Tour around Africa: Stage 18 - Tofeur - Nefta (DTTZ) to
Djerba - Zarzis (DTTJ)
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At the bottom of this page you will find the download link of
this Flight Plan (.PLN file)
In this VFR - GPS Flight Plan we take off from
the airport of Tofeur -
Nefta (DTTZ) [Tunisia] and land in the airport of Djerba -
Zarzis (DTTJ) [Tunisia], first flying SE crossing the
Chott el Djerid salt lake and the Sahara desert, passing by Chenini and
Tatahoine, and then north to the island of Djerba.
Find below a short extract and screenshots of the main points of the route. In
this journey around Africa I have used the Cessna 172S (Skyhawk)
Take off from Tofeur - Nefta airport, flying to the
SE in an clear day.
Tozeur–Nefta International Airport (French: Aéroport
International de Tozeur–Nefta, Arabic: مطار توزر نفطة الدولي) (IATA: TOE, ICAO:
DTTZ) is an airport serving Tozeur in Tunisia (*1)
Flying to the SE soon we get to the shore of the
Chott el Djerid salt lake.
Chott el Djerid (Arabic: شط الجريد Šoṭṭ el-Jarīd) also spelled
Sciott Gerid and Shott el Jerid, is a large endorheic salt lake in southern
Tunisia. The name can be translated from the Arabic into English as "Lagoon of
the Land of Palms"
The bottom of Chott el Djerid is located between 10 and 25 meters (about 30
to 80 feet) below sea level. The lake's width varies widely; at its narrowest
point, it is only 20 km (12 mi) across, compared to its overall length of 250 km
(160 mi). At times, parts of it appear in various shades of white, green and
purple. The narrow eastward inlet of the chott is also known as Chott el Fejej.
It is the largest salt pan of the Sahara Desert, with a surface area of over
7,000 km2 (some sources state 5,000 km2). The site has a typical hot desert
climate. Due to the harsh climate with mean annual rainfall of below 100 mm and
daytime temperatures sometimes reaching 50 °C (122 °F) or more during summer
with dense solar radiation, water evaporates from the lake. In summer Chott el
Djerid is almost entirely dried up, and numerous fata morganas occur. Situated
at 33 ° 42'N 8 ° 26'E in the center-west of the country, between the cities of
Tozeur and Kebili.
During winter, a small tributary of water can be seen discharging into the
lake.
Because the flooded area is very variable, values presented for the area of
the lake (or its basin, which is almost always dry), can vary widely. Some
sources provide values as high as 10,000 km². Similarly, figures given for
altitude vary between 10 meters above and 25 meters below sea level.
Currently, freshwater irrigation schemes are being applied in the region to
help eliminate salt from soils and increase the productive area. (*1)
Flying over the
Chott el Djerid salt lake.
Reaching the opposite shore of the
lake.
Overflying the town of Douz and
the palm trees.
Douz (Arabic: دوز ) is a town in the Kebili Governorate in the
south of Tunisia, known as the "gateway to the Sahara." By road it is located 31
kilometres (19 mi) southwest of Blidet, 125 kilometres (78 mi) southeast of
Tozeur, and 475 kilometres (295 mi) south of the Tunisian capital of Tunis.
It has been called the "ultimate palm oasis", because it has
over 500,000 palm trees in the area, and it is a major producer of "diglat noor"
dates. In previous times it was an important stop on the trans-Saharan caravan
routes. Today, it is a destination for tourists who are interested in seeing the
desert, and a starting point for desert treks by camel, motorcycle, or
four-wheel-drive vehicle. (*1)
Leaving Douz behind. The
Chott el Djerid lake can still be seen in the horizon.
Continuing SE we begin to understand why Douz is called the
gate of the Sahara. The immensity and loneliness of the desert is
overwhelming. Soon we'll overfly the Jebil National Park.
Jebil is a national park in Tunisia situated within the Sahara
desert. Covering an area of 150,000 hectares, it is the country's second-largest
national park, after Senghar-Jebbes National Park. Though large, it is
relatively new having been designated a national park in 1994 (unofficially
since 1984). Until Senghar-Jebbes was declared, it was the only national park
within the Sahara desert proper.
Jebil National Park is located 80 km south of Douz. Its vegetation includes
desert shrubs like the Calligonum which are common in regions inhabited by
gazelle, hare and horn viper. It also includes the daisy flowering plant
Rhanterium. The park has guarded shelters for tourists who frequent the area
(guards are stationed throughout the park). Research also takes place in the
park, since the site is home to a number of prehistoric artifacts which are
studied to learn about the different stages of human history from the Holocene
up to World War II. The park covers nearly the entire Grand Erg Oriental within
Tunisia.
In the western portion, there are 'gigantic boulders' which were formed
through weathering of plutonic rocks. (*1)
Never-ending Sahara desert while continuing towards
Chenini.
