Simien Mountains National Park

The Simien Mountains form a high plateau in northern Ethiopia whose eroded edges drop more than 1,500 metres into deep gorges, creating some of the most dramatic highland scenery in Africa. The plateau averages over 3,000 metres in elevation, with the highest point at Ras Dashen rising to 4,550 metres — the fourth-highest mountain in Africa — and the cold night temperatures at this altitude regularly fall below freezing even in the dry season months of November through February.

The Simien Mountains National Park, established in 1969 and designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1996, protects the steep cliffs, deep gorges and Afro-alpine meadows that are the hallmark of the landscape. The park is one of the few places in Africa where a visitor can walk for a full day at high altitude without encountering a road, and the main trekking routes follow the dramatic escarpment edge with views north across the Tekezze River valley into Eritrea and west toward the distant highlands of Wollo.

The park is famous for three endemic large mammals: the Walia ibex, a cliff-dwelling wild goat found nowhere else in the world and reduced to a population of approximately 500 individuals; the Ethiopian wolf, the rarest canid in the world with fewer than 500 individuals remaining; and the gelada baboon, the only primate whose diet is primarily graminivorous, grazing on the Afro-alpine grasslands in large troops that can exceed 400 individuals. The gelada are particularly easy to observe near the main walking routes at Sankaber and Geech, where they have become habituated to the presence of hikers and move across the cliff edges in coordinated groups, the males with their distinctive bright orange chest patches and flowing capes of fur.

The highland farmers who live within and around the park grow barley and wheat at elevations up to 3,800 metres using terraced cultivation methods adapted to the steep slopes, and their traditional stone settlements and thatched circular houses are part of the cultural landscape that the UNESCO designation protects. The main approach to the park is from the town of Debark, where park headquarters issues permits and can arrange a local scout for the main trekking routes, which include the classic three-day traverse from Sankaber to Chennek via the dramatic escarpment edge. The best months for trekking are October through March, during the dry season, when the paths are clear and the sky is typically clear.

One of Africa's most dramatic highland landscapes, with escarpment edges dropping 1,500 metres into gorges and a plateau that averages over 3,000 metres in elevation.

Three globally endangered endemic large mammal species — Walia ibex, Ethiopian wolf and gelada baboon — can be observed in their natural habitat, a combination found nowhere else on Earth.

Excellent trekking infrastructure for a African protected area, with clearly marked multi-day routes and village camps, allowing visitors to walk for days at altitude without encountering vehicles.