When I was a kid, my grandfather wouldn’t let me go to the desert. He said it was the “point of no return.”

In rural Namibia, almost all children are taught by their parents that "if you enter the desert, you will never come back." This so-called "point of no return" is actually the Namib Desert, which geologists once believed It is "the rarest desert wonder on earth": it stretches from Angola and Namibia to the coast of South Africa, with sea and sand coexisting for more than 2,000 kilometers, but the longest part that can be extended inland is only 200 kilometers.

Geologists have found the reasons for the formation of the Namib through simulation experiments. The most convincing one is that the original landform of the Namib was a salt marsh, which was formed during the semi-arid period of the African continent 80 million years ago. The temperature difference caused by the falling warm and moist air flow causes the moist water vapor to form rainfall. As a result, it is cooled by the adjacent Atlantic cold current, so the rainfall decreases year by year until it disappears (the average annual rainfall in the past 60 years is only 10 mm).

The heat storage characteristics of salt marshes covered with gravel also prevent the sun's heat from dissipating for a long time. This creates a vicious cycle in the regional climate, and the moist air from the coast never reaches the desert interior. The Atlantic Ocean has always been a hot spot for hurricanes. Every year, millions of tons of sea sand are blown onto the coast and then move inland little by little. This is the main reason why wave-like dunes push inland.

The desert area with the densest and most variable sea sand found by scientists is located in a straight line of the Sossus Salt Marsh in Namibia. It is said that 38% of the sea sand blown into the Namib Desert from here every year %about. The influx of large amounts of sea sand into the interior of the desert will not only increase the height of the dunes (the highest one reaches 550 meters), but also significantly change the desert landscape and dune topography.

The reason why the locals prohibit children from running into the desert to play is not only the legendary "point of no return", but also the accidental displacement of sand dunes by the wind, leaving the Namib Desert with almost no long-term residents. Located in the center of the sea sand and covering an area of ??32,000 square kilometers, the Sossus Salt Marsh has not been settled for 8,000 years. Only along the coast are flamingos, desert wild lions, mountain zebras and other drought-tolerant animals.

In order to restore the ecological chain of Sossus Salt Marsh, Namibia has released thousands of desert wild animals in the Namib National Park. Currently, some of the surviving herbivores include desert brown horses, African antelopes and other herbivores. , its scale has ranked among the largest wildlife parks in Africa.

Although the Namib Desert is arid, people have discovered diamonds, tungsten and other high-value ores as early as the end of the last century. The reason why mining is not included in the schedule is mainly to preserve Namibia’s only minerals. A tourism business card, hoping to expand more development avenues for Namibia, a resource-based country, through irreplaceable tourism resources.

Among them, apart from the sand dunes, there are also swarms of wild animals, the beautiful starry sky in the desert’s uninhabited land, and the temperature that is relatively suitable for travel.

In order to meet the needs of the 500,000 desert tourists every year, the Namibian government not only built roads directly to the outskirts of the salt marsh area, but also set up various facilities such as gas stations, supply areas, camping areas, restaurants and hotels along the way. The whole journey is only 370 kilometers (not including the 120-kilometer detour to three scenic spots in the middle), but it can be divided into 3-4 days of self-driving itinerary, which is low-cost (you can bring your own tent and food when driving, no additional consumption), high safety (Namibia It is a tourist route with stable political situation, security and rescue along the way) and high experience (sunrise and sunset, desert motorcycles, camping and picnics).

According to the guide’s estimate, and based on the several groups of self-driving tourists asked along the way, the average per capita consumption of a four-day trip is about 1,500-1,800 yuan. For example, if you stay in affordable hotels and eat in restaurants, the per capita consumption It will not exceed 3,000 yuan (the park ticket is about 30 yuan). Taking a bus directly to the national park is more cost-effective.

Since it is difficult to set fixed boundaries in the desert, Namibia can only be divided into three major desert travel areas: "Sovers, Sossusvlei, and Namib" in the order of self-driving. It can also be simply planned using vegetation density. , surrounded by grassland plants such as Welwitschia and marigold, is the territory of Namibia's African rhinos, antelopes, ostriches, jackals, skunks and other wildlife parks. The great animal migration around July every year attracts many tourists to come and watch.

The earliest indigenous people of this grassland were the Herero people, but after the 20th century it was occupied by Europeans and Americans for sheep herding. The movie "Mad Max: Fury Road" was filmed here. The desert beasts shown are mostly real.

Further ahead is the town of Rehoboth, about 90 kilometers away from the capital Windhoek, with a population of about 21,000. It is the only supply station to the depths of the desert. The B1 desert asphalt road is only a short distance from the town. It stopped suddenly, and even the gravel disappeared little by little, and we could only rely on the ruts traveled by the car in front to distinguish the road surface.

