Trekking in Ethiopia

The highlight of my trip was walking in Ethiopia’s nature. I think that these treks are always the highlights of my trips. It’s always fun walking for a few days, discovering new land by foot, and experiencing the journey with fellow travelers.

The first and major trek was in the Simien mountains, northeast of Gonder, in the Ethiopian highlands. I traveled with 5 of my countrymen to the dramatic mountains, with strange rock formations. I haven’t seen anything similar anywhere else.

We stocked up in the city and also in the village of Debark. We also got a “scout” (guard), a guide, mules and mule hearders to carry our belongings, and especially our food.

The car dropped us off at Buyit Ras, where we started walking from Buyit Ras to Sankaber. It was an easy and beautiful start to the trek, until the rain also accompanied us. We got to see a bunch of Gelada baboons, and even got close to them. They aren’t afraid of foreigners’ cameras, but they fear the local farmers.

Sankaber camp (3200 meters) wasn’t too cold, but getting water was a serious task. Cooking in the common (and open) hut was fun. You get to know fellow travelers from various places on the globe. The scout was very helpful in starting the fire, carrying water and apparently he would do anything that just crossed our minds.

The next day featured a high waterfall, walking along a river and also a coffee ceremony at Geech village (Muslim) before reaching Geech camp.

Sankaber to Geech, river

Geech camp is situated on an open plateau, exposed to cold winds, at 3600 meters above sea level. I kept moving constantly to keep myself warm, despite this sunset:

The next day (third) was easy: it included a side trip to the wonderful cliff of Imet Gogo, lunch at another viewpoint named Kadavit, and a short downhill stride back to the camp, in the early hours of the afternoon. I was happy to find that some locals were selling me some beer.

The second night at Geech was harder: the cold winds and something I ate made it hard for me to sleep. The next day, going to Chenek, was quite hard for me, but sure was rewarding.

The magnificent viewpoint along the way, lunch at Natiye (translates roughly to OMG) at 4070 meters and walking along the cliffs to Chenek was wonderful. The baboons were also there, in large groups, especially near Chenek.

Chenek camp is a much more convenient spot, with a well (yes, a well for water) adjacent to the camp, and hidden from the winds, staying again at in a tent at 3600 meters seemed easier this time.

The next day featured a climb to Mt. Bwahit, at about 4400 meters. Unfortunately, a major part of the climb was through the clouds. Looking through the mist, we were lucky enough to spot the endangered Walia ibex.

As a compensation for our uphill struggle through the clouds, they took a break when we were on the barren summit. Descending back to Chenek through the green fields of Lobelias was gorgeous. The sharp rock formations that are typical to the Simein mountains were at their best there.

The sixth and last day included packing our gear, getting back, by car back to Debark, saying goodbye to our local staff, and getting back to Gonder, for a shower.

To conclude, the trek was wonderful:beautiful landscapes, dramatic cliffs, wild flowers, and animals in the wild. But, the physical conditions, especially being exposed to the cold, wasn’t easy. Maybe I’m becoming old…

Oh, and here’s a flower (and look at the background as well)

Here are more pictures from the Simien mountains

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