Namibia – Desert Adapted Lions & Other Wildlife with ORYX Guest Shravan Rao
My desire to see desert-adapted lions originated from the “Vanishing kings: desert lions of Namib” videos from National Geographic. It was easy to dismiss the idea as far-fetched because they are known to be incredibly difficult to find. Hope got rekindled from Marius Coetzee’s reel of a desert-adapted lion in July 2024.
From the moment they received my request for the potential of seeing a desert-adapted lion, Marius and Estel were generous with their input. They cautioned that the chance of seeing one was not high, but suggested ways to maximize the chances including when to go, for how long and where. I left it in their capable hands, to figure out how to get me there and back, hopefully with images of a desert-adapted lion.
Since this was my first time to Namibia, we added three nights at Ongava Lodge before going to Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp for 5 nights. The ground logistics were superb, flawless despite the inevitable challenges due to weather.
The representative met me at the Hosea Kutako airport, and transferred me to the River Crossing Lodge in Windhoek. The transfer should have been a challenge since torrential rains after a decade of severe drought had flooded the river. The transfer took a lot of thinking on the driver’s part, but he did exceedingly well. The overnight stay at the lodge was comfortable though there was no time to explore. The transfer from the lodge to the airstrip was smooth.
The welcome in Ongava Lodge later in the day was very friendly, food was excellent and they were flexible to accommodate my photographic interests (rhinos and lions only, please). We went for a long drive to Etosha one morning, but with all the rain earlier this year, Etosha was water-clogged to the point of being avoidable. The famous Etosha pan itself was under water, a sight that Isaiah Kapona, my guide, had never seen in his 20+ years in Etosha and Ongava. Kapona and I decided that it was best to concentrate on the rhinos in Ongava instead for the subsequent drives. That turned out to be a great call as the following morning we saw white rhinos amid thousands of insects amongst the trees, as if it were a scene from the movie “Avatar”. The insects disappeared as soon as the warmth of the sun hit the area later in the morning. It was magical. We saw lions, of course, including two males right next to the road, then a few more males including a mating pair, two lions fighting over a lioness, as well as a lioness that decided to climb a tree. Those three days ranked right up there with the magical moments from previous trips to Mara North, Mashatu and Laikipia. There was one night that will forever be etched in my human and laptop hard drive: we saw and photographed white rhinos shortly after sunset, in the dark, with only lightning in the background lighting the rhinos. Talk of photographic challenges with rare sightings!
Hoanib is remote, more so than the word ‘remote’ suggests. It takes a few very small Cessnas to get there. It is well worth it. The people who manage the Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp are fantastic. Bradwin and Jonathan with the staff are extremely kind and helpful. Crazy requests for specific vegetarian meals were no big deal. Ben, the guide, is easily one of the best I have been with. On our first drive he found desert-adapted elephants, Sophie and her calves. It got better as we saw them in the backdrop of rising sand at sunset. The next morning was luckier still. He found Charlie (female) and OPL-24 (male), two desert-adapted lions. I was stunned, to say the least. Within minutes of seeing them, Alpha (female) came over to greet OPL-24 to get him to mate. Charlie, unfortunately, is no more, but it was evident that Alpha wanted to keep her distance from Charlie. Alpha and OPL-24 mated for 3 days, making it much easier to find them on every drive and to position for sunset, for all kinds of lighting scenarios, for them walking up a sand dune, running across the sand. The list is endless. Even though it was easier, it was not easy to find the lions in that environment, since the blowing sand covered the tracks making it hard to know when the tracks were made. At times, it took us an eternity to find the lions even though they had walked right over our own vehicle tracks, not to mention were within a hundred metres from our vehicle. They blend in so well with the yellow of the sand and fallen tree branches. Yes, we also saw herds of desert-adapted elephants, mostly with the blowing sand, or when they took sand baths regularly, or in the backdrop of sunsets (or at sunset in blowing sand while they sand-bathed), or sometimes with the yellow flowers of the Devil’s Thorn. We got a bit more ambitious, trying to find desert-adapted lion cubs, a desert-adapted cheetah and her cub, caracals and brown hyenas, but we were not that lucky on this, my first trip to Hoanib.
Northern Namibia must be on any avid wildlife photographer or wildlife enthusiast’s list; there are few places that are as remote and as rewarding for the unique wildlife that inhabits that part of our planet.
Hoanib and Ongava are on the top of my list for the next photo trip to try and find the elusive brown hyenas, caracals and cheetahs, and of course the rhinos, elephants and lions. There are thousands of images from this trip, many keepers. Some images might win competitions even (or so I tell myself), but the memories of seeing a mating pair of desert-adapted lions in the sunset and the white rhinos at night in lightning will remain. To that and for this perfect trip, I owe my thanks to Marius, Estel, Kapona, Ben and the staff at Ongava Lodge and Hoanib Skeleton Coast Camp.
From all of us at ORYX Photo Tours, thank you, Shravan Rao, for sharing your journey and breathtaking portfolio from Namibia. It’s always an honor to witness the magic that unfolds when passion meets place, and your images are a stunning testament to that. We’re grateful to have been part of your adventure and proud to help bring your dream shots to life. Here’s to many more moments captured in wild, untamed beauty—until the next journey!
