Overlanding · Namibia · recorded with NomadTracks

Overlanding Namibia: 4,250 km from the Kalahari to the Kunene

Twenty legs, three weeks, about 4,250 kilometers — this is the GPS diary of a full Namibia overlanding loop, recorded entirely with NomadTracks running on an iPhone mounted in a 4x4. From the red dunes of Sossusvlei over the granite domes of Spitzkoppe, along the Skeleton Coast to Kaokoland and the Epupa Falls, through Etosha and into the deep sand of Khaudum National Park.

Every leg is its own track with full elevation data; together they draw the whole expedition. The paper park maps for Etosha and Khaudum rode along as georeferenced overlays, so even where the road net thins to two sand ruts there was always a live position on the right map.

Distance4,260 km
Elevation gain15,596 m
ActivityOverlanding
Recorded legs20

About this data: this track and its photos were personally shared with us as samples by a NomadTracks user. NomadTracks never uploads, collects or shares your tracks or photos — your recordings stay on your devices and in your own cloud.

Route map of Overlanding Namibia: 4,250 km from the Kalahari to the Kunene drawn from the recorded GPS points on an OpenStreetMap basemap
The actual recorded GPS tracks — start marked green, finish orange. Numbered pins mark where the photos below were taken.

Download GPX Coordinates, elevation and relative times — recording dates are normalized out, photos not included.

Elevation profile of the track
Elevation profile over the full distance. Switch the map above to interactive mode, then slide across the chart — a marker follows the route.

Why a GPS diary matters out here

Namibia's magic is its emptiness — and that emptiness eats road signs. Out of mobile coverage for days, the recorded track becomes your breadcrumb trail: you always know which fork you actually took, how far the last waterhole is behind you, and how the day's 400 km actually unfolded. The live Lock-Screen stats made fuel planning trivial: distance done, distance left, moving average.

Custom maps over empty basemaps

Standard map apps show Khaudum as a green void. The trick: photograph the park's paper map at the gate, set four control points in NomadTracks, and from then on your blue dot moves across the ranger map — campsites, waterholes and all. That single feature is why this app rode shotgun for three weeks.

The numbers

About 4,250 km of driving across 20 recorded legs, from sea level on the Skeleton Coast to 1,900 m on the Khorixas passes. Longest single leg: 557 km to Tsumkwe. Each leg keeps its own elevation, speed and time profile in the library — and exports as GPX for the next traveler.

About the place: Namibia

Namibia is overlanding country like almost nowhere else: a sparse network of well-graded gravel C- and D-roads connects Sossusvlei's red dunes, the Skeleton Coast, the granite of Spitzkoppe, Etosha's salt pan and the deep-sand tracks of Khaudum National Park. The dry winter months from May to September offer mild days, cold clear nights and the best wildlife viewing at waterholes; a 4x4 with long-range fuel and two spare tires is the standard setup, and distances between fuel stops routinely exceed 300 km.

Ancient dead camelthorn trees on the white clay pan of Deadvlei, Namibia
1 · Ancient dead camelthorn trees on the white clay pan of Deadvlei, Namibia
Footprints along the knife-edge ridge of a red dune near Sossusvlei
2 · Footprints along the knife-edge ridge of a red dune near Sossusvlei
Red desert dunes and grass plains along the D707 in southern Namibia
3 · Red desert dunes and grass plains along the D707 in southern Namibia
A herd of zebras crossing the road in Etosha National Park
4 · A herd of zebras crossing the road in Etosha National Park
The rusting Zeila shipwreck in the surf of the Skeleton Coast
5 · The rusting Zeila shipwreck in the surf of the Skeleton Coast
A 4x4 track winding between the granite boulders of Spitzkoppe
6 · A 4x4 track winding between the granite boulders of Spitzkoppe
Expedition 4x4 parked beneath a giant baobab in the Kalahari
7 · Expedition 4x4 parked beneath a giant baobab in the Kalahari
Wild animals on an endless gravel road at dawn
8 · Wild animals on an endless gravel road at dawn
Record yours: every chart and map on this page came straight out of the app — no desktop tools involved. Get NomadTracks free on the App Store and bring your own adventure home as data.

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