The Forbidden Land Shipwreck Route

New routes, giant dunes and new wrecks are all in a special Desert Magic coastline tour that covers areas not seen by the public in more than 107 years

- Bernie Williams

The Namib Desert has always held a certain mystique, its siren call luring many people − from yesterday’s diamond miners, to today’s adventurous 4x4 owner. It’s a must-do destination on any seasoned traveller’s list, if huge dunes, desolate spaces and the wrecked evidence of centuries of sea trade get you ready to pack bags.

But I am one who has travelled the Namib Desert extensively, and have gone from Luderitz all the way to the Kunene River mouth numerous times; so I had to wonder, after a phone call from legendary Namib Desert guide Volker Janhke, what could possibly be different about his latest shipwreck tour.

However, as there are more than 486 known shipwrecks along the treacherous Skeleton Coast, from Oranjemund in the south to the Kunene River mouth in the north, a trip to explore some of the better known wrecks did hold some allure.

“The route starts out in Luderitz and finishes in Walvis Bay,” explained Volker, “but, unlike the route others have followed, we enter directly opposite Kolmanskop (the ghost town) and go to an area into which nobody has been allowed for 107 years: one which forms part of Diamond Area 1.”

My interest was certainly piqued, and then came the clincher: “And, Bernie, you can drive the backup Land Cruiser.” Having had two of my own 4.5-litre EFI Cruisers in the past, I was now as bok as the first guy ever to pick up a diamond in the Namib Desert!

This new six-day route between Luderitz and Walvis Bay was finally approved by the Namibian government in 2015, along with Namdeb, thus clearing the way for Desert Magic Tours to pass through their diamond concession area between Luderitz and Hottentots Bay/Gibraltar area for the first time since 1909.