Camel thorn trees, Deadvlei, Namib-Naukluft Park, Namibia (© Inge Johnsson/Alamy)

At first glance, it looks like a surreal art installation: dark trees frozen on a clay pan, backed by sand dunes and a glowing sky. But this scene from Deadvlei, in Namibia's Namib-Naukluft Park, is entirely natural. The name 'Deadvlei' means 'dead marsh'—a remnant of the wetland that once filled this basin.