A panoramic view and a long walk

Graham Williamson called the Richtersveld an enchanted wilderness in the title of his book on this part of the country and the species that inhabit it. The remote and fairly inaccessible territory, a quiet expanse in the far northwest of the country, comprises forbidding mountain slopes, peaks and gorges, as well as quartzitic, sandy desert plains.

The west coast next to the cold Benguela Current and the Gariep River south of the Namib Desert constitute clear borders. Gradual integration with the rest of Namaqualand to the south and with Bushmanland to the east delineate the area. The Cornellsberg is the highest point in the Richtersveld at 1377 m, the low-lying Gariep or Orange River valley and the western Sandveld plain in contrast.

Rare flash floods and recurring fierce winds sculpt the features of topography over the centuries while moving the sands. The west is moistened by coastal fog and there is winter rain... much spoken of in spite of how little it is.

The geology is fascinating and diverse, including old volcanic rock and mountain peaks nearly 2000 million years old. Some display quartzitic sunrise glow. The orange-brown granites are less than half as old, while still younger sedimentary and more volcanic rock of the Gariep Complex, the Stinkfontein Formation are found. This is where an unexpected relic of fynbos vegetation and other rarely seen features abound, stimulating curiosity in the few that have an appetite for the stark and rugged of this land.

Climate and other challenges dictate narrow limits to what can live here. Many resilient species of plants, small animals and some birds are adapted for the life on offer, some especially of interest due to the particular adaptations defining them. Diverse, shy plants, including many endemic succulents, ensure that nobody becomes an expert on anything too quickly here.

Fossils abound among the rocks, telling of early plant, animal and human struggles over ages past. There are those that come here to search for them, some with success, some returning with unexpected insights.

Indigenous people today keep free-roaming goats, often exceeding the carrying capacity of the land, the owners poor. Apart from inhabitants that hail from the Richtersveld, others did arrive, lured by images of glittering minerals; yes, also diamonds. Some are driven by a sense of adventure, or simply like to drive their specially equipped vehicles in remote places where running out of road happens at any moment. Then there are, of course, the plant, animal and nature enthusiasts with curiosity sufficiently stirred to walk across the desolate land with eyes peeled, encumbered by cameras, water bottles, notebooks and new age gizmos.

Sparse shade on a hot day from Aloidendron pillansii (the giant quiver tree), or Pachypodium namaquanum (the halfmens, i.e. half human) may be on offer. But the next one to sit under on most routes may be reached only tomorrow (Grenier, 2019; Williamson, 2010).