The recent holiday weekend afforded me a once in a lifetime opportunity to take a trip into the heart of Mauritania, visiting the oasis village of Terjit, the Holy City of Chinguetti, the ancient trading post of Ouadane, and camping out in the Eye of Richat (AKA the Eye of Africa). With the recent trip to Banc d’Arguin, I have basically checked off the Mauritania bucket list. The only thing remaining would be a trip on the Iron Ore train in North Mauritania.

For this trip it was just my eldest daughter and I, as we figured a 10 hour long road trip back and forth over 3 days might be too much for our baby. We left the Embassy on an early Friday morning and first made our way to Terjit. Below is a map of our general path throughout the trip. Getting to Terjit took about 5 and a half hours, and along the way we were treated to some stunning scenery. I’m not sure why, but I just figured driving further East into Mauritania would be nothing but sand dunes, but there were mountains and pretty stunning geography along the way, in addition to lots and lots of camels. Minus the camels it really reminded me of driving through West Texas and the desert Southwest, and ultimately was more aesthetically pleasing than Nouakchott.

Camels are a common sighting in Mauritania, just about everywhere you go. That said, they were more present the more we headed inland than I would have expected. I guess when you figure the folks making their living in the middle of nowhere use them for hauling items, transportation, milk, and meat, it makes sense.

Our first stop of the day was Terjit Oasis for some lunch and a hike through the Oasis. It was beautiful and I for the life of me can’t figure out why Mauritania didn’t make their capital in this area. Sure, a port is a huge factor when making a capital, but the area around Terjit is beautiful and hands down prettier than Nouakchott. To be honest, just about everywhere else I have been in Mauritania, North, South, and now West, is prettier than Nouakchott. Either way, most of Mauritania’s mineral wealth (and overall wealth) comes from this part of the country, so having a large city here and a good rail system makes logistical sense to me….but what do I know. Here are some photos of Terjit:

After our hike, we piled back in and head 2 hours North and East to Chinguetti. Chinguetti is a medieval trading post that was founded in the 13th century as a meeting point for Muslim pilgrims travelling to Mecca, and ultimately became an important holy city of Islam as a center for religious and scientific study in West Africa. In 1996 UNESCO made it a World Heritage Site. Sadly, the government here doesn’t really do much to sustain it, with sparse private donations keeping it going. Many of the religious manuscripts from the period exist to this day and can be viewed. Here are a few photos of the city, our Auberge (hotel) and buildings that have been standing through the hard desert conditions for nearly a millennia. You can literally see the Sahara ready to engulf the village. Overall, I really enjoyed the common aesthetic all the buildings here demonstrated and thought it was a lovely place.

After a restful night in Chinguetti, we hit the road again and made our way to Ouadane. Ouadane, a UNESCO site in its own right, is also an ancient trading post that was important to the salt and gold caravans traveling from other parts of central and West Africa into North Africa. Many of its buildings date back to the 15th century, and it is the closest village to the Eye of Richat. During its history various European powers wrestled for control of the lucrative trade routes around the city. The area was really cool and a labyrinth of ancient walls and pathways on the side of a mountain overlooking an Oasis. Places like this to me demonstrate just how resilient humans are, able to survive and make a life in some of the harshest environments.

From Oudane we made about an hour journey north to the Eye. The Eye of Richat is a 25 mile diameter domed geological structure of various rock layers that form concentric rings, ultimately resembling an eye.

What exactly formed Richat has been debated by geologists for decades, and human remains have been found around the area dating back thousands of years. Some conspiracy theorists think it represents the lost city of Atlantis. Joe Rogan recently did an episode on his podcast, where his “expert” threw out a lot of theories and then admitted he had never been here or seen it with his own eye, so go figure. Whatever caused its formation, it looks incredible from above, but when you’re standing in it, it’s basically lots of rocks and salt flats. The real treat was camping in the center of the eye with awesome sky views. We had a great time making a bon fire, telling stories, and eating some delicious camel skewers. Even my picky child loved them, so my compliments to the chef.

After a surprisingly restful night, we packed up after a nice breakfast and made the 9 hour journey back to Nouakchott. I really loved this trip and the opportunity to see some of these very old places. If I had to do it again, I would probably skip the Eye, but definitely would love to camp out in Terjit or stay in Chinguetti again. I’m sure next winter when it cools down again, I will be afforded that opportunity. Either way, I am grateful to see something most humans on this planet with never view with their own eyes, and take full advantage of my posting here. These trips have been great fun with a great community, and I am so thankful for our Community Liaison Office for making them happen. Cheers! – Nick