Debra ZeitAddis Ababa

Debre Markos

Gondar

Aksum

Semera

Kombolcha

Lalibela

SimienMountains

NationalPark

Lake Langano

Bale Mountains

Arba Minch

Awasa

Jinka

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EXPLORE ANCIENT ETHIOPIAA PIONEERING ADVENTURE - THE FIRST EVER NON-COMPETITIVE EVENT TO EXPLORE THIS BEAUTIFUL UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY.

Debra ZeitAddis Ababa

Debre Markos

Gondar

Aksum

Semera

Kombolcha

Lalibela

SimienMountains

NationalPark

Lake Langano

Bale Mountains

Arba Minch

Awasa

JinkaRally Round is thrilled to offer another pioneering event - the first ever rally through stunning Ethiopia.

It is unbelievable how far Ethiopia has come since the images of the early 1980s. Over 26 days, you will journey across this incredible country, taking in as much of the ancient landscape as possible.

Our own Doctor John Llewellyn has vast knowledge of the country and has worked with the team to create a spectacular route that incorporates the Blue Nile, the castles in Gondar, the Simien Mountains, and Lake Tana to name a few.

1ST TO 27TH NOVEMBER 2021 EXPLORING ANCIENT ETHIOPIA

ADVENTUREETHIOPIANNOVEMBER 2021 Ethiopia

The Ethiopian Adventure will start and finish in the Ethiopian capital of Addis Ababa, the country’s largest city. From there, our route will cover approximately 4,800kms.

Because we want to focus on the journey and the amazing landmarks and sights to discover, this will be a non-competitive event. Organised in the same vein at the Trans-Himalayan Adventure, we will focus on the amazing culture, incredible architecture, and ancient traditions as well as a chance to meet the locals.

The accommodation will be the best hotels on offer as well as eco lodges and possibly one or two nights camping.

Entries for the inaugural event are limited so please contact the rally office at your earliest convenience to reserve your entry. As a non-competitive event, the Ethiopian Adventure is open to cars of all ages and crews with varying levels of experience, from novice to seasoned rally crew.

I T I N E R A R YTHE FORMALITIESFollowing arrivals on 1st November 2021, you will have two days to complete any preliminary paperwork with the local authorities as well as sightseeing in Addis Ababa. During this time, the cars will start to be delivered to the hotel ready for you to pack.

You will enjoy a welcome dinner on the first evening ahead of the business of signing-on, scrutineering and a crew briefing the next day, so we’re all prepared for the start line on 3rd November.

THE FACTS26 days4,800kms (approx.)Open to all carsNon-competitive event

Debra ZeitAddis Ababa

Debre Markos

Gondar

Aksum

Semera

Kombolcha

Lalibela

SimienMountains

NationalPark

Lake Langano

Bale Mountains

Arba Minch

Awasa

Jinka

Debra ZeitAddis Ababa

Debre Markos

Gondar

Aksum

Semera

Kombolcha

Lalibela

SimienMountains

NationalPark

Lake Langano

Bale Mountains

Arba Minch

Awasa

Jinka

PRE-START: ADDIS ABABA This adventure starts in Ethiopia’s capital Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s sprawling capital and Africa’s fourth largest city. The country’s commercial and cultural hub, it is often described as the ‘gateway to an ancient and mystical world’. However, Addis Ababa has treasures of its own with a fabulous National Museum which hosts stunning Ethiopian art, traditional crafts and prehistoric fossils, including replicas of the famous early hominid, ‘Lucy’. The burial place of the 20th-century emperor Haile Selassie, the copper-domed Holy Trinity Cathedral is a neo-baroque architectural landmark and well worth a visit.

DAY 1: ADDIS ABABA TO DEBRE MARKOS (300KM)

From the start line, you leave the capital and head north west into the North Shewa Zone of the Oromiya Region. With open fields between the smaller towns, you will gently climb as you aim for the city of Debre Markos, sitting at an altitude of 2,446m. On the way, you will cross the Blue Nile Bridge, a fantastic picture opportunity.

