&Beyond Sossusvlei Desert Lodge

We use Sossusvlei Desert Lodge because it puts you inside the NamibRand Nature Reserve, on 45,000 hectares of private desert with only ten suites on it, and within reach of Dead Vlei before anyone else is awake. The NamibRand is an International Dark Sky Reserve. After dinner an astronomer takes you through the sky above the lodge, and on a clear night there is a great deal of it.

The second morning starts early. You drive into the dunes in the dark and climb Big Daddy by torchlight, the sand cold and giving way under every step. You reach the crest as the sun comes over the Namib, and Dead Vlei comes out of the shadow below you: a white clay pan with the black, centuries-dead camelthorn trees standing on it. Then you walk down into it while the light changes. The afternoon is for rest at the lodge.

It suits people who like silence and space, and who will happily set an alarm for four in exchange for the best light of the trip. We give it two nights.

You arrive by air. On The Skeleton Coast & Garden Route a Citation XLS+ takes you to Windhoek to clear immigration and a Cessna Caravan carries you south-west. On Namibia Complete a Pilatus PC-12 clears in at Walvis Bay and flies on. Either way, your pilot makes a low pass over the NamibRand strip first to move the oryx and springbok off the gravel.

Good to know

• The southern Namib is not a malaria area.
• Desert mornings are cold, especially from May to August. Bring a warm layer for the climb.
• Big Daddy is a long climb in soft sand. Your guide sets an easy pace and you can stop wherever you like.

Country: Namibia