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Giants Playground Namibia - a geological phenomena

Massive Boulders doing a precarious balancing act near Keetmanshoop Namibia

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The Giants Playground, so called because of the way in which the massive dolerite boulders have apparently been placed one on top of another by some gigantic force, creating strange rock formations and a series of mazes. You'll have to keep your bearings when exploring this maze site. You can easily find yourself a few hundred meters from where you thought you should be. The rock formations make for a couple of hours of interesting hiking, plus you'll get some good photographs. Take some water and wear sensible clothing.

 

Giants Playground - The Formation:

About 180 million years ago during the Early Jurassic Epoch the tectonic plate movements

General Location Of Giants Playground

within the great single land mass known a Pangaea were beginning to cause the super continent to separate and divide into the continents of Laurasia to the North and Gondwana to the South. The earth's surface, in many places, was subjected to enormous upheavals. In the area around Keetmanshoop molten magma pushed its way through long cracks in the overlaying rock. Over tens of millions of years, the deep layers of sedimentary rocks through

Karas Region
26º28'S - 18º14'E
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which the dolerite had intruded were eroded away exposing the harder rock that can, in many places, be seen as the dark backbone like formation running along the top of a row of hills.  These are called dolerite dykes and are usually between 3 - 10 meters in width and can run from a few hundred metres to more than 20 km in length.

 

Aloes at the Playground

Aloes

Giants Playground Namibia Entering the Maze

into the maze

Giants Playground namibia Acres of Rocks, on top of rocks, on top of rocks etc.

Giants Maze

 

The dolerite dykes and surrounding area while at sub surface levels were subjected to 'spheroidal weathering', caused by water flowing through the cracks and fissures in the dykes. In later times when the rocks had been exposed they further experienced millions of years of ongoing temperature weathering that also caused the rocks to crack. Wind blown sand erosion also helped to polish the surface of the rocks.

 

Giants Playground Namibia Rock assembly Giants Playground Namibia Rock Assembly look at the crack formation Giants Playground namibia Mortals enjoying the playground Giants Playground Namibia Precarious Rock Wall Assembly

   

There are so many different strange rock formations you won't be able to decide which ones to photograph and which not to. It's all a bit weird. The above right assembly is about three stories high. Whilst on your tour you'll see plenty of Rock Hyrax (Dassies) scuttling around.

 

Acknowledgements and further reading:  G1, G2, P1 

Local Area Attractions & Articles of Associated Interest:

Ai-Ais Hot Springs

Giants Playground Mesosaurus Fossils

Brukkaros

 

Fish River Canyon

Quiver Tree Forest Naute Dam  

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