NAMIBIA: Spectacular Dunes and Abundant Wildlife, Part II, Guest Post by Owen Floody.

Zebra at Etosha National Park, Namibia.

With many thanks to our friend Owen Floody, who was my husband's field partner on our trip to East Africa in 1971. Art and I have not been back to Africa since then, but Owen has made numerous trips in recent years and written about several of them for The Intrepid Tourist. His latest report chronicles a trip to Namibia—his third—and is accompanied by his excellent photographs.

Where the Namib desert meets the sea.

My previous post began with my description of a recent photo-tour of Namibia and ended as we flew by small plane from the red sand dunes of Sossusvlei to coastal Swakopmund, marking the tour’s transition from an emphasis on landscapes to one on wildlife. The flight itself provided a second look at the shapes and distributions of the Sossusvlei dunes. Particularly impressive was how abruptly the dunes end and the ocean begins. In addition, the flight permitted us to look down on one of the shipwrecks that give the Skeleton Coast its name. Finally, we viewed an impressive bank of mist extending inland from the ocean, as is very typical of this area.

These mists limited our activities in the Swakopmund area. One victim was a planned excursion to Walvis Bay in search of flamingos and other water birds. But we did see quite a few flamingos from the plane.  And the mists could not completely derail a Living Desert tour that exposed us to a few of the small creatures (chameleons, geckos, skinks, and spiders) able to make the dunes their home.

Gecko.

From Swakopmund, we continued on to our last two stops, Etosha National Park (in northern Namibia) and the Erindi Private Game Reserve (about midway between Etosha and Windhoek, our endpoint).  Even though we saw wildlife earlier in the tour, these were the areas that we expected to be the most wildlife rich.

The Etosha Salt Pan.

Etosha is the third largest of African national parks at 8600 sq mi, closely approaching the size of New Hampshire. Contained almost entirely within it is the Etosha Pan, a salt pan of about 1840 square miles. Etosha is dry, though average rainfall levels vary seasonally and regionally.  Due to its aridity, much of the wildlife viewing in Etosha occurs at waterholes, some natural, others man-made.  A few of these (including one a few feet from my room) are lit at night, permitting interesting views of a great variety of animals as they (very cautiously) visit to drink.

Giraffes and rhinos at the water hole.

Of the waterhole visitors, zebra are so photogenic as to be hard to beat. Nevertheless, the most prized nighttime visitors were the black rhinoceros and giraffes: I did not expect to see this many rhinos and was very pleased by the turnout.  And nothing could have beat the show put on for us by a large herd of elephants during a daytime waterhole visit. All of them, but especially one expressive and irresistible baby, had a grand time frolicking in the dust, water and mud.

Mother elephant and her calf having a mud bath.

Even though these sightings were great and made our visit to Etosha memorable, sightings of some other animals, especially big cats, were scarce. It was suggested that this reflected eastward movements of some animals in response to conditions that were unusually arid even by Etosha's standards.

Mother cheetah and her cubs.

We hoped that these gaps would be filled at Erindi.  And, to some extent, they were, as we were able to get good views of cheetah (6th image) and lions there. Unfortunately, at least some of these sightings came at what I considered unacceptable costs.  One of the benefits of private reserves is the ability to drive off road and at night.  And done judiciously, I think that these can be valuable.  However, our efforts to track a hunting mother cheetah suggested to me that the drivers at Erindi (which were not those attached to our tour) were prone to engage in two unethical practices.  First, they frequently plowed right through any shrub or small tree that might otherwise have required a detour. Secondly, several vehicles maintained positions close to and on at least three sides of the hunting cat. It is hard for me to believe that these intrusions didn’t compromise the hunt (which did end unsuccessfully). One of the drivers claimed that he knows the animals individually and well and would have broken off the pursuit if the animal was distressed. Perhaps this is true, but I am unconvinced. Since many of the cats are radio-collared, it should be possible to collect data on the outcome of hunts accompanied and unaccompanied by safari vehicles. If the success rates are similar, I will praise the sensitivity and skill of the drivers. Otherwise, I will give Erindi a pass, as I did on our remaining game drive.

Please bear in mind that this incident occupied no more than two hours of a 17-day trip.  Therefore, anyone attracted to Namibia but concerned about the incident should recall the saying about throwing out the baby along with the bathwater. Taken together, the sights and experiences of this trip for me elevate further a destination that already was one of my favorites. In my opinion, tweaking the itinerary would be an appropriate response, staying away would be overkill and unnecessary.      

Part I of Owen’s report appeared on July 3, 2023.

