Natural Attractions
Bird Trekking on Simen Mountains
The park is home to many habitats which are all rich in birds. More than 160 species of birds can be viewed in the park area. The ideal place for birding in Ethiopia is the Bale Mountains National Park in the south-eastern highlands. It is also reputed for possessing most of the endemic bird species of Ethiopia as well as a number of other species not found elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa.
DANAKIL DEPRESSION
The Danakil Depression lies at the triple junction of three tectonic plates and has a complex geological history. It has developed as a result of Africa and Asia moving apart, causing rifting and volcanic activity. Erosion, inundation by the sea, the rising and falling of the ground have all played their part in the formation of this depression. Sedimentary rocks such as sandstone and limestone are unconformably overlain by basalt which resulted from extensive lava flows
SIMIEN MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK
Ethiopia’s premier trekking and walking destination, the 412km2 Simien Mountains National Park was inscribed as a Natural World Heritage Site in 1979, whereupon UNESCO lauded it as “one of the world’s most spectacular landscapes, with jagged mountain peaks deep valleys and sharp precipices dropping some 1,500m”. In addition to the splendid scenery and hiking opportunities, the Afromontane meadows and moorlands of the upper Simiens also form one of Ethiopia’s most important biodiversity hotspots, populated by an alluring wealth of endemic plants and animals including Walia ibex, gelada baboon and Ethiopian wolf.