic we got down into the canyon? It's a bit blurred due to the failing light but it would give the resident geologists something to chew on. The layers were tilted at quite an angle (you can see in the aerial) so I'm assuming it's been pushed up by volcanic intrusions. geology.about.com/library/bl/maps/n_map_namibia.htm
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Post by nycboy on May 6, 2013 15:14:26 GMT
As a point of reference, at the base of the dune we're standing on is the actual Sossusvlei, Deadvlei is over Ilia's left shoulder across the valley in the background, the one farthest to the right. What a place!
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Post by lola on May 7, 2013 0:37:33 GMT
Wonderful photos, great report. The dune ones are especially magical.
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Post by lugg on May 7, 2013 18:45:09 GMT
Outstanding photos . The dunes are beautiful and I really enjoyed seeing the photos of Swakopmund. Is it all as pristine as it looks in your photos? And I have a love of wooden bowls so that that photo really caught my attention.
I have to admit that my heart was in my mouth as I scrolled through your final posts. Hopefully any sharks are just caught and released ? I am cautiously optimistic that would probably have happened as there has been quite a concerted effort in Namibia re education about shark conservation. Unfortunately not so just up the coast in Angola.
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Post by nycboy on May 8, 2013 1:47:07 GMT
Swakopmund was very clean. If there are areas to be avoided we didn't see them.
The sharks are caught and released.
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Post by Deleted on May 8, 2013 2:09:07 GMT
Swakopmund looks very much like a documentary I once saw about Luderitz. These towns seem to be such time capsules that they make me imagine small German towns being plucked up by aliens and deposited on a desert planet.
All of your photographs remain as spectacular as ever.
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Post by bixaorellana on May 8, 2013 3:27:12 GMT
This is dreamlike, it's so perfect! The rusting cars and the spotless little town would have made for fabulous travel stories, but add in close shaves with fiery death & encountering new friends while fishing in beautiful waters and you've packed in more perfection than could be found in ten trips! I love all the pictures, of course, but the beach sand ones are really special. That's saying something, considering they came after the sublime desert ones! That bait sure looks like some kind of ray, which is kind of using a shark to catch a shark: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Batoidea I think the kind with a "face" like you show is a type of sting ray. The "wings" are good to eat.
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