Fish River Canyon

Africa’s Grand Canyon

In the far south, at the opposite end of Namibia from Etosha National Park, is Fish River Canyon. This gargantuan landform is about 100 miles long by 20 miles wide.

Through it flows the Fish River, which meets the Orange River about 45 miles south of the canyon.

The erosive action of this river is part of the reason for this giant canyon. It has been wearing its rocky base away for thousands of years and the impressive gorge is now over 1,500 feet deep.

Amazingly, the Fish River only flows between March and April. For two months after that, it is a mere trickle and for the rest of the year it is simply a series of small pools lying along the floor of the canyon.

If the canyon itself is the main attraction of this area, then the fantastic hiking has to be a close second. It is very exciting to explore the canyon on foot with a guide and to marvel at this fascinating formation that is a true testimony to the extraordinary forces of nature.

So if you have the time and inclination to make the long journey south, it really is well worth a visit.

The geology

Fish River Canyon is actually made up of two canyons, both of which were formed by completely different processes.

Geologists believe that around two billion years ago, this area started out as sedimentary (layers of shale and sandstone) before heat and pressure caused it to metamorphose into dense, solid rock.

Fissures in the ground allowed igneous material to penetrate the harder surroundings. These igneous intrusions formed ‘dolerite dykes’, which you can see today in the inner canyon.

The rock formation was slowly eroded to form a depression, which filled up with water and became a huge, shallow lagoon. This then began to fill with sediment washed down from the catchment area.

A subsequent period of tectonic activity along faults in the earth’s crust caused the layers to buckle and warp. The rock ended up at 45% to its original orientation and the stresses of this activity caused a huge gap in the crust, the result of which was an enormous canyon, today’s outer canyon.

This then became a natural route for the Fish River, which has since formed the chasm that is now the deep inner canyon.