ADVENTUREETHIOPIANNOVEMBER 2021 Ethiopia

PROVISIONAL ROUTE

DAY 4: GONDAR TO SIMIEN MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK (105KMS)

Spend the morning visiting the Gondar Castles including the walled Fasil Ghebbi fortress and palace compound, once the seat of Ethiopian emperors. Dominating it is the immense 17th-century castle of Emperor Fasilides, which combines Portuguese, Indian and local architectural styles. Outside the complex is Debre Berhan Selassie church, with an interior of elaborate murals, including a ceiling of faces. In the afternoon, we’ll drive into the Simien Mountains National Park where you’ll stay for two nights.

DAY 5: REST DAY - SIMIEN MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK

The first rest day is spent in the beautiful Simien Mountains with a tour and trek of the National Park. Its rugged terrain includes escarpments, deep valleys and a high plateau, which is home to rare Walia ibex and Gelada baboons. Trails wind through the park and the central Gidir Got and Imet Gogo summit lookouts have panoramic views of sheer cliffs and the lowlands below.

DAY 2: DEBRE MARKOS TO LAKE TANA (219KM)

A short morning on the roads takes you to Bahir Dar on the edge of Lake Tana, the source of the Blue Nile and the largest lake in Ethiopia. Located in Amhara Region in the north-western Ethiopian Highlands, Lake Tana is the home of the stunning Blue Nile Falls, where you’ll spend the afternoon making sure you get the chance to enjoy the scenery.

DAY 3: LAKE TANA TO GONDAR (175KMS)

Staying near to Lake Tana overnight, you’ll have a leisurely morning to give you the chance to visit the Lake as well as the Islands and churches. Lake Tana has 37 islands scattered throughout the 3,000km surface, of which around 20 host churches and monasteries of significant historical and cultural interest. They are decorated with beautiful paintings and are the repository of innumerable treasures. In the afternoon, you will drive to Gondar, where you’ll spend the night.

ADVENTUREETHIOPIANNOVEMBER 2021 Ethiopia

DAY 8: MEKELE TO MEKELE (220KMS)

The day starts and finishes in Mekele, the capital city of the Tigray region, with the grand palace of 19th-century Emperor Yohannes IV, now a museum, at its centre. You will drive from Mekele to visit Abuna Yemata Guh, better known as the ‘Chapel in the Sky’. Perched 650 feet above a steep cliff in Northern Ethiopia, visitors face a 45-minute climb up the cliff’s vertical face in order to access the precariously positioned church.

DAY 9: MEKELE TO ERTA ALE CAMP (200KMS)

Mekele’s markets are an important stop for salt merchants arriving from the Danakil Depression area in the northeast of the country, which is where you’ll be heading for the next few days. This remote location is known for its salt mines and volcanos. Erta Ale is a continuously active basaltic shield volcano in the Afar Depression, and the most active volcano in Ethiopia. You’ll spend the night camping in this astonishing area.

DAY 6: SIMIEN MOUNTAINS NATIONAL PARK TO AKSUM (270KMS)

After enjoying the sights and sounds of the National Park, you get back on the road and continue through the north of the country to the city of Aksum.

DAY 7: AKSUM TO MEKELE (185KMS)

The morning will be spent visiting the archaeological sites that Aksum is most famous for, the tall, carved obelisks, which are relics of the ancient Kingdom. Most are in the northern Stelae Park, including a huge fallen pillar, now in pieces. In the afternoon, you drive to Mekele to your night halt.

DAY 12: REST DAY – LALIBELA Your rest day gives you the chance to visit the Rock Hewn Churches, distinctive rock-cut churches dating from the 12th and 13th centuries, which are pilgrimage sites for Coptic Christians. The subterranean monoliths include huge Bete Medhane Alem, and cross-shaped Bete Giyorgis. Many are joined by tunnels and trenches, and some have carved bas-reliefs and coloured frescoes inside. There’s also the opportunity to conduct any maintenance for both cars and crews.

