Sesriem Canyon

It was hot out. Like, really really hot. The kind of hot that makes it really uncomfortable to do just about anything. 34C (93F) to be exact. When you're in the middle of a giant desert, and it's the middle of the day, there's not a whole lot of desirable things to do that involve any sort of activity whatsoever.

While my accommodations were some of the most luxurious I've ever stayed in, the only fault I found was the lack of any sort of air conditioning, and being provided just one meager fan. After spending a good hour relatively stripped down, motionless on the bed with a fan blowing on me miserably attempting to take a nap, I gave up. I decided to make my way to Sesriem Canyon, just a minute drive or so away from the Sossus Dune Lodge where I was staying.

It's a small, but completely walkable canyon. I probably spent about 30-60 minutes there, and I saw it all. The lodge staff had told me that when you reach the end you can even find water that's there year round to cool down in. I was a little excited by this, and thought it impressive that there could be any sort of water hanging around in conditions such as these.

As you can see in the picture, the water isn't exactly that inviting clear blue kind, but more so the dirty kind that looks like it would give you a rash or worse just from getting splashed by it. Hope I didn't dash any hopes you had for plunging your face into the water to cool down with. It was a nice water with some shade afforded by virtue of being in a canyon. It's a relatively easy activity to fit into any schedule that has you visiting Sossusvlei.

Water inside Sesriem Canyon, a natural canyon carved by the Tsauchab river.