Barchans are mobile crescentic dunes that form transverse to the wind. Barchans have a range of forms from slim to pudgy and are found in areas with limited sand supply and narrowly bimodal winds. Near Walvis Bay there are particularly good examples, formed by winds coming from the south west. Long term studies, using air photographs, show that these dunes can move at rates of some metres per year. Large sand ripples are also found on some of the coastal dunes between Walvis Bay and Swakopmund. Keywords: Coastal dune, south westerly wind, dune ridge, barchan dune, linear ridge.