Marienfluss Conservancy to Palmwag Concession
You will rise early this morning for another memorable guided activity. Afterward, you will be transferred to the local airstrip for your light aircraft flight to the Palmwag Concession. On arrival at the airstrip you will be met by your local lodge guide and transferred by vehicle to Desert Rhino Camp, arriving in time for lunch. The transfer from the airstrip to the camp will also act as a nature drive to give you a taste of this exceptional area and the many different (and some endemic) species of flora and fauna that can be found here. After lunch you will have time to freshen up and relax before heading out on an exciting scenic nature drive later in the afternoon.
The Palmwag Concession spans 4,500 square kilometers of arid wilderness transected by Ephemeral River courses which, along with the occasional natural spring, provide an oasis to the wildlife that have adapted to this harsh environment. The rugged mountains and river courses provide a refuge for some of the continent’s most unique wildlife such as the legendary desert elephant, lion and the last free-roaming black rhino population on earth. In fact seventy-five per cent of Namibia’s endemic species inhabit this last bastion of the wilderness. Experience the wilder side of Africa where only the sporadic roar of lion or cackle of hyena punctuates the silence of the night.
Desert Rhino Camp is a comfortable and charming tented camp located on the unique Palmwag concession in rugged northern Damaraland. This camp offers a fascinating insight into the ecology and conservation of the area as well the incredible desert adapted black rhino. Desert Rhino Camp lies amongst rolling, rocky hills with scattered euphorbia, ancient Welwitschia plants, scrubby vegetation and isolated clumps of trees of the Palmwag Concession. This region is marked for its tranquil, minimalist beauty, surprising wealth of arid-adapted wildlife and the largest free roaming black rhino population in Africa. Set in a wide valley sometimes flush with grass, accommodations at Desert Rhino Camp are in Meru-style canvas tents raised from the ground on a wooden deck. An extension of the deck functions as a front veranda where guests can relax in director’s chairs to take in the magnificent vistas of the surrounding desert and Etendeka Mountains. Activities during your stay here include guided 4×4 scenic drives, rhino tracking, nature walks, birding and nature drives. Desert Rhino Camp functions as a collaborative effort between Wilderness Safaris and the Save the Rhino Trust (SRT) – an NGO that has been has been instrumental in the preservation of these rare, desert adapted black rhino. Having barely survived the slaughter of ’80s and ’90s throughout other parts of Africa, the black rhino population has doubled since the formation of the SRT.
Desert Rhino Camp Meals: Breakfast / Lunch / Dinner