Sossusvlei, a name that evokes visions of towering red dunes and endless red desert horizons. It’s believed to be the oldest deserts on Earth, dating back at least 81 million years ago. Making it one of the most mysteries landscapes on the Earth.
In the Nama language, “sossus” translates as a dead end or place of no return, while
in Afrikaans the word “vlei” means shallow lake or marsh.
Sossusvlei – The vivid red colour of the Sossusvlei dunes is one of their most striking features, and is actually also a marker of their age. The iron content in the sand oxidises over time, much like rust forming on metal, giving the dunes their reddish hue. The older the dune, the more intense its red colour, stretching out creating a massive sand sea known as the skeleton coast.
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