Salt Caravan Expedition in Chad (camel trekking)
After our first Salt Caravan Expedition in December 2024, at the end of November 2026 we propose another fascinating new expedition on foot / camel through the incredible landscapes of the Ennedi of Chad.
In this ‘Salt Caravan Expedition’ we will accompany a group of camel drivers from the Amdjarass region, east of Ennedi, for 250 kilometres on their annual journey from their home village to the salt flats of Oudi Doum, on the western edge of Ennedi.
‘With the loss of the salt caravans comes the loss of our culture and our spiritual well-being. The only difference between a human being and an animal is culture. We must not lose our sacred culture. ’ ‘To go to the desert is to go to the realm of the spirit.’
Salem Uld Elhagg
Ennedi, Nature and Cultural Reserve (UNESCO)
Unlike our ‘normal’ 4×4 routes through the Ennedi and northern Chad, where we focus almost exclusively on the natural wonders of this part of the Sahara, on this camel trekking expedition we will be able to immerse ourselves in the Gorane culture for almost two weeks.
We will live with shepherds and witness their basic, ancestral way of life, to which we will have to adapt in part.
It’s the journey, not the destination
For 12 days and 250 kilometres we will travel (partly) on foot or on a camel, some of the mythical Saharan routes in search of salt. On this trip we will also have the privilege of visiting some of the most beautiful landscapes and places in the Ennedi at a slow and leisurely pace, as we cross it from east to west.
In this caravan expedition, the main focus is on the day to day (the journey), not on the destination (the salt mines). As we saw in 2024, in order to reach the Ouadi Doum salt flats on foot, we would need an extra week’s journey, which would make the trip practically unfeasible.
Our journey will end approximately at the border of the Ennedi with the Mourdi depression, where a mythical and beautiful caravan oasis is located. From there, the desert becomes inhospitable and extremely harsh for anyone not native to the depths of the Sahara.
Description of the Ennedi salt caravan route
We will leave Ndjamena, the capital of Chad, to travel for three or four full days by 4×4 to the Andjarass region. There, in a small village of the Mourdian ethnic group (Gorane), camel drivers will be waiting for us to embark on this caravan expedition.
On this 12-day trip we will accompany a group of several Gorane camel drivers and about thirty camels from their home village to a famous caravan oasis. We will do this on foot or by camel, crossing 250 kilometres of little-travelled routes in the Ennedi.
Canyons, valleys, rock formations, oases and scree are just some of the places we will be travelling through on this caravan expedition.
We will travel the entire Ennedi from east to west but we will do so on routes only used by caravanners, totally unknown to tourists visiting the Ennedi in 4WDs.
During these 12 days we will leave the salt caravan for two nights to visit three or four emblematic places of the Ennedi, such as the Archei Guelta, Ashule and Hubaike, by 4×4.
After our first expedition of 2024, we believe that a break on the road is absolutely necessary. We will take the opportunity to rest and visit impressive places by car for two days. These two days coincide with the two least attractive days of the caravan route.
One of the most interesting aspects of this trip is that we will be able to live day after day with the Gorane shepherds in their annual search for salt.
Tea, prayer, bonfires for warmth, caravan sunsets, the ‘pilgrimage’ along this centuries-old route will leave us with images of remote times that refuse to disappear. They will never fade from our memory.
How will we travel in this Salt Caravan Expedition?
From the fourth day onwards we will leave our vehicles and continue on foot with the Goranne herders. Every few days we will meet the vehicles, which will bring us water and food.
Each traveller will have a dromedary to sit on, or can walk if they wish. It should be noted that the camels do not have saddles adapted for tourists as in other countries.
Important: The caravanners cover a daily route of approximately 20-25 kilometres. They usually walk for 5 hours in the morning and 2 to 3 hours in the afternoon.
We will adapt to the pace of the cameleers and they will not adapt to us.
We will take cooks and all our luggage with us loaded on the camels. Also water, tents and the necessary logistical material.
It goes without saying that this is a HARD TRIP and that you need to be in good physical shape and have a positive aptitude for the toughness of the journey.
The initiatory journey, context
As every year in late autumn, taking advantage of the good temperatures in the Sahara, different families from the Gorane, Zaghawa and Arab ethnic groups celebrate the survival of one of the oldest and most fascinating cultures in the world with each journey across the sands: the Salt Caravans.
As we saw on our last trip, many families in this part of the Sahara are still reluctant to succumb to motorised transport, which nowadays quite effectively connects the remote salt mines with the commercial centres of the Chadian desert.
Unlike in the other Saharan countries, several caravan routes are still active in Chad, and they are very busy.
Some of them go from Bao and Amdjaras, near Sudan (Zaghawa herders) to the Demi or Ouadi Doum salt flats. Others leave for these same salt flats from the East Ennedi or from Mourdi (Gorane herders). Further south, Arab herders and camel drivers travel from the Batha, Salamat or Chari Baguirmi region to the Faya or Bir Liwa salt flats north of Lake Chad.
It is an ‘initiatory’ journey in which only the male members of the family or the village participate, and which takes several weeks to complete.
Once the salt has been obtained and returned to their places of origin, these caravanners will keep some of it, and with the rest they will barter or sell it directly.
If you want to know more about the mythical salt caravans of the Sahara, read our post about Salt Caravans. And if you want to make this dream come true, don’t hesitate to ask us for more information.
