Chad

Chad - map

 

Wikipedia article about Chad

 

Main attractions

The landmarks of Chad are little known - most visitors are deterred by the prolonged warfare in this country. Country though has very interesting landmarks. Among the most interesting monuments of Chad are:

• Prehistoric cliff art - in the past, when Sahara was more green, here developed indigenous cultures, which have left countless dravings and carvings on the cliffs of Tibesti and Ennedi mountains.
• Geomorphological features. Water and winds in Ennedi mountains have created unique, phantasmagoric cliff figurines.

Natural landmarks

Volcanoes and hidrothermal features

• Soborom geothermal field and Yerike hot spring - Tibesti, some 5 km north-west from the crater rim of Tarso Voon. Large geothermal field with fumaroles, mud pots, boiling water. Some reports about geysers.
• Trou au Natron - Tibesti. Volcano with grandiose caldera - 8 km wide and 1 km deep, with mostly vertical walls. One the base of caldera there is visually interesting, symmetrical ash cone and crater lake. Dark ash cone is contrasting with nearly white carbonate salts around it.

Cliffs and natural arches

• Aloba Arch - Ennedi. One of the most impressive natural arches of the world. Arch is 77 m wide and some 120 m tall.
• Dentelles Arches - Ennedi. Group of intricate natural arches and hoodoos, forming a unique landscape.
• Djoula Oued Arch - Ennedi. Very delicate, seemingly impossible natural arch. 14 m wide and 32.6 m tall.
• Five Arch Rock - Ennedi. Giant rock with five arches. The largest arch has a span of 20.4 m and height - 13.7 m.

Meteorite craters

• Aorounga Crater - Borkou. Impressive meteorite impact crater, with 12.6 km diameter. Meteorite fell in Carboniferous age or more recently. It is visible only from the satellite.
• Gweni-Fada crater - Ennedi. Large meteorite crater, with 14 km diameter. Meteorite fell in Carboniferous age or more recently, it is visible only from the satellite.

 

 

Biotopes

• Guelta d'Archei - Ennedi. Beautiful, up to 150 m deep canyon. Here lives isolated population of dwarf Nile crocodiles (Crocodylus niloticus) as well as other species - relicts of more wet climate in Sahara. Guelta is adorned with prehistoric rock paintings.
• Ounianga Lakes - Ennedi. Group of freshwater lakes in the middle of desert - a unique phenomenon. Relict flora and fauna have been preserved in lakes and around them.

Cryptozoology and fossil finds

• Djourab (Djurab) - Bourkou and Kanem. Find of very old hominid - Sahelanthropus tchadensis, who, possibly, lived 7 million years ago. It is possible that this is the oldest hominid after the split between the ancestors of chimpanzes and humans.
• Ennedi Tiger - Ennedi. People in Ennedi mountains have interesting stories about very strong, elusive tigerlike cat, similar to extinct (?) Machairodus cats. According to stories this purported sabertooth cat is living in caves.

Man made landmarks

Prehistoric cliff paintings and carvings

• Gonoa Valey, including The Man of Gonoa - Tibesti. This valley is very rich with prehistoric paintings and petroglyphs - here have been counted 636 cliff paintings, including images of 44 elephants and 22 rhinos, 79 giraffes, 346 cattle. Mysterious carving of a man.
• Kla Ouenama - Bourkou. Mysterious prehistoric cliff painting which shows a 2 m tall fantastic creature with smaller headless creature inside.
• "Korossom myth" - Bourkou. Unusual group of cliff paintings, shows disarticulated figures in weird dance.
• Niola Doa - Ennedi. Rock carvings, created circa 3000 BC. Drawings show five, up to 2.25 m tall figurines of women with voluptuous forms. Bodies seem to be adorned with abstract paintings or tatoos.
• Oura cattle drawings - Ennedi. Impressive life sized engravings of cattle, located on open cliff face to make it visible far away.
• Tigui - Borkou. Early petroglyphs of very high quality, representing elephants, giraffes, cattle.
• Tigui Cocoïna - Borkou. Spectacular cliff paintings, including magnificent scenes of giraffe hunting. Interesting feature is details which show how hunters are targeting the legs of giraffe.

Other man-made landmarks

• Colored cliffs south from Bardaï - Tibesti. In 1989 French artist Jean Verame colored several cliff formations in Tibesti in bright white, blue, violet, black and red colors. These cliffs differ from the common brown - red colors of sandstone formations and create eerie feel.
• Ruins of Ouara - Ouaddaï. Former capital city, abandoned in 19th century due to drying wells. Here still are seen remains of palace, mosque and circular city walls.