The three sources in Sahara desert. Tunisia

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Point of departure the millennial Hotel Les Berbères dug by hand in the heart of the mountain of Matmata, the fuel is made and fresh food are loaded into the galley kitchen from the ground, you leave. The stretch of asphalt that leads the intersection of Pipeline is very scenic and a few stops for photos of ritual is mandatory. Reached the intersection, cross quickly the new stretch of asphalt is about 60 km. which enshrined the definitive end of poetic dell'Oasi Ksar Ghilane, raggiungibile hours provided by the large mass of any means of locomotion. We reach the top of dirt just south dell'oasi, about 50 km of track, interspersed by small heaps of sand and long stretches of Toul undulating us fairly quickly to the center of oil Kamur, where the bureaucracy got access to the south . At the end of the bad control barrier that delimits the area is prohibited from raising a watch very cordial greeting and we rely on the march. Still many tens of km. separate us from a secondary runway, which will follow up at the foot of a sandy Erg among the most difficult of all to cross the Sahara "Zemlet el Borma. We are slightly off track do not forget that we have to play in a week and already we will be back Friday, so we can not afford excessive delays. We decide to get inside of ERGOSE now seeking a good place to camp, but first we collect some 'wood for the fire must serale around which we can share our first impressions of the journey. We provide the first field, we enjoy the sunset and a good dinner, simple things that become unforgettable when experienced in pleasant company, with silent and cords of gigantic dunes to the background. The next morning we move towards a source of "Itnin" (in Arabic), we meet again soon in the midst of a real tidal wave of sand, where it very hard to move between the narrow dunes just typical of this area. The fraught with short climbs and narrow room for maneuver contrast with breathtaking descents that make us go to great depressions or Catini 500/1000 of mt. in diameter, which release a 'the trouble is that human mechanics. All un po 'in turn, a little' us all together sand, is part of the game, everyone, even those who had never used a tow strap to end travel experts will be in the proper use and placement of straps, shackles and the other is for disincagliamento media. Once we reach the ridge that divides two Catini, but this time the pale yellow of the sand is broken by the intense green of vegetation, a sign that the water is near. Descend on a remote plain disfigured remains of ancient metal drilling, contorti witnesses of a past where the man was trying to get rich at all costs looking for oil and finding instead something far more valuable, which here flows over twenty years, allowing life to resist this hostile environment. The water is free of any interest to the man that was, becomes a salvation in the midst of a sea of sand to many forms of life. Plants and flowers that usually we see in our daily lives, they become the subject of interest because it placed in that particular context. After reaching a small stream, it traced back to the source. At the exact center of a pipe bowl of about half a meter in diameter stands vertically for about 8 meters, at its end a jet of hot water at about 40 degrees comes with an impressive, the rain that falls in the immediate vicinity that has a force of impact on land near there you can stay in the pond and that is created at the base with its small beach is ideal for stay to enjoy the deserved said after the great hardships imposed by severe dunes of "El Zemlet Borma. The relaxation is such that even if it is not yet evening we decide to stop and set up the second field. In the morning, soon raise the curtains in order to take full advantage of the compact sand typical of the early hours of the day, spend the whole morning before reaching the second source. During the journey a pleasant meeting with a small clan of the largest nomadic tribe of the Great Eastern Erg, that of R'Baya that the shade of a small tamarisk monitor dromedaries with some attention to them, descendants of tribal warriors who invaded the North Africa is currently the only R'Baya of dromedaries skilful breeders and hunting dogs of the desert a type of hound that can compete in speed with the snappy gazelles. With eloquent gestures show us the shortest route to the second source, three cords of dunes to the only two with the sun on them right there is the water, moments of communication and only one person alive can understand its importance. The source two Wahad "(in Arabic) is undoubtedly a wonderful place, here there is no sign of old drilling, and a true paradise. A circular basin surrounded by high dunes, in the middle of a jet of water comes out great at about 40 degrees from a vertical tubone of about two meters high feeding a pond of discrete size and giving life to a wide expanse of plants and flowers . These images leave amazed, these images are certainly all the hardships faced and those that separate us from the fast track that will lead us much further Nord.Il off track grew choose to be closer as possible to the runway prior to use the third bivouac on sabbia.Percorriamo about 5 km and a much smaller level of the other, protected by insurmountable cords of dunes are the ideal place to stop. The further supported because it is impossible given the height and slope of the dunes that surround us. We await the group, which has more than linger in a particularly difficult passage, it passes a good half hour, the engine is turned off for some time, the silence is total, with great surprise to see us move towards an animal that rarely succeeds to discern the Varano gray sand. The sample size that is important approaches to the medium rather intrigued. Varano The gray is the largest living reptile in the Saharan great hunter is very clever in perception away as far in advance of the approaching alien beings. We must not frighten him to photograph him, we just have time BRO shooting also quite successful and the snake goes away fast. Meanwhile, the vehicles that have been right the last we reached the dunes, then prepare the third camp, dinner and really tired, but satisfied, we throw ourselves in tents. The next fall back by about a km. bypassing those insurmountable chains and achieving a lowering of ridges, in the jargon "door" that allows us to quickly reach the trail connecting the base oil of El Borma and that will lead us to the North, towards the source of Ksar dell'oasi Ghilane, about 200 km all the hard track. Then in the late afternoon we make the road to Douz where we will visit and make purchases in the usual characteristic Souk. In the evening, should a quick rearrangement of vehicles at will lead us in Tunis, from where, as usual now for over ten years, saliremo on the ferry to Italy with the thought already turned to a new adventure in Africa ...