THE KAOKOVELD - DAMARALAND
AND KAOKOLAND WILDERNESS
Last true Wilderness in Africa! Home to the ochre-coloured Ova-Himba, the
desert adapted Elephants & the last free roaming Black Rhino in the world!
A rugged, wild & beautiful landscape, shaped by the one sculptor for whom it
is possible - Nature! Left uninhabited for more than 300 years before modern
Man finally "discovered" the Kaokoveld, and tried to harness it.
Few places on earth can truly exhibit the forces of Nature in the way that an ancient landscape
can - this is an ancient landscape. Some of the oldest rocks & strata known on earth are found
in the Kaokoveld. One of the reasons why this area was "out-of-bounds" for many years after
its western discovery, is the fact that it was proclaimed a forbidden Diamond area.
The only permanent residents then found in Kaokoveld were the nomadic, ochre-coloured Ova-
Himba people, a strange population of desert adapted Elephants and free-roaming Black Rhino.
We now know that this is the only area in the world where these behemoths of the animal King-
dom still roam free. These are the icons of Kaokoveld, but NOT the only inhabitants. A vast
variety of life forms had established themselves here - albeit under extremely harsh conditions.
Kaokoveld is a collective term describing the entire wilderness area which consists of two main
regions; Kaokoland in the north (from the Kunene River southward), and Damaraland directly
bordering Kaokoland in the south. Although arid and hot for most of the year, the scant but life-
giving rain is soon visible in breathtaking valleys of endless savannah grassland.
The photographs on this page can NEVER portray the vastness and true beauty of the land, &
are NOT specifically relevant to those safaris in the Seven Wonders of Namibia collection, but
presents a general overview. Relevant photographs will be added as they become available.
Click on the thumbnails to view a slightly larger picture.
(You may return here by clicking on the 
button in the right-hand, top corner of the photo page).
Typical Himba A family unit near Desert Elephants 3 tons of fury, yet
huts & family life Hartmann's valley moving to water a mere speck here
Panoramic view of the entrance to the Hartmann's valley View due north
Dwarfed even at Solo Elephant . . Some Petroglyphs The Kunene
a short distance beware! at Twyfelfontein River
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