Cattle paths preserved in hardened lagoon sediment at Walvis Bay provide important new evidence of late pre-colonial trade practices on the Namib Desert coast. The paths show that cattle were assembled some distance from the pastoral villages where trade negotiations took place. Cattle were brought to such assembly points from grazing camps one or two day's journey inland, and then herded to a landing place favoured by visiting ships during the 18th and 19th centuries. This interpretation agrees with an array of both archaeological and contemporary documentary evidence that – initially – Namib Desert pastoralists were cautious traders, and sought to minimise direct contact with merchant seamen.