Libya 2006

After the magic of the desert and the sand sea, we were brought to the Acacus mountains in the south-east of Libya. I can remember thinking to myself "the scenery on this trip has gotten better and better each day - I wonder if it can continue", but continue it did. The Acacus mountains stunned us. Here are some of the reasons why. Click on a thumbnail to download a larger version of the image.


An arch in the middle of the mountains - carved out by the wind Photo: Jim Lynch	The view through the arch - note the size of the person on the sand dune Photo: Chris O'Byrne	The arch from the side - note the person to the bottom-left Photo: Jim Lynch

A different arch in the middle of the mountains Photo: Brian Seales	A scene in the Acacus mountains. Like the Grand Canyon in places. Photo: Brian Seales	Another scene in the acacus mountains. Like some alien planet almost. Photo: Brian Seales

A rather unstable-looking rock formation Photo: Brian Seales	We kept coming across interesting rock formations that reminded us of people, animals, fingers, faces etc Photo: Chris O'Byrne	Another example of the same thing - this (if memory serves me) is called the devils thumb. Photo: Chris O'Byrne

We came across this camel train - it was the support for a bunch of tourists who were walking across these amazing mountains Photo: Chris O'Byrne	Our campsite for the night in the mountains. Photo: Chris O'Byrne	One of the joys of the desert - sleeping under the moon and the stars. Photo: Chris O'Byrne

Another strange rock that we came across. Close encounters anyone? Photo: Jim Lynch	The backdrop to some of the wall paintings in the Acacus mountains. The streaks on the rock face are made by manganese ore leaching out from the rock face. Photo: Jim Lynch	There were a large number of other tour groups in Libya for the eclipse that we kept coming across. Here we meet one on a narrow mountain track Photo: Jim Lynch
A panorama of our campsite in the Acacus mountains Photo: Chris O'Byrne
A panorama of a nice spot we stopped at in the Acacus mountains Photo: Chris O'Byrne
Another panorama in the Acacus mountains Photo: Chris O'Byrne
The contrast in the desert can be amazing - here we came across some jagged (and difficult to drive across) black rock. Photo: Chris O'Byrne

Patches of vegetation persist from the rainy season. Photo: Brian Seales	It's not uphill, but it is not easy to take photos from a moving vehicle. Photo: Chris O'Byrne	The small tree at the base of the cliff is a Calotropis. Photo: Chris O'Byrne

The ground is so hard here that when it rains the water sits on the surface for weeks. Photo: Chris O'Byrne	Sand and wind have sculpted these amazing shapes over thousands of years. Photo: Chris O'Byrne	Faces and figures at every turn. Spooky place. Photo: Jim Lynch

These rocks look like they were talking to each other. Photo: Jim Lynch	Here you can see where the sand piles up against the rock face. Some of these sand piles were hundreds of feet high. Photo: Jim Lynch