I am sure that most people have a 'wish list', or a bucket list of places, as it is often referred to, these days of places that they want to visit in their lifetime. A flying safari along the Skeleton Coast in Namibia, must surely be on that list!
This is one of the most extraordinary experiences that one can possibly have, and speaking to clients who have undertaken this journey, without exception, they have all agreed - that if one was only to have one experience in all of Namibia, this would have to be it.
I was lucky enough to undertake a skeleton coast safari with the founder of the company, Louw Schoeman. Although these safaris can last for five or six days, most people opt for the three night/four day safari. Starting from Windhoek, the capital, one is flown in a Cessna to their first camp.
The Skeleton Coast conjures up mysterious visions of mist-enshrouded beaches strewn with bleached whalebones and rusted shipwrecks. Stretching from the south of Namibia up into Angola, the Skeleton Coast and its hinterland is a landscape of haunting beauty, a vast area of rolling sand dunes, expanses of uninhabited desert plains, fossil beds, unique geological formations, desert-adapted animals and strange vegetation. Each day is spent exploring this breathtaking region, spending each night in a different location and ending up on the border of Angola, overlooking the Kunene river. Your guides are supremely knowledgeable and they unravel the harsh beauty in fascinating detail. It is impossible not to feel utterly privileged to witness such a pristine region in complete exclusivity.
