Granite Giants - Brandberg + Spitzkoppe

@saddleframes Spitzkoppe

A delightful area Andrew has discovered for exploring on horseback is the two mountains route - taking in both the Brandberg and Spitzkoppe - a wealth of remarkable landscapes, good-going for the horses and extraordinary examples of rock art.

Image right: @saddleframes image of one of many rock art panels at Spitzkoppe

Seemingly impenetrable, the sheer immensity of Brandberg has attracted the curious for centuries evidenced by more than 1 000 cave paintings found on ‘the burning mountain’, called Dâures in local lingo. 

So named for the luminous pink and amber glow it’s potassium feltspar-rich granite gives off as the setting sun sinks into the western Atlantic.

Image below: @saddleframes image of the picket line with the glowing 'burning mountain' in the background

Rising 1 800 metres from the surrounding plains and roughly oval in shape - 21 x 26 km’s in girth,  the sheer bulk of this massif would require two days of pretty hard riding to circumnavigate.  Characteristic of such bulk on an otherwise flat surrounding plain, is that a unique microclimate has developed on and around the mountain.  Often clouds can be seen flying like pennants from the top of Königstein, it’s highest peak.

Image below: @saddleframes. Riding west from Brandberg - this image gives a good idea of the sheer bulk of the mountain

The mountain is composed of magma (molten rock) intruded (injected) at a considerable depth and slowly cooled over time, allowing for large crystals to form.  Millenia of erosion has exposed the granite to the elements giving rise to some hot scientific debates as to the original vertical height of the mountain - some suggesting that as much as 5 km of rock has been eroded.

@saddleframes image of an evening camp

Nearby Spitzkoppe (see first image) - known locally as Namibia’s Matterhorn due to its shape, stands some 600 metres above the plains.  Somewhat smaller in bulk, composed of the same granite but more dome shaped and less jointed than Brandberg resulting in smooth slopes much loved by rock-climbers.  While it is not large enough to produce its own microclimate, hidden springs did attract early people who left a legacy of rock engravings and paintings.

This is definitely a part of the desert worth seeing.