Ethiopia Simien Mountains – 2013

Our Director has once again been off leading a Charity Challenge expedition to the Simien Mountains in Ethiopia, now his 5th expedition to these parts.

Well, what a difference a year makes!

In 2012 at each camp there were between 10 – 20 people queuing for medical attention but this year, with the new Arkwasiye clinic, (paid for by a previous Charity Challenge trek group – BDO Stoy Hayward) there were only a handful of people at each campsite.  This is fantastic news for the region.

This year, our Director was leading a group raising money for AfriKids (projects for young people on the streets in Ghana) whilst trekking for 8 days through the Simien mountains from West to East and summiting Ras Dashen, the highest peak in Ethiopia and 4^th highest in Africa on route.

Expecting the usual 35 - 40 degrees of heat each day, the group were very surprised by the first rains in living memory to fall in the Simien Mountains in March, the driest month of the dry season!!  The group encountered snow, hail, thunder, lightning and rain which goes to show that there are no 100% confirmed seasons any more around the world.  The group did well to manage this surprise weather and it actually made the overall trek far more manageable in the lower temperatures of between 20 - 30 degrees.