Ground rises while getting closer to Chenini
Approaching Chenini.
Chenini (Arabic: شنيني) is a ruined Berber village in the Tataouine district
in southern Tunisia. Located on a hilltop near a modern village of the same
name, Chenini was a fortified granary, or ksar (plural ksour.) Like other ksour
created by North African Berber communities, Chenini was built on a hilltop - in
this instance, between two hilltop ridges - to help protect it from raiding
parties. The oldest structures on the hillside date back to the 12th century;
some of the buildings are still used to store grain for the villagers living in
the valley below. Chenini is a regular stop on southern Tunisia's ksar trail,
along with the villages of Douiret, Ksar Ouled Soltane and Ksar Hadada.
Chenini and the surrounding Tataouine district are also associated with the
Star Wars film series. Many scenes for the movies were filmed in the area; one
of the moons of the home planet of Luke Skywalker was named Chenini. (*1)
Passing over the city of Tatahouine where we turn to the
north.
Tataouine (Berber languages: Tiṭṭawin; Arabic: تطاوين) is a city in southern
Tunisia. It is the capital of the Tataouine Governorate. The below-ground "cave
dwellings" of the native Berber population, designed for coolness and
protection, render the city and the area around it a tourist and film makers'
attraction.
From 1892 to 1951, Tataouine was the garrison town of the French penal
military unit known as the "Battalion of Light Infantry of Africa". After the
French established the town, a mosque (built in 1898) and homes were built in
Tataouine.
On June 27, 1931, a meteorite of unusual achondrite type and green color
impacted at Tataouine; about 12 kg of fragments were found. The meteorite
consists largely of the mineral enstatite, and is of the rare Diogenite type.
In March 2015, it was briefly reported that ISIL was using Tataouine as a
military base, but later these claims were denied by the Tunisian government as
false.
In September 2016, a new oil field was found south of the town by the Italian
company Eni. (*1)
Continuing to the north we fly over the city of Medinine.
Notice the shore of the Mediterranean see becoming visible in the horizon.
Medenine (Arabic: مدنين Mednin) is the major town in south-eastern Tunisia,
77 kilometres (48 mi) south of the port of Gabès and the Island of Djerba, on
the main route to Libya. It is the capital of Medenine Governorate.
In pre-colonial times, Medenine was already the most important trading centre
in the south, attracting merchants from all over North Africa and even from
Bornu, to the south of the Sahara. The Ksar housed the central granaries of the
various nomadic Berber tribes of the region.
The area was the scene of an unsuccessful German counter-attack by General
Erwin Rommel as part of Operation Capri during March 1943 against British Eighth
Army forces. The Battle of Medenine was Rommel's last engagement in Africa
before he was replaced by General Hans-Jürgen von Arnim as commander of the
Afrika Korps. (*1)
After reaching the Mediterranean cost we continue the flight
towards the close island of Djerba.
Final approach to the island of Djerba and its Zarzis airport.
Djerba (/ˈdʒɜːrbə, ˈdʒɛərbə/; Arabic: جربة, romanized: Jirba IPA: [ˈʒɪrbæ]
), Italian: Meninge or Girba, also transliterated as Jerba or Jarbah, is a 514
square kilometers (198 sq mi) Tunisian island and the largest island of North
Africa, located in the Gulf of Gabès, off the coast of Tunisia. It had a
population of 139,544 at the 2004 Census which rose to 163,726 at the 2014
Census. Citing the long and unique Jewish minority's history Djerba has had in
the past, Tunisia has sought UNESCO World Heritage status protections for the
island.
Legend has it that Djerba was the island of the lotus-eaters where Odysseus
was stranded on his voyage through the Mediterranean sea. The tradition of the
Jewish minority of Djerba says in the year 586 BC, some of the Israelite temple
priests who were able to escape the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple
there, settled in Djerba; an unusually high percentage of Jews on the island to
this day maintain family status of the priestly caste, and a genetic link has
been confirmed by DNA testing.
The island, was called Meninx (Ancient Greek: Μῆνιγξ) until the third century
AD. Strabo writes that there was an altar of the Odysseus.
The island had three principal towns. One of these, whose modern name is
Būrgū, is found near Midoun in the center of the island. Another city, on the
southeast coast of the island at Meninx, was a major producer of priceless murex
dye, and is cited by Pliny the Elder as second only to Tyre in this regard. A
third important town was the ancient Haribus. The island was densely inhabited
in the Roman and Byzantine periods, and probably imported much of the grain
consumed by its inhabitants. The island appears in the 13th century (with
possible 4th century origins) Peutinger Map. (*1)
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(*1) Credits: The descriptive texts are mainly an excerpt of those provided by
Wikipedia. Visit
Wikipedia to read the
full descriptions.
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