The guide pointed to the bushes on both sides and said: Before German colonization, there were colonists and businessmen from 11 European and American countries in Namibia. Their fierce competition could easily cause disputes, but they were embarrassed to do so in full view of the public. They wanted to "duel" each other, so they made an appointment to negotiate in the desert area where the road disappeared. If they couldn't reach an agreement, they would fight until they were defeated. Therefore, for a long time, bones could be seen along this section of the road where the road disappeared, and the excrement of desert animals after eating the corpses often carried various plant seeds, but in the end only shrubs survived.

There is a camping area 5 kilometers north of the town. All foreign tourists can park for free here, fill up water, charge, etc. You must know that Namibia is one of the driest countries in southern Africa, with the entire country 260 There are more than 100,000 wells dug for a population of 10,000 (so the local tap water is drinkable). However, there is almost no rainfall in the desert area, but it can provide tourists with free water and electricity supplies, and renting a tent only costs 10 US dollars. This sincerity can be imagined Know.

About 10 kilometers through the camping area is the Spitzkope Mountains. It was once praised by National Geographic as the rarest weathered wonder in the desert. It is said that these stones have experienced millions of years of wind and sun. After a while, it evolved into the weird appearance it has today.

There was originally a river at the bottom of the mountain range, but it dried up after global warming. Nowadays, several small pools only appear during the rainy season in the upper reaches. According to the current plan, only one pool allows tourists to enter. The rest are all water sources for desert wildlife and are prohibited from being approached.

Since the water quality is mainly composed of weathered fossil minerals (good for the human body) and the desert climate is hot, the local scenic spot has opened the water pool as a public swimming pool free of charge, becoming the only natural swimming pool within thousands of kilometers. In the swimming pool, dozens of tourists come to play in the water almost every day (it is not recommended to go, as the wind will make your head, face and mouth full of sand and dust).

Driving around the mountains and onto the dirt road represents the official entry into the Namib Desert area, and the surrounding vegetation has gradually reduced until it is completely gone. From here, for every 20 kilometers you travel forward, the temperature will rise by 1.65°C until it reaches its peak in the central salt marsh area. It is said that the highest temperature has ever been 55°C.

According to the information reviewed, the temperature changes in the Namib Desert are based on the salt content of the sand and gravel. The higher the salt content, the more heat is absorbed and the heat dissipation rate is slower. Salt marshes are used as the auxiliary criterion. Within the 80-kilometer radius of the center, there is no rainfall, no water source, and even desert shrubs cannot survive.

Since we will also be shooting in the desert no-man’s land during this trip, we must report to the small town police station in order to carry two extra large barrels of gasoline. After filling the tank, the guide contacted the desert hotel and was told: "If you can help the hotel, If we bring supplies, we can be exempted from two days of room charges." So he went back and filled a whole carriage with fruits, vegetables, milk, and various packaged simple foods.

The hotel purchased a big bag as a gift. It was the first time to eat this unique Namibian delicacy. We found that it was a freshly made and vacuum-packed steak. It was spicy and juicy after being sprinkled with toppings. It was a typical desert. Food can replenish water, energy and taste.

When I arrived at the entrance of the national park, I saw a long queue. It was said that the ticketing system was out of order that day. After an hour of waiting, the scenic spot simply opened its doors to allow all vehicles to enter for free, and tourists just followed in without buying a ticket.

According to the guide, Namibia allocates US$5 million every year to maintain the operation of the park, but in addition to paying for equipment maintenance and employee salaries, this money also has to bear on the balance of the desert ecology. For example, during extreme drought periods, Hundreds of buckets are placed in desert areas to prevent desert creatures from dying due to lack of water. In addition, rescue emergencies for tourists are basically provided free of charge by the park, so a symbolic ticket (about 30 yuan) is set.

Since it was close to sunset when we arrived at the park, we could only choose the hotel near the park gate. When checking in, the front desk smiled and said: You are very lucky. In the next month, the Namib Desert There is no wind and dust, otherwise tourists from hundreds of miles away can only hide in this hotel, because the mountain col can minimize the damage of wind and sand.

At about 9 o'clock in the evening, beautifully decorated dining tables suddenly appeared in the open area of ??the mountain col. Dust-proof partitions were thoughtfully erected next to the dining tables to prevent dust from affecting the taste of the food. A hotel employee told me: No less than 200 desert weddings are held every year, and there have been more than 500 in a year. Currently, more than 2,200 weddings have been successfully held for couples from more than 100 countries.

When I returned to the room and looked out the window at the bright starry sky, I was full of hope for the next trip.