Danakil Depression
Sun-cracked salt-flats stretch like blinding-white crazy paving towards a shimmering flat horizon. Salt-bearing camel caravans traipse mirage-like across grassless plains of rock and sand swept by a merciless gale known as the Gara, or Fire Wind. Volatile volcanoes rise into the cloudless desert sky, their calderas cradling bubbling cauldrons of molten lava, or brooding hyper-saline crater lakes. Explosive geysers feed sulphurous pools enclosed by strange pastel-hued crystalline formations. These are sights typical of the Danakil: one of the most harsh and brutal landscapes anywhere on earth, but also a place of rare geological fascination and immeasurable beauty to those few adventurous souls fortunate enough to spend time there.
A true desert that stretches across northeast Ethiopia for tens of thousands of square kilometres, the Danakil is also one of the lowest-lying and hottest places anywhere in the planet, dropping to 116m below sea level, while temperatures frequently soar above 50?C. It lies in the northern part of Afar, a region named after its pastoralist inhabitants, who traditionally eked out an income as herders and seasonal salt miners. Their salt was transported by camel to the highlands by Tigrean caravaneers. Camel caravans still operate in the region, as they have for millennia, but for most visitors the biggest highlight of the Danakil is Erta Ale, a climbable volcano that encloses the world’s oldest permanent lava lake.
Geology
The Danakil Desert forms part of the Afar Triangle, a vast depression that lies at the juncture of the African, Arabian and Somali tectonic plates, meaning that it is both a terrestrial southern extension of the Red Sea, and the northernmost component of Africa’s Great Rift Valley. Danakil is also one of the world’s lowest-lying places, set mostly below sea level, with the potash mine at Dallol being listed as the hottest inhabited place on earth, thanks to its average daily maximum of 41°C. The Danakil is among the most tectonically active regions on the planet, with more than 30 active volcanoes protruding from its fault lines. Every one of these volcanoes formed within the last million years, and many are less than 10,000 years old. These include the iconic Erta Ale, which has hosted a permanent lava flow since the late 19th century, and the more southerly Alayita, which rises to 1,500m and last erupted in 1901 and 1915. Large tracts of the Danakil were flooded by the Red Sea in the past, and one day, million of years from now, the continuing drift of its constituent plates will precipitate the submersion of the entire region.
Dallol
This flat-sided volcano formed in 1926 when an area of standing water was infused with emergent magma to evaporate instantaneously in an explosive plume of steam and rock. The resultant explosion crater contains one of the strangest and most wonderful sights in Ethiopia: a field of multicoloured geysers that bubble over into a series of steaming sulphurous pools dotted with conical yellow-green vents and crystalline formations of red, orange and white. Dallol is especially beautiful in the early morning and late afternoon, which is also when the temperature is most bearable.
Lake Afdera
This lovely emerald-hued lake, set at the base of the volcanic Mount Afdera (also known as Mount Afrera), lies at 103m below sea level, lapping the shore of what is regarded to be the world’s lowest-lying island. Now accessible on an asphalt road that runs through the village of Afdera, the lake is an important source of salt, which is not mined as it is in As Ale, but obtained from artificial evaporation pools along the western shore. You can swim or camp at a set of freshwater hot springs on the west shore close to Afdera village.
Lake As Ale (Karum)
Once a bay in the Red Sea, this small hyper-saline lake lies at the heart of a 1,200km2 expanse of salt-encrusted flats that dip to an altitudinal low of -116m along its shore. Also known as Karum, its salt has been mined by the local Afar for millennia, and it is still possible to visit the salt extraction site today. Here, dozens of Afar miners chip at the crumbly off-white crust to extract neat 30cm x 40cm amole salt bars.
Erta Ale
An Afar name meaning ‘Smoking Mountain’, Erta Ale is a 613m-high shield volcano whose caldera of crumbling black rock contains the oldest of the world’s six semi-permanent lava lakes. Bubbling at temperatures of more than 1,000?C, this ellipsoid cauldron of black-and-red magma is a truly mesmerising phenomenon, as violent red fountains of molten rock spurt tens of metres in the sky, accompanied by nose-searing waves of ammoniac gas. The lake has existed more or-less in its present form since the late 19th century. Accessible only on foot or by camelback, Erta Ale is reached along a gradually sloping 10km path through shadeless terrain that can be treacherously hot in full daylight. For this reason, it is conventional to ascend the volcano in the late afternoon, sleep at the top, then return to the base early the next morning.
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GETTING THERE
Explore the Danakil from either the Tigrai Region capital Mekele (760km north of Addis Ababa by road), or the Afar Region capital Semera (590km from Addis Ababa). Both are connected to Addis Ababa by daily flights (www.ethiopianairlines.com).
The Danakil is a genuine expedition destination. Although a good 350km road now runs from Semera to Mekele via Afdera, the tracks to Dallol and Do Dom (for Erta Ale) require a 4x4 and navigational skills. The region is best visited with an experienced operator using a minimum of two 4x4s, and experienced staff who know the local Afar. Helicopter access is from Mekele.
Most organised tours start in Addis Ababa. Operators also offer tours directly out of Semera and Mekele. The minimum time required for a full tour is two nights, spending one at Hamed Ela and one on the rim of Erta Ale. An extra night at Erta Ale is recommended if you want to see the crater by day, and another for Lake Afdera.
GETTING AROUND
Most sites in the region can be accessed by 4x4 only. To get to Erta Ale, you must hike 10km along gently ascending slopes to the crater rim. There is no shade, and daytime temperatures tend to be searingly hot, so ascend at dusk and return early next morning.
ACCOMMODATION
A selection of hotels can be found in both Semera and Mekele. No formal accommodation exists once in the Danakil, though basic camping shelters are available at Hamed Ela, Do Dom and the Erta Ale crater rim. You can camp at the hot springs on the west shore of Lake Afdera.
OTHER PRACTICALITIES
All visitors must obtain a permit in advance from the Bureau of Culture and Tourism of Afar National Regional State office in Semera. This is best organised through a ground operator in Addis Ababa or Mekele. Wear a hat and apply sunblock when hiking or walking during daylight hours.