Photos and Videos

The land of sand and big game has drawn kudos and controversy with its pursuit of an independent approach to wildlife management that challenges both travelers and the industry to reassess what it means to be a responsible tourist. Shown here, Heidi Huettmann of Stutgart, Germany, and her husband Helmut, climb the Big Mama sand dune in the Sossusvlei section of Namib-Naukluft National Park. Photos by Arnie Weissmann

Photos & Videos

Namibia: Conservation and contention

The land of sand and big game has drawn kudos and controversy with its pursuit of an independent approach to wildlife management that challenges both travelers and the industry to reassess what it means to be a responsible tourist. Shown here, Heidi Huettmann of Stutgart, Germany, and her husband Helmut, climb the Big Mama sand dune in the Sossusvlei section of Namib-Naukluft National Park. Photos by Arnie Weissmann

The land of sand and big game has drawn kudos and controversy with its pursuit of an independent approach to wildlife management that challenges both travelers and the industry to reassess what it means to be a responsible tourist. Shown here, Heidi Huettmann of Stutgart, Germany, and her husband Helmut, climb the Big Mama sand dune in the Sossusvlei section of Namib-Naukluft National Park. Photos by Arnie Weissmann

There are three reasons to climb Namibia's sand dunes in Sossusvlei early in the morning: It's not yet uncomfortably hot, the sand is firmer underfoot and the early morning sun provides deep shadow contours for photographers.

Thousand-year-old dead camel-thorn acacia trees anchored in Deadvlei, a desert salt pan in Namibia's Namib-Naukluft Park, the largest conservation area in Africa.

Deadvlei, a salt pan in the Namib desert, as seen from atop Namibia's highest sand dune, Big Daddy.

Emeka Anyaoku, left, past president of the World Wide Fund for Nature, and Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba.

The Cheetah Conservation Foundation works with farmers to provide strategies to live in peace with the cats.

The farmers previously killed cheetahs to protect cattle.

Cow herdsmen in west-central Namibia.

Hartmann's mountain zebras, found only in Namibia.

A meerkat on the lookout in Brandberg Nature Reserve.

Rock climbing in Sesriem Canyon near the dunes of Sossusvlei.

The tuk-tukie beetle has adapted to desert life. Its dark color promotes water condensation; the water becomes trapped in the dimples on its back. It then lifts its hind legs and tips water down its back and into its mouth.

Tracks in the sand known as a ''Bushman's newspaper.'' Native residents of the dunes could see what insects, lizards, rodents and birds visited a site the night before.

Tourists lounge on the lawn of the Sossusvlei Lodge, just outside entrance of Namib-Naukluft National Park.

Huts silhouetted at sunset in Namib-Naukluft National Park.

Tractor pull: Visitors without four-wheel vehicles are brought into the dunes of Sossusvlei on tractor-pulled trailers.

Big Daddy sand dune.

The well-trod ''trail'' up the spine of Big Daddy dune.

Running down the face of Big Daddy dune.

The dry, cracked earth of the Deadvlei salt pan.

How they roll: A German tour operator provides a ''rolling hotel'' in Namib-Naukluft National Park.

A one-horned gemsbok (known outside southern Africa as oryx) would be at a significant disadvantage in a fight.

A local child plays among abandoned cars collected by a former Solitaire, Namibia, businessman.

Baker Moose MacGregor with his signature apple crumble.

What would you call a Mexican restaurant in Swapokomund, Namibia? ''N'amigos'' of course.

The 233-foot-tall Leshan Giant Buddha is a major tourist attraction in the Sichuan province. The Buddha was unharmed by the 2008 earthquake.

Reflections from China