Brukkaros Into The Caldera
Following the final stages of the break up of Gondwana there were many places in Southern Africa where molten rock continued forcing its way up through the
BRUKKAROS NAMIBIA. Following the final stages of the break up of Gondwana there were many places in Southern Africa where molten rock continued forcing its way up through the earth's…
The route is remote and somewhat dangerous. Not for the uninsured or frail.
The caldera floor is about 2 km in diameter. It is strewn with rock debris. It is a remote and quiet world that not many people have trodden. It is possibly the nearest opportunity that you will ever have to stand on the floor of a volcano like crater. There was a time, following the initial formation, that rain-water formed a lake in the caldera. The ground water seeped into the rock fissures and when deep enough in the earth came into contact with the magma heated rock and thus caused hot spring waters to bubble to the surface. These waters carried with them silica solutions that solidified into hard rock known as Breccia that eventually formed a thick coating on part of the floor of the crater. The overrun through the lowest point of the South Wall Gap over time formed what could be referred to as a '"Rock Waterfall " .
If your visit is within a few days of summer shower you'll find hardy desert plants in bloom, and you'll wonder as to how these can survive dormant for most of the year and then suddenly and briefly come into full flower..
Flowering plants developed during the Cretaceous Period and the Brukkaros Crater has provided us with the oldest angiospermous flower fossil ever found in Namibia, having 5 petals and a diameter of 12mm.
Acknowledgements and further reading: G1, G2, P1
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