Sesriem is a small settlement in the
Namib Desert, in the
Hardap Region of
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...
, close to the southern end of the
Naukluft Mountains. It is especially known because the "Sesriem gate" is the main access point to the
Namib-Naukluft National Park for visitors entering the park to visit the nearby tourist attraction of
Sossusvlei.
Sesriem Canyon, Namibia
/ref> As many "settlements" in the Namib, Sesriem is essentially a filling station
A filling station (also known as a gas station [] or petrol station []) is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold are gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel.
Fuel dispensers are used to ...
with basic services such as public telephones and a couple of small kiosk
Historically, a kiosk () was a small garden pavilion open on some or all sides common in Iran, Persia, the Indian subcontinent, and in the Ottoman Empire from the 13th century onward. Today, several examples of this type of kiosk still exist ...
s where travellers can get general supplies such as food and water.[Sesriem](_blank)
/ref>
At the Sesriem gate, hot air balloon
A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carri ...
s depart in the early morning, providing scenic flights over the Sossusvlei dunes.
Sesriem Canyon
Sesriem is also known for the Sesriem Canyon, about 4 km from Sesriem itself, which is the second most important tourist attraction in the area after Sossusvlei. It is a natural canyon carved by the Tsauchab river
A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
in the local sedimentary rock
Sedimentary rocks are types of rock (geology), rock formed by the cementation (geology), cementation of sediments—i.e. particles made of minerals (geological detritus) or organic matter (biological detritus)—that have been accumulated or de ...
, about long and up to deep. The name ''Sesriem'' is Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...
and means "six rawhide thongs",
References
{{Reflist
Resources
More information and photos of Sesriem Canyon
Populated places in the Hardap Region
Namib-Naukluft National Park