WALK IN THE DUNES: Cape Henlopen State Park, Delaware

Henlopen State Park, Delaware, view from Herring Point

On a recent trip to visit relatives in Delaware, we did an excursion to Henlopen State Park to view the ocean and beach and take a walk along one of the many trails. Cape Henlopen is a short distance from the historic town of Lewes, and on our way to the park we did a short driving tour of the town.

We started our visit to the park at the Herring Point overlook with its spectacular view. It was a holiday weekend and the beach was filled with people as far as the eye could see–picnicking, surf fishing, flying kites, playing at the water’s edge. Behind us were the remains of a World War II bunker and an observation tower. As well as having a military history,the Delaware coast is also along an important bird migration route, and as we stood at the observation point, we watched ospreys and other birds soar overhead. In the distance, the ferry headed for Cape May in New Jersey.

From the time of the American Revolution, Cape Henlopen in Delaware has been an important strategic location along the Atlantic coast. Poised at the entrance to Delaware Bay and across from Cape May in southern New Jersey, it is at the entrance to an important shipping channel going up the Delaware River to Philadelphia and beyond. Today, Cape Henlopen is a Delaware State Park.

After enjoying the view, we set out on  the bike path/walking trail, which, after a short while, became a board walk with dunes on one side and forest on the other.

The trail eventually leads to Gordon’s Pond but we only went as far as the viewpoint (and bench) overlooking the vast salt marsh, a beautiful sea of green grasses.

It was warm for late May, but the sea breeze made the air comfortable. It was a lovely day with flowers blooming and birds singing. On the way back to our car, we spotted a pair of warblers in a tree along the path.

Although I have driven through northern Delaware near the city of Wilmington in the past, this was my first chance to spend any time there. Delaware is a state with a long history--I’d forgotten that it was the first colony to become a state in the United States–and places like Lewes and Cape Henlopen are well worth further exploring. I will have to go back.

DEATH VALLEY: Sunrise to Sunset, Guest Post by Owen Floody

Death Valley, sunrise in the dunes

Last September, our friend Owen Floody went on a photo tour of Death Valley National Park in the California desert.  Owen recently retired from a career of teaching and research at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania. He has always been an avid photographer and in his retirement has taken several trips that allow him to pursue his passion. Here is a short reflection on his trip to Death Valley and a few of his excellent photographs.

Death Valley Badlands

Early September is probably not the ideal time to visit Death Valley National Park.  But I was in nearby Las Vegas to attend a family wedding and making a quick 4-day tour of Death Valley was too convenient to pass up.  However, the impressive heat (often of 110-120° in the shade) did have a major impact on my schedule of activities, forcing a retreat to my books and the motel pool in the middle of each day, when anything much more vigorous would have been unpleasant. 

A view of the valley from Dante’s View in the course of a sunrise. 

After a very early start, I always attempted to catch an attractive sunrise at one of several vantage points, including the Mesquite Flat sand dunes, the Badwater Basin salt flat, and Dante’s View, overlooking much of the entire valley.  Later in the morning, when it was beginning to heat up, I would look for some shade in one or more of the many canyons in the Furnace Creek or Stovepipe Wells areas.  

A lucky shot of a sandstorm at sunset in the Mesquite Flat dunes

Then, after my siesta, I would return to the canyons and badlands in the late afternoon before beginning the search for a good sunset, usually in or near the sand dunes. 

A moment shortly after sunrise in the salt flat.

Though this strategy was a matter of choice only in part, it worked out well, yielding pleasant experiences and some good photo ops, especially in the dunes and on the salt flats. Also, even if sunrises had not been a priority, early morning was by far the coolest and most pleasant part of each day.  As a result of my relatively brief visit, I was only able to pay one visit to the salt flats and never did catch a sunrise at the famous Zabriskie Point.  

 

One of the many canyons in Death Valley

Finally, my access to some parts of the park was limited by a series of temporary road closures prompted, surprisingly enough, by recent heavy rains.  This contributed to my failure to see some sights, most notably the mysterious and relatively remote Racetrack, where large rocks seem to be blown across a flat and slippery surface when observers are absent and the conditions just right.  In truth, even more time and clearer roads might not have reversed this failing, as I was strongly advised that a trip to the Racetrack requires 4-wheel drive and tires with puncture-resistant sidewalls, neither of which came with my rental.  The net effect, though, is not an entirely unwelcome one: A return trip to Death Valley clearly will be required, perhaps even timed to exploit the more congenial temperatures of the late fall - early spring. 

Sunrise on dunes

Read more about Owen's travels in these posts at The Intrepid Tourist.

Iceland: 8/26/13

Nepal: 5/20/13

Tanzania: 5/6/13