In the event that you are searching for a vacation some place where hardly any individuals have ever gone to, or on the off chance that you are looking for the most challenging yet charming trekking location. Or simply looking for an opportunity to ride a camel while trekking in perhaps the most profound and beautiful place on earth, or in the event that you are earnestly needing time away to reflect on the future in radiant landscape destination with open spaces and a stunning views, then the place is to be is the one and only Danakil Depression of the Afar Triangle, nestled in the north eastern outskirts of Ethiopia. As you enter this distinctive landscape of unparalleled beauty in the upper Ethiopian Great Rift Valley, intersecting with majestic views of the salt covered fields, slopes, magma lakes, salt mining zones, dynamic volcanoes, desert flowers are just a trek away from small villages of the dazzling  Afar people.

 

The Afar Triangle Expedition offers a lifetime experience that enables you to view a great volcanic scene together with the World Heritage Site of the Awash Valley for some valuable fossil locations, for example, Ardi, (Ardipithecus ramidus); the Gona (Gawis skull), site of the world's most established stone devices; and Hadar, site of Lucy, the fossilized example of Australopithecus afarensis.

 

Very few courageous people have gone to this lovely place before; the main extraordinary British traveler Wilfred Thesiger who visited the Danakil Depression and portrayed his excursion as the most dangerous trip he had ever attempted, as written in the 'Danakil Diary' that he wrote and published.

 

The following are the dominant aspects that we will come across within the Afar Triangle Expedition:

 

• The Danakil Depression: the absolute lowest point in Africa, a wide deep plain covered by salt and Lake Asal (155m/509feet bsl).

• Erta Ale: one of the Earth's five magma lakes and Dabbahu Volcano with the mantle and the basalt.

• Dallol:  one of the hottest spots all year round anywhere on Earth and part of the Depression.

• The Middle Awash: site of many fossil discoveries, for example, Ardi, Lucy and Gona  as well as the site of the world's most established stone instruments.

• Desert Flora and Fauna:  for a study tour of the small green belt where Awash River streams flows and the depression drought resitant plants, for example, dragon trees, shrubs and grasses. Untamed wildlife incorporates numerous herbivores, for example, Grevy's Zebra, Soemmering's Gazelle, Oryx Beisa and the African Wild Ass, includes a visit to the Mille-Sardo Wildlife Reserve.

• Lake Abbe: the focal gathering place for three parts of Earth's outside layer (the spreading edges from the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden developing and meeting the East African Rift.

• Active Volcanoes: with the remote and ongoing volano eruptions and gushing lava emissions (for example, the history of 163 earthquakes that happened during September and October 2005 will interest visitors.  

• Salt Mining Areas: the Afar Depression is filled by salt, and salt mining is still a significant source of income for many Afar people.

• The Afar People: their culture, being customarily pastoralists, raising camels, goats, sheep and dairy cattle in the desert; their conventional houses are largely captivating for guests. In addition, the Afar People have a reputation for their physical fitness and their good looking appearance, hundreds of years old traveling traditions as well as their martial strength, and curved blade knives and for their broad collection of battle songs.

 

We will be surpised at their capacity to survive for a  considerable length of time in this remote dry area. In spite of the fact that the Afar are a roaming people, in the green plain south of Assayita there are small villages, and group of families living in the same region. So as to give proper respect to the authenticity of their culture, when possible we attempt to remain one night at a village and purchase a goat and invite the village chief and his family to join us for dinner as a way to thank them for their hospitality.