METASTONES.COM
CRYSTALS TUMBLED AND ROUGH STONES AND OTHER TREASURES
| Many of the crystals and stones Penny found in Namibia will be appearing on this page as well as on site. Over the coming weeks. |
People speak of how vast Namibia is but it is almost impossible
to conceive the sheer scope and majesty of this country in Southern Africa until
you have been there. Namibia is a dream destination for those who have a
fascination for crystals, aquamarine
and mineral specimens.
Crossing the border from South Africa with minimal formalities, we headed towards Brukkaros Mountain. At a little over 1500 meters this mass of lava, with a crater almost 2000 meters in diameter dominates the dry plains. We camped on the side of Brukkaros, enjoying breathtaking views and a memorable sunset.
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Approach to Brukkaros |
View from Brukkaros |
Camping for the night |
Next day found us in Windhoek by lunchtime. A visit to the House of Gems was first on the agenda. Once owned by the renowned gemologist Sid Pieters who discovered Pietersite the shop now belongs to Herbert Naegele a well known collector who is happy to share his knowledge and enthusiasm with customers. We admired a wide variety of specimens and bought a few pieces of Jeremejevite. Then onwards to the Erongo Mountains and Spitkoppe, home of some of the finest quartz, prehnite, tourmaline and aquamarine in the world.
Basing ourselves at a delightful campsite in the foothills of the Erongo mountains we settled down that night to cook on an open fire whilst watching breathtaking sunset. Our only company in the camp that night were gemsbok, giraffe and some curious Warthogs. We also saw the cheeky little Ground Squirrel, a troop of Baboons and the majestic Eland amongst other antelope.
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Near the campsite |
In the Campsite |
Breath taking sunsets |
The following morning we set of to visit Spitzkoppe. Know as the Matterhorn of Namibia because of the similarity in shapes, it dominates the flat Kaokoveld landscape. On the way we stopped at "The Tables". Here gather the stones sellers. Many are the wives and family members of miners who have claims in the area. There is an exciting choice of crystals, in particular the stunning Erongo and Spitzkoppe smoky and window quartz. Large quartz, colorful prehnite and outstanding aquamarines were soon the subject of some tough bargaining, followed by beautifully terminated schorl and interesting specimens.
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| Approaching Spitzkoppe | A cornucopia of stones to choose from | |
Next it was off to Brandberg, Namibia's highest mountain, which from my perspective still has some of the most beautiful quartz crystals I have ever seen. Again we made some good buys and enjoyed stunning scenery. The Brandberg "Fire Mountain" is colored by the pink feldspar that is found in this granite. When the sun catches this it does indeed look as if the mountain is on fire. We spent a night near the Brandberg and another at the nearby town of Uis.
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Brandberg from where truly exquisite crystals emerge |
Full moon at Uis |
We spent a few more days in the area visiting Bushmen Rock Paintings, walking in the Erongo, seeing interesting rock formations such as the "Bulls Party" and "Elephant Rock"
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Bushman Rock Art |
Bulls Party |
Elephant Rock |
Crossing back into South Africa we headed to the Kalahari Manganese Fields in search mineral specimens and Sugilite. Kuruman was the first place of call and here we bought some Sugilite. We also came across some extremely unusual mineral specimens.
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Buying Sugilite in Kuruman |
From there it was off searching for red phantom crystals. We did obtain a few and also some great quartz crystal and fluorite clusters. Stopping off at Riemvasmaak to enjoy the tranquility of the mountains and natural hot springs before heading back to Cape Town.
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Road to Riemvasmaak |
Summer Storm Brewing |
Klipspringer |
Should you want to find out more about our trip or need help planning your own please email me penny@metastones.com