DAY 13: LALIBELA TO KOMBOLCHA (305KMS)

Well rested, it’s back to the roads as you start to turn towards the more central region after exploring the north. We head for Kombolcha, located in the Debub Wollo Zone of the Amhara Region. One of Ethiopia’s biggest farming communities, Kombolcha is a major producer and supplier of vegetables for Djibouti.

DAY 10: ERTA ALE CAMP TO SEMERA (250KMS)

After a night under the stars, you set off early to continue the drive through the Danakil Depression. Known to be one of the hottest places on Earth, this area also boasts many thermal springs. It is also home to the Afar People, a tribe of nomadic shepherds, who have a strong relationship with their environment and its wildlife. Our night halt is the new town of Semera.

DAY 11: SEMERA TO LALIBELA (400KMS)

One of two long driving days on the event, you leave Semera and travel inland through the Mile Serdo Wildlife Reserve and numerous villages to Lalibela, a town in the Amhara region, where you will stay for two nights.

ADVENTUREETHIOPIANNOVEMBER 2021 Ethiopia

DAY 14: KOMBOLCHA TO DEBRA ZEIT (420KMS) The longest day of the rally, we continue to journey through this incredible country. As you head through the central region, driving up through Debre Berhan and on to the night halt in Bishoftu, formerly known as Debre Zeit, which is surrounded by flat-bottomed, steep-sided volcanic crater lakes called maars.

DAY 15: DEBRA ZEIT TO LAKE LANGANO (160KM)

After a long drive the day before, today is a much shorter day as we leave Bishoftu and head south to Lake Ziway, where you can take a bird and hippopotamus tour. It is then onto Lake Langano, on the edge of the Abiyate Shala National Park, where you spend the next two nights.

DAY 16: REST DAY – LAKE LANGANO The rest day gives you the chance to relax or explore as you can visit the Abiyata Shala National Park, where activities at the Lake include swimming or boating at one of the beach resorts, the stunning hot springs, or trekking in the park itself.

DAY 17: LAKE LANGANO TO BALE MOUNTAINS (185KM) From the Lake, you get back on route and continue further south and to the east. Our final destination is the stunning Bale Mountains but we will make a diversion to Shashamane first. Shashamane is said to be ‘a little patch of Jamaica’, where dreadlocked Rasta settlers, many born in the Caribbean, have now made their home.

DAY 18: REST DAY – BALE MOUNTAINS You have the day to explore the Bale Mountains, trekking and searching for wolves in a guided tour. Part of the Ethiopian Highlands, the Bale Mountains include Tullu Dimtu, the second-highest mountain in Ethiopia. The Park is home to diverse landscapes, unique habitats and stunning wildlife.

DAY 19: BALE MOUNTAINS TO ARBA MINCH (390KMS) Back on the route, and it’s a long day on the road as we head south-west, weaving through the mountain roads to Arba Minch. Home to two of Ethiopia’s largest Rift Valley lakes, the city has Nechisar National Park and the highland Dorze villages on its doorstep. Our hotel for the night sits between the two lakes.

DAY 20: ARBA MINCH TO JINKA (265KMS) Leaving the city behind, you journey to the Omo Valley, home to the Lower Omo River. Around eight different tribes have lived in this area for centuries with a population of around 200,000 people. You will spend the night in the market town of Jinka.

DAY 21: REST DAY - JINKA

Our final rest day is planned so crews can visit the Mago National Park where you can visit with the Mursi tribe. The Mursi are probably the most famous people of southern Ethiopia. This has everything to do with the huge lip-plates worn on special occasions. However, there is so much more to learn about this fascinating tribe which goes much further than their exotic facial adornments.

DAY 22: JINKA TO AWASSA (415KMS)

It is now time to start the drive back towards the heart of Ethiopia and after 22 days on the road, this is a long but relatively easy drive as we take the asphalt road for most of the day.

DAY 23: AWASSA TO ADDIS ABABA (260KMS)

The final run takes us back into the capital and the finish line in Addis Ababa. In the evening, we will celebrate the end of another fantastic adventure with a gala dinner, with special awards presented.

