1. |

Red Sea Reef

 

The Red Sea Reef stretches over 1,240 miles along the coast of Egypt, Sudan, and Eritrea. There are more than 1,100 species of fish that call this Red Sea Reef home and nearly 10 percent of these are exclusive to this region. The reef features include abundant aquatic life, platforms, lagoons, and cylinders.

 

 

2. |

Sahara Desert

 

The Sahara Desert is the largest hot desert in the world and the second largest desert apart from Antarctica. The boundaries of the Sahara Desert stretch from the Red Sea on the east, the Atlantic Ocean on the west, the valley of the Niger river on the south, to the Mediterranean Sea on the north. The desert encompasses, at least in part, the countries of Algeria, Chad, Egypt, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Niger, Western Sahara, Sudan, and Tunisia. The Nile river runs through the Sahara Desert throughout the year, but all other rivers only exist seasonally. Grasslands may be found in the northern and southern parts of the desert, but the center region is extremely arid. The geography of the desert includes tremendous sand dunes and dune fields which may be described as a sea of sand. Additionally, there are unusual and unique landforms, stone plateaus, salt flats, gravel plains, and arid valleys.

 

 

3. |

Tsingy de Bemaraha

 

Tsingy de Bemaraha is a unique geographical area with intriguing landforms. It is also known for its mangrove forests and lemur populations.

 

 

4. |

Mount Kilimanjaro

 

Mount Kilimanjaro is one of the largest stratovolcanoes in the world reaching 19,340 feet into the air. As the tallest mountain in Africa, Mount Kilimanjaro is also the tallest free standing mountain in the world. Kilimanjaro is a composite volcano that includes layers of lava, tephra, and volcanic ash. The volcano is currently inactive with no known history of eruptions. Mount Kilimanjaro has seven distinctive peaks with Uhuru Peak accounting for the mountains highest elevation at 19,341 feet. A 1.5 mile wide crater is featured as part of the Kibo portion of the mountain. The high elevation and proximity to the equator allows visitors to experience every climate type. Kilimanjaro also features a year round snow-topped peak. Although the volcano is isolated, it is part of the line of volcanoes that reach across northern Tanzania.

 

 

5. |

Avenue of the Baobabs

 

The Avenue of the Baobabs, also known as the Alley of Baobabs, is located in Madagascar but the tree may be experienced in several other parts of Africa. The largest baobab trees are considered to be in South Africa. These trees are reported to have a circumference of 160 feet.

 

 

6. |

Serengeti Migration

 

The Serengeti migration is the longest and largest over land migration in the world. The Serengeti plains account for over 18,641 square miles and the migration itself travels 500 miles on the path from Tanzania to the Masai Mara Reserve in Kenya. Approximately 80 percent of the Seregeti plains are protected by the Tanzanian and Kenyan governments. The Serengeti is home to over 70 larger mammals and approximately 500 different types of birds. Probably the most impressive part of the migration is the herds of wildebeests that blanket the plains. The migration will kill off around 250,000 wildebeests each year.

 

 

7. |

Ngorongoro Crater

 

Ngorongoro Crater is the world’s largest unbroken caldera. Often referred to as “Africa’s Garden of Eden,” the crater is home to over 30,000 animals including elephants, lions, cheetahs, wildebeests, buffaloes, and the rare black rhinos. Ngorongoro Crater was created from a volcano that exploded creating the caldera wilderness haven. The crater is 12 miles across and consumes 102 square miles of wilderness. The rim of the crater rises just over 2,000 feet above the caldera floor reaching an elevation of 7,500 feet.

 

 

 

8. |

Aldabra Atoll

 

The Aldabra Atoll is the second largest atoll in the world behind the Kiritimati atoll. It stretches 21.1 miles long and 9 miles wide. The Aldabra atoll is 26.2 feet above sea level and has a land area of 96.5 miles. The lagoon stretches 139.1 miles across; much of the lagoon will be exposed during low tide. The Aldabra Atoll includes a ring of four larger islands: Grand Terre, Malabar, Polymnie, and Picard, and a few smaller islands. The islands have no inhabitants apart from a small staff of rangers. The atoll accounts for the largest population of giant tortoises. Additional wildlife includes: hammerhead sharks, barracuda, green turtles, hawksbill turtles, mantarays, and various birds.

 

 

9. |

Zuma Rock

 

Zuma Rock is a monolith found in Niger. It is easily observed by driving the road out of Abuja which is the capital of Nigeria. The nickname, Gateway to Abuja, is derived from this road. The Zuma Rock features a naturally occurring face on the side of the monolith.

 

 

10. |

Mount Kenya

 

Mount Kenya is the tallest mountain in Kenya and is only second to Mount Kilimanjaro. The mountain features three peaks over 16,000 feet. Mount Kenya is located in the Mount Kenya National Park close to the equator. The UNESCO has declared Mount Kenya as a world heritage site. The park and area receives approximately 15,000 visitors each year. Theder immense pressure.

 

 

11. |

Peak of the Furnace

 

The Peak of the Furnace is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. The Enclos Fourque caldera is 5 miles wide and accounts for the top part of the volcano. Dolomieu is a 400 meter lava shield found inside the caldera. In addition to the lava shield, the caldera features craters, spatter cones and beaches.

 

 

12. |

Okavango Delta

 

The Okavango Delta is the world’s largest inland delta. The delta is created from the rains the fill the Okavango River which is delivered to the basin of the Kalahari Desert. This is caused from the rainy season that occurs between January and February. The waters begin filling the delta in March and rising to the peak months of July and August. The majority of water is lost to evaporation and transpiration. Plants and transpiration account for 60 percent of the water lost followed by evaporation with 36 percent. The delta is extremely flat with less that 7 feet of elevation change. Every year the delta features 11,000,000,000,000 liters of water flow. The Okavango Delta is an amazing home to a variety of wildlife. Some of the wildlife are seasonal following the rains while others call the area home year round. For visitors, safari goers and nature lovers it is a wildlife haven. Some of the wildlife that may be experienced include: elephant, buffalo, hippos, rhinos, crocodiles, lions, leopards, and cheetahs. Yes, The Big 5 can all be experienced in the Okavango Delta. The Okavango Delta is also a sanctuary for over 400 species of birds making this a great destination for bird watchers as well. Some of the birds that may be encountered include the ostrich, African Fish Eagle, Crested Crane, Lilac-Breasted Roller, among many other amazing birds.