For those wanting just a brief introduction to the alien landscape of the Danakil Depression, it is possible to take a day trip from the base town of Mekele. Be prepared for a lot of time in a vehicle!
1 Day
Itinerary
First stop is at the small village of Berhale where we arrange the security clearance and pick up our escort. This is also the place where the camel caravans bring their precious loads of salt, from here it is loaded on vehicles to Mekele.
We continue to Ahmed Ela and Lake Asale where hopefully some salt workers are active. It is a centuries old handcraft of cutting and shaping the salt blocks. Sometimes thousands of camels are present to take the load and transport it to Berhale.
We continue to the place recorded as the hottest inhabited place on our planet, you better be prepared. The ghost town of Dallol is an abandoned miners town and mostly constructed out of salt. Some old machinery used for the mining activities is still found here.
Nearby lays the fantastic and extraordinary beautiful hydrothermal field of the Dallol volcano. Some say it is the most colorful place on the planet. Please be careful and stay on well-trodden paths. The area is very fragile and the crust might break if you're trying to get to close to the pools. Contact with the boiling acid water will cause serious injuries. In the afternoon we leave the heat and dust behind and are return to the highlands of Tigray.
