On the Tracks of Professor Th. Monod

The Amatlich dune massif
TheAmatlich erg is a small-scale dune massif (130 km x 5 to 8 km) that stretches from NW to SE, from the El Gleitat palm grove to the Damane spillage zone where it takes the name Dkhaïna.
Despite its relatively small surface area (when considering the Akchar, the Makhteir or the Warane, for example), its variety is great with regard to the vast interdunes and rocky zones that frame it.
This erg, furthermore, was "sculpted" by water during the "humid" period, 7,000 years ago. Thus, it was very regularly crossed by a wadi at the level of Foum Tizigui and as much to the West (towards Akjoujt) as in the wide interdunes that are the Ifizouitne and the Amlil Bou kerch, the vast spillage zones and wadis are numerous.
Should a "good" rain occur and the ancient hydrographic network will come back to life for a few days, a few weeks. Thus, Damane in the South and Graret el Fras (the cultivable basin of the mare - which testifies to the past presence of horses -) are among others (of lesser importance) regular places of subsistence crops.
In the distant past, Neolithic Man settled all along the Amatlich, his presence was widespread. Neolithic sites are very numerous, some of which have been well studied such as Khatt Lemaiteg (Vernet, 1985) in the vicinity of Damane and Medinet Cbat (Nicole Lambert, 1970). near the El Guechriyé well. The proximity of rock, in the form of various guelbs (peaks) or that of the Ibi noir massif (Ibi el Akhdar) means that the flora and fauna bordering the erg are very varied.

The semi-nomadic camp of El Kheouiya is established there during major droughts. The camp, for the past few years, has been organizing itself: development of goat and camelid herding (from 2 camels in 1993, now a herd of over 70 animals), creation of a school in 1994, birth of a small palm grove associated with gardens in 1999 and, now, some permanent structures.
"But we, we stay under the tent" Atfeil, the camp leader, assures us…
The bonds we maintain with the different families of the camp are close and greatly friendly.

The Tanouchert palm grove extends along the edge of the Warane erg. Large sand dunes dominate it. We reach it after a lovely walk.
During the afternoon, we discover what makes our hosts' wealth. Date cultivation, the strategic position of this water point are equally fascinating things.
In the evening, we stay to sleep in traditional huts.

The ksar of Wadâne, (Ouadâne) which is said to have been founded the same year as Tichîtt (1141), derives its name from the Arabic word meaning "two river beds" (wadân). The details according to which these two wadis would be the wadi of dates and the wadi of sciences do great honor to the city.
The ancient city is mentioned in writing in the middle of the 15th century in a Portuguese travel report, but it remains difficult to form a precise idea of the city's beginnings despite its position on the western axis of trans-Saharan caravan trade.
Wadâne is a dense urban center, of the ksar type, formerly surrounded by a very secure fortified enclosure that resisted all foreign forces until the arrival of the French.
The dominant tribes are the Kounta, the Ida or El Hadj, the Chorfa, the Amgârîj and the Aghzazir.

Our accommodation is located in the old town of Wadâne. A restored former residence, it is a haven of peace in the midst of this ancient city.

The leveled dome of Guelb Er Richât, which appears during the secondary period, is located at the borders of the dark mountains of the Adrâr mauritanien, to the west, and the vast expanses of rocks, rock slabs and dunes of the Taoudenni basin, to the east.
The strange system of concentric ridges of the Richât is so imposing that it appears today on all maps, even at small scales.
Richât is the plural of richa (feather), a term that perfectly describes the appearance of its ridges whose downwind flanks are streaked with tongues of sand and which dominate the deep flats where goats and camels graze… when, by chance, it has rained.
Because of its very size, it was only revealed quite late, by Professor Théodore Monod in 1934.
Indeed, no one, whether coming from the harsh plateaus of the north or from the dunes of Majabat Al Koubra (Monod, 1958), to the south and south-east, could imagine that these low ridges would be organized in such a perfect concentric system, vaguely elliptical with 22 km and 25 km in diameter, emerging from a buttonhole of 45 km, the Taguenzé, opened in the sandstone plateau.

The El Beyyed corridor presents, over nearly 20km in the direction of El Ghallaouiyya, a considerable quantity of lithic material. The region offers some of the main sites with bifaces and worked pebbles in western Saharan areas. The multiple rock art sites here represent samples of so-called "Ethiopian" fauna such as giraffes, elephants, rhinoceroses… This fauna is believed to have disappeared from the area approximately 10,000 to 12,000 years ago. El Beyyed is located at the foot of the great dhar of the Adrâr and, to the north, develops an immense and powerful erg: the Maghteïr.

Possible hike of 2/3 hours of walking: On foot, in the middle of the dunes, we make our way towards the isolated plateau on the edge of the erg Maghteïr.

In clear weather, from the summit of the Aderg inselberg, the panorama is magnificent. From south-west to south-east stretch the great sebkha of Chemcham then the high cliffs of the Adrâr, with to the south, the wide fault of the Akhmakou.
Then, over the rest of the panoramic view, the waves of the erg Maghteïr undulate as far as the eye can see. Downwind, a vast area without dunes is cleared, marked by small ribbons of trees where passing nomads huddle.

During the morning we remain in Aderg, continuing towards Atar in early afternoon.

TheErg Makhteir is one of these powerful dune massifs running from western Algeria, west of the Saoura to the shores of the Atlantic.
Born under the general name ofErg Chech, it ends its course in the ocean under the name of Azefal.
A cape of the Adrar plateau stands like a ship's prow, the tarfTazazmout.

The railway line between Zouérate and Nouadhibou allows iron ore extracted from Kediet ej-Jill to be transported to the port of the country's economic capital, where it will be loaded onto ore carriers bound for industrialized countries. This desert train was considered the longest (220 wagons for a length of 2 km), the heaviest (22,000 tonnes, 100 tonnes per wagon), and the slowest in the world (15 to 18 hours to cover the 650 km between Zouérate and Nouadhibou). Only this last point remains valid, as for some years now, an Australian train has become the longest and heaviest in the world.

The Ben Amira monolith is one of the most breathtaking places in Mauritania. The enormous mass of granite rock rises to over 600m.
With the sand dunes surrounding it, it provides an excellent Saharan landscape. Ben Amira is the largest monolith in Africa and the third largest in the world, after Uluru and Mount Augustus located in Australia.