Get on an unforgettable four-day journey through Ethiopia’s Simien National Park. Day one begins with a departure from Gondar, leading you to Sankaber, where stunning vistas and acclimatization hikes await. Spend the night under the stars at Sankaber camp. Day two takes you on a scenic trek to Geech, offering encounters with cascading waterfalls and diverse birdlife. Day three promises panoramic views from Imet Gogo and wildlife sightings at Chennek camp, making it a day to remember. Finally, day four concludes with a descent to Chennek and a return journey to Gondar, leaving you with cherished memories of Ethiopia’s natural wonders.
Itinerary
In the morning, we leave Gondar at 7:30 and drive 100 km north on the Ethiopian highland to Debark, a small town of Debark at the border to the famous Simien National Park.
After a quick stop for the formalities at the headquarters offices of the national park and for collecting cook and scouts we drive out on a rough road to the Sankaber area at about 3,100 m sea level from where we take a short walk of 2-3 hours to assist the acclimatization process.
We get a first impressive view over the dramatic mountain range and see some typical plants of that area such as big Heather Trees, St. John's Wort or the Abyssinian Wild Rose (rosa abyssinica). This is also the area in which the largest number of Gelada Baboons (theropithecus gelada) can be found. First night in the tents at the Sankaber camp at 3,250m sea level.
Overnight : Sankaber camp
At Sankaber we organize and arrange mulemen and mules which carry our heavy camping and cooking equipment for the next few days. So the hikers need to carry only a light daypack with some water, a photo camera, a light jacket and a few personal things that they might need for the hike during the day.
After breakfast (bread, eggs, porridge, coffee, tea,…) we leave the camp at around 8:30 and we traverse along the Northern escarpment before dropping down to get impressive views, for example of the beautiful Jinbar Waterfall. In the large gorge of the waterfall there are many huge circling birds, especially vultures such as the Griffon (Gyps fulvus), Lappet-faced or Nubian Vulture (Torgos tracheliotos) and Lammergeier or Bearded Vulture (Gypaetus barbatus) and other smaller birds as buzzards and ibises. Hopefully we also encounter the endemic Abyssinian Catbird (Parophasma galinieri). Among the mammals Klipspringers (oreotragus oreotragus) and Menelik's Bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus) can be observed between Sankaber and Geech.
After a short distance (20 min) on the rough road, crossing the Jinbar river where we have the lunch break, we ascend through terraced farmland to our camp at 3,600m. In the evening we have the possibility to walk up (30 min) to the mountain Kedadit (3,760m) and to witness an unforgettable sunset.
O/n Geech Campsite
After breakfast we walk for about 2 hours to the summit of Imet Gogo (3,926m), which is one of the most spectacular viewpoints with 360 degrees and from where we can see Ras Dashen, the highest peak of the country.
After a photo break we trek along the whole escarpment, cross a small valley and climb the peak Inatye (4,070m) where we will take our lunch stop and have a rest. From there we will have a nice view more than 1,000m down to the green fields of the mountain villages Dihwara, Tiya, Amiwalka and Truwata. During the whole day we walk through vast fields of Giant Lobelia (lobelia rhynchopetalum) and sometimes Heather Trees (erica arborea) or Red Hot Poker (kniphofia foliosa).
After the break we descend and reach our camp Chennek in the afternoon (3,620m). Chennek, sometimes called wildlife corridor, is the best place to see the Gelada Baboons (theropithecus gelada), the Walia Ibex (capra ibex) and the Ethiopian Wolf (canis simensis). These animals are best observed around Chennek camp. At the campsite we have the possibility to wash ourselves at the river or pipe water.
Overnight : Chennek Campsite
In the early morning we leave from our last camp Chennek, where we meet again Walia Ibexes (capra ibex), and first climb up about 600m to the Pass Bwahit (about 4,200m). This is the pass that hikers have to traverse if they want to climb Ras Dashen, but reaching this summit takes at least 2 days more.
If the physical condition allows it, we continue from the pass our climb up to the peak of Ras Bwahit (4,430m), one of the highest in the whole area. Then we descend to Chennek and the car brings us back first to Debark on a 58 km long rough road and from there on the new asphalt road to Gondar, where we will arrive in the afternoon at about 5:00 PM.
