chad




Ennedi, Tibesti & gerewol festival

The Republic of Chad is located in the heart of north Africa. In November 2018 I participated in a two-week desert expedition in the northern part of the country. Little known among the community of travelers and tourists, Chad offers wonderful opportunities to visit some of the most beautiful regions of Sahara desert. There is the Ennedi Massif, a mountainous region in northeast Chad, an impressive sandstone plateau eroded by wind and thermal cycles into gorges, cliffs, canyons and outliers. And further on up north are the Lakes of Ounianga that crop up unexpectedly, as if by magic, among the dunes. In September 2022, I travelled through Chad's Tibesti mountains, located in the far northwest of the country. At the end of a long and adventurous round trip, I had the rare opportunity to visit the annual Gerewol festival of the nomadic Wodaabe tribe in the Sahel.

Mount Kenya Road Chogoria Village

Sandstone rock formations, Ennedi Mountains, northeastern Chad, North Africa
 

Mount Kenya Gorges Valley

Wodaabe nomads performing a dance at the annual Gerewol festival, Southern Chad, North Africa
 

Porters Mount Kenya

A Libyan tank is slowly buried by the desert sand, Northern Chad, North Africa

 




tour info

The Ennedi and Ounianga lakes tour in 2018 was organized by Diamir, Germany and led by the Austrian tour guide Karin Scheidhammer. The Tibesti tour in 2022 that included a visit of the Gerewol festival was organized by Desert Reisen, Germany and led by Austrian tour guide Martina Herz. Local tour operator was Tchad Evasion.


highlight

Taking a swim in Lake Bokou, a freshwater lake surrounded by green palms and golden sand dunes right in the middle of the Sahara.