Namibia & Etosha National Park – 2011
Experience Nambia’s pristine and extraordinary beauty!
Dates: June 27 – July 9, 2011 (13 days) Price: $7750 US
Join MIKE BYRNE for the adventure of a lifetime in a photographer’s paradise: Namibia, June 27 – July 9, 2011.
Experience the spectacular sand dunes of Sossusvlei (with opportunities to shoot at both sunrise and sunset); the living desert outside Swakopmund; Namibia’s desert elephants at Camp Kipwe; followed by 4 nights in Etosha National Park, viewing its amazing water holes and abundant wildlife (elephant, lion, wildebeest, zebra, kudu and so much more). Two of the water holes are lit for evening viewing! Finish with a fantastic day at Okonjima, home of the AfriCat Foundation, where you will have opportunities to photograph leopard, caracal, cheetah and more!
Namibia is a vast country with a surface area of 824,268 km2. It is about four times the size of the United Kingdom and 27 times the size of Belgium. Blessed with bountiful sunshine, Namibia has an abundance of wildlife and an intriguing variety of flora and fauna. Visitors return here again and again for the friendliness and cultural diversity of its people, and above all, because of the pristine quality and extraordinary beauty of Namibia’s landscape.
 Cheetah Posing on a Rock |
 Evening Light Near Camp Kipwe |
Upon arrival at Hosea Kutako International Airport you will be met by Split-Seconds tour leader Mike Byrne and local guide Robbie Bergh and then be transferred to River Crossing, a beautiful lodge situated just east of Namibia’s capital city Windhoek, nestled amongst the Auas Mountains.
Your cameras will be smoking busy right from the first day, when we travel from Windhoek to Sossusvlei. Stunning landscapes are populated by ostrich, zebra, gemsbok, kudu, springbok, suricate, huge social weaver’s nests, and various raptors.
We will photograph daily with many days starting before sunrise with an early morning shoot lasting until around 10:00 am. We will go out again in the afternoon until sunset, guaranteeing a minimum of seven hours of photography. Between photo sessions there will be individualized image critiques, digital workflow sessions and Q&A discussions (as requested).
Your accommodation varies from luxury hotel rooms to deluxe wilderness resorts. The Hansa Hotel at Swakopmund is one of the top rated hotels in all of Namibia. At Sossusvlei we will stay in chalets constructed from wood, canvas and thatch. Designed to creatively embrace the granite boulders, our Damaraland camp features igloo-shaped rooms, with en-suite baths, fronted by large outside decks to admire the view.
 Tour Vehicle near Sossusvlei Sand Dunes |
 Leopard In a Tree |
 Birds are plentiful in Namibia |
Itinerary
Monday 27 June: Arrival at River Crossing. There will several opportunities to photograph birds and mammals along the way and around the River Crossing location.
Tuesday 28 June: Drive to Namib-Naukluft Park, settle into accommodation at Sossus Dune Lodge. Explore and photograph the famous sand dunes at Sossusvlei.
Wednesday 29 June: Further exploration and photography of Sossusvlei, with an excursion into the Sesriem Canyon.
Thursday 30 June: Drive along Kuiseb Canyon to Walvis Bay on the Skeleton Coast, arriving at Swakopmund in the late afternoon. There are many scenic locations to photograph along the way.
Friday 1 July: Living Desert Tour. This tour takes you from the vegetated, life-rich eastern side of the dunes, right through the dunes to the Atlantic Ocean on the western side of the dune belt. Here you can find creatures endemic to the Namib: the sidewinder, the Palmato Gecko and the large Namaqua Chameleon.
Saturday 2 July: Drive to Camp Kipwe within the Twyfelfontein Conservancy in the Damaraland area. Damaraland is renowned for its geology, unusual rock formations, rock paintings, and rare desert-adapted flora and fauna. Activities include elephant nature drives and guided nature walks.
Sunday 3 July: Further exploration and photography in the Damaraland area, including the Petrified forest, where the trees are about 250 million years old!
Monday 4 July: Drive to Halali Resort in Etosha National Park. Exploration and photography at various water holes near Halali, including one water hole lit for evening viewing.
Tuesday 5 July: Further exploration and photography in Etosha National Park. Etosha is one of the largest and best game viewing parks in the whole of Africa, over-flowing with grass and woodlands amongst which live a wonderful variety of animals and birds, insects and reptiles.
Wednesday 6 July: Travel within Etosha to Okaukuejo Resort, one of only three places to stay in this part of the part (an area the size of Israel). Numerous water holes give rise to a wealth of wildlife images, including a fantastic white clay elephant wallow. Immense bull elephants roll in this gooey white clay to emerge from the wallow as the famous “ghost elephants” of Etosha.
Thursday 7 July: Further exploration and photography in the Okaukuejo Resort area. Water in the Etosha Pan attracts thousands of wading birds including impressive flocks of flamingos and the pan is surrounded by sweetveld Savanna plains, which sustain extraordinary numbers of wildlife. Etosha is home to 114 mammal and some 340 bird species.
Friday 8 July: Drive to Okonjima Lodge, a family run guest lodge and home of the AfriCat Foundation. You will be able to see leopard and cheetah and follow highly informative Bushmen and Bantu trails.
Saturday 9 July: After breakfast you will be transferred back to Windhoek to the International airport for your flight back home.
Included:
- Private group transfers
- Lodge accommodation based on double occupancy
- All meals subsequent to arrival at River Crossing
- Services of highly qualified guides
- Photographic tuition, image critique sessions, Photoshop, Lightroom and Photo Mechanic help.
Not included:
- Airport departure taxes
- Drinks, plus unspecified meals and tours
- Personal expenses
- Gratuities to guides and drivers
- Insurance for travel, health and personal belongings
WE STRONGLY RECOMMEND TRAVEL AND HEALTH INSURANCE FOR THIS TRIP
If you have any specific questions about any field trip please do not hesitate to contact us directly. Email info@split-seconds.com or Tel 1-800-667-0007
Our Booking Information (Policies for Reservations, Cancellations, Refunds and other considerations) can be downloaded here.
Our Personal Information/Registration/Risk Waiver can be downloaded here.
To book your spot today please click here or call toll free 1-800-667-0007 (North America only) or +1-250-889-6700 (international) or send us an email info@split-seconds.com.