In preparation for a longer upcoming trans-Saharan journey we conducted a scouting trip in south-eastern Algeria during April 2017. We spent about two weeks traversing roughly 650 miles of desert, primarily off-road. Using the town of Djanet as a base point we looped southeast almost to the Libyan border, and then back north west to the Ihrir oasis. The journey was made in a locally-sourced Toyota Land Cruiser and focused on the UNESCO world heritage sites around Tassili N’ajjer. The primary goal of this mission was to assess terrain, security, driving conditions, logistical concerns and approximate timeframes for a future expedition. Click the links below to see a detailed report for each location, with maps and regional information or read the original first-hand blog postings from the trip.
The first installment features the oasis town of Djanet, where the journey begins, with a spotlight on this gateway to the Tassili N’Aajer… [read]
The second installment follows the journey southeast into the Tadrart region near the border with Libya, where the team enters an otherworldly landscape… [read]
The third installment takes us from the canyons of El Berdj into the sand dunes, introducing us to our first ancient rock engravings … [read]
The fourth installment chronicles the passage over the dunes and into the oued In Djaren where rock paintings and engravings are examined in greater detail… [read]
The original daily blog posts in a firsthand account of the journey, experiences and impressions as we drove through this mystical desert landscape… [read]
