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Exploring Ethiopia by Helicopter
Ethiopia is an ideal country to explore by helicopter. How else could you journey from the electric palette of the Danakil Depression at 410 feet below sea level, to the scrub-covered spires of the Simien Mountains, to the sheer cliffs of the Tigrai Mountains pocked with rock-carved churches, to a rite of passage bull-jumping ceremony in the Omo Valley? These sites are only half of what GeoEx experts Kate Doty, Starla Estrada, and Urs Hofmann saw as they traveled across Ethiopia by Eurocopter AS 350. The photos and videos below illustrate a small sampling of their adventures in Ethiopia, a country Starla calls “one of the most interesting and complex countries I’ve visited–challenging, fascinating, and endlessly rewarding.”
The otherworldly Danakil Depression presents a steaming cauldron of colors. Photo: Starla Estrada
In the Danakil Depression, a camel caravan driver sits beside the helicopter for a moment’s rest. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Caravan drivers in the Danakil Depression pose with the helicopter. Photo: Starla Estrada
A camel caravan plods through the Danakil Depression on the way to load up with salt slabs. Photo: Urs Hofmann
In the Danakil Depression, the only noise was the slow sauntering of the camels bound for the salt slabs. Video: Urs Hofmann
In Harar, women walk on a street near their home. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Via Birbir in Harar’s old town gets its name from the sound of the sewing machines that line the streets. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Women sell vegetables along Harar’s Via Birbir. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Donkeys rest on a quiet street, away from the market, in Harar’s old town. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Camels pose at a market near Harar. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Lalibela’s spectacular treasures include eleven churches carved from rock. Photo: Starla Estrada
Visitors and residents watch the sunset over one of Lalibela’s rock-hewn churches. Photo: Urs Hofmann
A priest sits outside his cave church in the Tigrai Mountains. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Traveling by helicopter offers a bird’s-eye view of the cliffs in the Tigrai Mountains. Photo: Starla Estrada
A priest holds a bible written in Ethiopian script (Ge’ez) inside a cave church in the Tigrai Mountains. Photo: Starla Estrada
In the Omo Valley, the Dorse tribe’s huts are built of bamboo and false banana leaves. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Hamar tribesmen dance in the Omo Valley. Video: Urs Hofmann
A local Omo Valley guide paints the face of a trip leader, Kelly, for the bull jump ceremony. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Hamar tribesmen prepare for the bull jump ceremony. Photo: Urs Hofmann
Hamar women sell goods at the Dimeka market in the Omo Valley. Photo: Urs Hofmann
A Mursi tribeswoman decorated for the bull jump ceremony poses in the Omo Valley. Photo: Urs Hofmann
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Ready to board your own chopper over Ethiopia? GeoEx’s Africa expert Starla Estrada will gladly help you plan your journey; give her a call at 888-570-7108. You can also learn about our overland trip here: Ethiopia: The Island of Africa.
