desert Archives - Gerd Hoffmann

02 Nov 2019

Palapye in the middle of bushland

The midsize town Palapye Palapye is a midsize town in Botswana and locates in the Central District. The town surrounds by savanna only. Serowe is the next nearby city located around 30 km west of Palapye. Gaborone the capital in the southeast and Francistown in the north are the next major cities. The distance to both cities is around 250 km. Even in the first view, Palapye looks very young nevertheless the town has a long history. Palapye is a continuously […]

23 Jul 2019

A sundowner in central Botswana

Nothing special for Africa A sundowner in central Botswana is nothing special for Africa. However, The sunset symbolises in many cultures, the end of the day. The work was done and the time to take a break begins. I have seen a lot of beautiful sunsets around the world. Each time I try to compare and remember which is the best one. However, always conclude that it’s an endless story. Finally, I ended up in the same loop. Because all are amazing, […]

2019 / Africa / Botswana

08 Oct 2018

The white sand dunes

The white sand dunes near Oilifantshoek are a place not far from Kathu. In the Africaans language, they are called Witsand Nature Reserve. What stands for the white sand nature reserve. It’s a trip of three hours to the west. First, driving from Kathu and following the national road N14 in the direction of Upington. Then the second part is an unpaved road. Short after the little town of Oilifantshoek, a poster indicates to turn left from the main road […]

2018 / Africa / South Africa

24 Aug 2018

Sishen iron ore mine

Sishen iron ore mine is a mine near the town of Kathu in the Northern Cape province in South Africa. The iron ore mine opened in the 1950s. Kathu the town beside developed in parallel to the mine. In fact, the Sishen iron ore mine is one of the biggest iron ore mines in the world. That’s why Kathu is also called Africa’s iron ore capital. The iron ore mine in Sishen has a unique feature. The mineral is called Magnetite […]

2018 / Africa / South Africa

22 Jul 2018

Augrabies waterfalls

The Northern Cape has a couple of interesting places to visit. One of them is indeed the Augrabies waterfalls. Unfortunately, I haven’t learned so much about the Oranje River in school. However, the most important thing was, that the river is the biggest in South Africa. Also, the river comes from Lesotho’s Drakenbergs and crosses South Africa from east to west. The Augrabies Waterfalls locating in the Augrabies National Park in the northwest of South Africa, close to the Namibian border. […]

2018 / Africa / South Africa

30 Apr 2018

The Northern Cape province

The Northern Cape province is one of the nine provinces of South Africa. The province has a very low population. Hills and bushland dominate the landscape. Additionally, a huge area of the province is part of the Kalahari desert. While in the wintertime temperatures drop below zero, the summertime is hot. In fact, temperatures up to 40 degrees are possible. Major cities are very rare. Small settlements appear from time to time besides the road. The distances between cities are huge. Kimberly […]

2018 / Africa / South Africa

24 Apr 2018

Kathu the town under trees

Kathu is a small town in the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The town locates on the south edge of the Kalahari desert. The nearby towns are Upington and Vryburg. The distances are huge to my surprise. More than 200 km in each direction. Founded in the late 1960s, Kathu is indeed a very young town. With a population of around 15000 inhabitants, the town is a mid-size town. It’s obvious that the city comes straight away from a drawing […]

2018 / Africa / South Africa

12 May 2010

The Nubian Desert in Sudan

The north of Sudan including Sudan’s capital Khartoum is part of the Nubian Desert. The River Nile separates North Sudan into a west and an east part. While west part of North Sudan is called the Libyan Desert. The east part of North Sudan is called the Nubian Desert. However, the north part of Sudan belongs to the Sahara desert. The Nubian Desert has a very arid climate. The average annual rainfall is very low. The fluctuation in temperature is huge. Between day […]

2010 / Africa / Sudan

08 Mar 2010

Sabaloka gorge or the Sixth Nile Cataract

Sabaloka gorge or cataract number six

Al Sabalouga, also called Sabaloka gorge or in English Cataract Number Six of the River Nile. The location is downstream approximately 100 km northwest of Khartoum near Meroe. Meroe was the capital of the Kingdom of Kush for several centuries in ancient. The River Nile has six cataracts. While only one cataract locates in Egypt the other five cataracts locate in Sudan. Today, cataract number five doesn’t exist anymore. It had been flooded by the Meroe dam. Al Sabalouga is […]

2010 / Africa / Sudan

Tag : desert