A Treasured Desert (in color)
The Forbidden Land of the Namib Desert, that over 100 years ago was a hive of diamond mining for hopeful prospectors, and today all signs of the life that was once there are being reshaped by wind and sand erosion. Makes for challenging photography - armed with a wide-angle lens on my Canon, and the harsh light in the middle of the day, I discovered what treasures had been left behind.
Weathered wooden planks contrasting with the red garnets in the sand.
Corrugated iron roofing, blown off housing structures, now making laced patterns and shadows after attacks from the never-ending winds and sand particles.
Wooden panels lifted up by sand.
Soft wood disappearing around strong nails
Sand eroded wood and rusted strapping around water drums
Fragments of sieves used for separating the rocks from the finer sand containing the diamonds.
Hi-Key image of sleeping quarters of the workers. Efforts are being made to restore some buildings into small "museums" to display what artifacts are still intact, by the Windhoek Underwater Club.
Filling up like a sinking ship...structures are continually being covered up with sand only to be exposed again years later.
Ox-wagons carried hundreds of meters of water pipes to supply the settlements with fresh water from the springs at Conception Water and Fischer's Brün.
A lot of drinking was done when not working... and empty bottles used for decor in the buildings.
Even though closed up in glass cabinets, sand still filters in to cover old books left behind by the miners.
Wooden boxes used to hold petrol.
Condensation lines of water on a window pane run down into the sand that has built up on the window-sill.
Broken bottle that is beautifully sand blasted.
Glass décor blasted open by the sand.
A claim marker
The reception area near Conception Bay for delivery of supplies by boat.