101 Reasons to visit Namibia: A Story of Brukkaros

As the sun disappears behind the jagged rim of the crater the fire is cracking, and nature starts to quiet down. It is almost time for bed. First, there is a soft stirring of the grass and without a warning, the wind howls down the crater slopes.

The gusts are sudden and forceful. What seemed like a peaceful night became a night of little rest! As we travel south to Brukkaros Mountain, I am amazed at how quickly the landscape changes. Every few kilometres it is like a new curtain of scenery is pulled open. The mountains and bushes of central Namibia are left behind as we approach Mariental. The straight road doesn’t feel much different from Highway 10 in Saudi Arabia. But then suddenly the monotony of the flat country is broken by an impressive inselberg. Rising some 600 m, the Brukkaros Mountain is a beacon.

Photo credits: Janke Murray

The Namibian landscape is characterized by mountains, bushes and tropical forests, but in the south, flat grasslands stretch for miles. Between Mariental and Keetmanshoop, many travellers might have noticed the towering mounting rising with significance over the flat country. The shape of the mountain is characteristic of a volcano. The mountain is in the form of a ring mountain with a basal diameter of 7 km. The shape is typical of an extinct volcano, but Brukkaros was the result of phreatomagmatism, meaning that hot magma came into contact with groundwater resulting in steam.

Photo credits: Janke Murray

The pressure caused the overlying rocks to bulge upwards and form a 400 m high and 10 km wide dome. As the magma intruded more and more, additional steam was created until it exploded. Furthermore, in 1926 the National Geographic Society with the Smithsonian Institution financed an expedition to Namibia to measure the intensity of solar radiation. Places like Aus and the Spitzkoppe were considered but ultimately decided to build the observatory at Brukkaros. This was only the third observatory next to Chile and Arizona.

The observatory was built on the southwestern side, just below the rim of the mountain. Visitors today can hike up the mountain and will find ruins and a shallow tunnel, approximately 3 m wide and 2.2 m high. The observatory however was not very successful due the mountain making the compensation for atmospheric absorption inaccurate and the site proved to be windier than anticipated. For those travellers who like to take the road less travelled, Brukkaros is an interesting site to visit. This abandoned mountain holds many secrets of the past. The view from the camping spot is breathtaking. For those who like to hike and explore, you definitely do not want to miss out on the adventures of Brukkaros. But don’t let the quietness of the day fool you; the wind gusts might just haunt you during the night!