DAY 24: INTERNATIONAL DEPARTURES

Our adventure has come to an end and it is time to say goodbye as crews depart Ethiopia for home with a head full of amazing memories and a full heart.

Who can take part? The Ethiopian Adventure is designed to suit crews of all levels of experience. The route will be set out in a detailed road book containing distances in kilometres and miles, written instructions and tulip diagrams; there will be no hazardous speeds, night driving, trick navigation or map work. We offer assistance with event and car preparation, rally timing and navigation, and hold a special briefing for novices before the start; you will also find lots of advice on the www.rallyround.co.uk website.

Do I need a competition licence? As this is a non-competitive event, you do not need competition licences, helmets or fireproof overalls. This is not a speed event but a road rally, operating within normal traffic rules. With relaxed schedules and numerous rest days you will have plenty of time to socialise with your fellow participants and enjoy the scenery and other attractions en route.

What sort of car do I need? This event is open to all ages of cars. If you service and prepare your car properly, upgrade its suspension and fit a sump shield for protection, it should be able to cope. Your car must be fitted with a tripmeter. You will also need to carry a few items specified in the regulations, such as a fire extinguisher and first-aid kit; comprehensive advice on car preparation and equipment may be found on our website.

What about fuel availability? There may be a shortage of fuel on the rally route, you will definitely need a range of at least 400km (250 miles).

What will the weather and road conditions be like? We will be travelling in the autumn so the days will be warm but turning cold in the evenings (highs of 23 degrees in the afternoon and 7 degrees at night. There will be scarcely any rain and the air will be arid). It can be cold at night so you should bring warm clothes for early mornings and evenings, especially for the night’s camping. The roads we use are generally good tarmac with some gravel sections.

Do I need to arrange insurance? Personal travel / accident insurance is compulsory. Third party insurance will be part of your entry fee but you are free to arrange any additional cover that you may see fit. Your shipping company may offer optional Marine Transit Insurance to cover vehicle shipping, for example.

What about visas and a carnets de passage? Visas are required by all nationals except nationals of Kenya and Djibouti and we will send you relevant information on the application process. Carnets de passages (permitting the temporary import and export of your car) may be arranged by your shipper or you can apply for this yourself. The Carnets de passages fee is based on the estimated value of your car and may take into account the engine capacity and year and place of manufacture as well; the lower your estimate, the lower the fee.

What support services are provided? Rally Round prides itself on first-class customer care and we will do our utmost to assist you at all times. The Ethiopian Adventure will have a fully qualified and highly experienced Rally Doctor who carries an extensive supply of medical equipment and has lived and worked in Ethiopia. We also have our own team of skilled and resourceful mechanics and mobile workshops, well equipped to keep you on the road or tow you to a garage or place of safety if your car is beyond immediate repair. You will also find your fellow competitors more than willing to help. Nevertheless everyone is entitled to the same support, so we expect you to be reasonably self-reliant and at least capable of routine maintenance and changing tyres, oil and fuel filters without assistance.

How much money should I carry? Hotel accommodation, breakfast and evening meals are included in the entry fee, as are many lunches and some coffee halts. However, you should bring money for drinks. Cash is useful for swift hotel checkouts and fuel stops, tips, snacks, souvenirs and so on, and we recommend keeping an emergency cash reserve for any roadside assistance that might conceivably be needed.

Anything else I need to know? Read the advice section of the www.rallyround.co.uk website, and raise any questions with the Rally Round office. We will send you frequent updates in the run-up to the rally, providing specific recommendations and anything else you need to know in order to prepare for a wonderful adventure. If you have any other questions, please email info@rallyround.co.uk or telephone +44 (0)1252 794100. We’re here to help!

ETHIOPIAN ADVENTURE 2021 QUESTIONS + ANSWERS ADVENTURE

ETHIOPIANNOVEMBER 2021 Ethiopia

The Studio, Coachman’s Lodge, Frensham Lane, Churt, Surrey, GU10 2QQ+44 (0)1252 794100 info@rallyround.co.uk www.rallyround.co.uk

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