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Djibouti

The otherworldly landscape inspired Charlton Heston to shoot his classic 1968 film, "Planet of the Apes", on the shores of Lake Abbe.

The sun balancing on the Chimneys

Perfect balancing of the sun and chimneys.

The sun balancing and leaning on the Chimneys.

We were lead to believe we would be staying at a Red Sea Resort. This is home for the night. An Afar hut. Dirt floor, a cot, no sheets, no pillow, no blanket. Toilet off in the distance but no water, no toilet paper. Shower also in the distance no water, no towels, no soap . Surprisingly the food was good. Local dishes. A fellow traveler Bill is standing at the entrance with me.

Inside the Afar hut.

Fellow travelers and their huts. At least I had a hut built of stone and not skin covering the outside.

Ironically the moon this night in November 2016 was the brightest of the entire year with a larger than normal size moon.

As the boiling water bubble up to the surface, they deposit the dissolved calcium carbonates creating towering chimneys, the same way water trickling down the roof of limestone caves create stalactites and stalagmites.

Some of these chimneys reach heights of 50 meters, and puffs of steam vent from the top

Magma pushes to the surface through the thin spots and warm underwater springs.

The water is so hot you do not want to put a finger or hand in it.

Sun rising at 5:30 in the morning. Air was cool and crisp.

Young Afar boy out early in the morning. Notice the salt on the ground.

Close to Lake Abbe the landscape is really beautiful with the early morning sun shinning on it.

Lake Abbe is fed by the Awash River, and seasonal streams which enter the lake from the west and south, crossing the vast salt flats. On the northwest shore rises Mount Dama Ali, a dormant volcano

When continental plates move apart in the ocean, it creates new sea floor, but in East Africa, the process is happening on dry ground, where it is called continental rifting.

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