High-altitude Hiking in Mauritania: The Erg Maghteir and the Mysteries of the Adrar - Author's Journey by Sylvain PHILIP

Departure from Paris (chartered flight). Takeoff is scheduled for early morning with arrival in Atar in early afternoon.

Schedules given for information purposes and subject to change by the airline.

Departure from Paris Roissy CDG T3 at 07:30

Arrival in Atar at 11:20 (local time)

After formalities and obtaining the Mauritanian E-Visa, the local team welcomes us in the airport terminal.

In Atar, lunch is planned at a pleasant and comfortable inn according to the flight schedule.

After lunch, immediate departure to the desert.

We take the beautiful paved road heading north towards Mauritania. The road quickly leaves the Adrâr massif to head towards Choum in the corner bordering Western Sahara.
We establish our camp in a beautiful sandy valley often inhabited by nomads.

On the way to Tourine, an isolated place in the heart of arid expanses, and steeped in history.
For centuries, this crossroads served as a mandatory passage for great caravans transporting gold, salt and spices to Morocco or Mediterranean ports. Their traces still remain in the Saharan soil, like a distant echo of these legendary journeys.

Arrival at In Tourine, the camel team awaits us

The camel drivers are generally from the tribes of north-eastern Mauritanie: essentially Amgârîj, Kounta or more rarely R'gueïbat.

Very good travel companions for several years now, they are quick, efficient and discreet.
The bivouac is established alongside the camel drivers.
The vehicles leave for Atar after being unloaded.

Our camel team awaits us, the camels lined up and ready to depart. After the final preparations, we load the luggage onto the camels.

We set out on the age-old camel trails, following in the footsteps of the caravans of yesteryear to reach the Mejbour wadi, a dried-up riverbed where a few solitary acacias indicate the presence of underground water. This is where we set up our camp.

Two days of trekking in the desert, following the ancient caravan trails. After Wad el Mejbour, we cross endless stretches of sand, where nothing breaks the horizon.
Our route passes through Wad el Mejbour, El Medahiya, Etweiref Leleyatt and Lemleizem, before reaching Amzeyli (Leftaiya).
Suddenly, the landscape changes: a rocky plateau emerges from the dunes, like a stone island in the middle of the erg.PrNear Leftaiya, to the south-west, a large circular tumulus (approximately 50 metres in diameter) stands, a mysterious witness to the past.

We now enter the heart of the erg Maghteir, an ocean of dunes where time seems suspended.
For four days, we will navigate in open sea mode, like sailors lost in a sea of sand, our compass being the imposing inselberg of Aderg. This rocky peak, standing like a ship's bow above the golden waves, guides us through the vast moving immensity of the desert.

Our itinerary unfolds thus, each place has, for the nomads of the region, a well-defined name:
Day 6: From Leftaiya to Emjeybira, then Amzeily Lessaba, before reaching Ewdey Erkayeze.
Day 7: We cross Ewdey Erkayeze to reach Lekleiwatt, then Hevret Berkam.
Day 8: Heading to Zirete El Moussawiya, a set of singular dunes.
Day 9: Final stage towards Aderg, where the inselberg finally rises before us, like a lighthouse at the end of our crossing.

After crossing the small aklé of Oum el Beïdh, we now travel on a slight reg towards the alluvial basin of Naïtiri. We reach the Naïtiri well.
The area is very heavily wooded, with sometimes dense vegetation developing there. A few greïr are cultivated by sedentary people living in a few tents visible here and there, and very often, many herds roam the region. The camel drivers take advantage of stopping at the Naïtiri wells to water their animals.

Due south, we reach the foothills of Tarf Naïtiri before entering the Akhmakou fissure, a spectacular gash in the geomorphological complex of the Richât, parallel to the edge of Tagenzé. Here, sand gives way to rock, and the caravan progresses slowly through this mineral landscape, dotted with small abandoned palm groves, which nomads visit only for pollination.

We drive towards the palm grove of Meyateg which was once prosperous. The tribes originating from Wadane preserve date palm trees.
Upon arriving in the geomorphological system of Richât, we reach the ruins of the old Portuguese fort of Agueidir.
We arrive in the strange region of Guelb Er Richat.

We leave the different circles of the Richat heading south, towards Hassi Thiba and the traces of the old Portuguese fort of Aguadir. Saharan forests are relatively developed in this area. As we dive towards the sands, the palm groves of Meyateg barely survive.
We reach Wadane and the very beautiful valley of Tin Labbe.

We now skirt the erg Warane which runs along the Adrâr plateau from the eastern confines. It marks the difficult-to-cross border by car of the immense empty space, the Majabat Al Koubra.
The Tanouchert palm grove nestled in its bed of dunes has crossed the centuries while retaining a certain lustre.

Through the sands, heading due west, we set our course for the ancient caravan city of Chinguetti. The Chinguetti wadi, downstream from the city, is covered with trees, life there is intense. We pass through the city for lunch. Unfortunately, uncontrolled and unmanaged urbanization has broken the traditional charm of the city.

Return to Atar.

The city of Atar founded in the 17th century in the borderland plain (bâten) that stretches north of the great cliff, is protected from sand by its geographical location.
It is the most important city in the Saharan zone. It was formerly an emirate city, a garrison town for the Americans then the French and finally a regional capital.

The chartered flight departing from Atar is scheduled for early morning with arrival in Paris in mid-afternoon.