No matter how you look at them, the simian mountain national park will leave you speechless. For trekkers, the lack of word will be the result of their lungs screaming after slogging up a scare slope at 4543 mount Ras Dashen. For animal lovers, it will be the trepidation of sitting among a group of 100 gelada baboon that zaps their vocabulary. For everyone with a heartbeat it will simply be standing atop a panoramic precipice and looking out over the Abyssinian abyss that takes their breath away.

The 179-sq-km park lies within the ‘Afro-alpine’ zone, between 1900 and 4543m elevation. The Simien’s landscape is incredibly dramatic. It was formed by countless eruptions some 40 million years ago. Layer up on layer of molten lava was poured until it reached a thickness of 3000m. the subsequent erosion produced the mountains’ jagged and spectacular landscapes seen today.
The mountains are home to three of Ethiopia’s large endemic mammals: the WALIA IBEX, the CHELADA BABOON and the elusive ETHIOPIAN WOLF. Other mammals sometimes seen are rock hyraxes, jackals, bushbucks and klipspringers.

Endemic birds include the often –seen thick-headed siskin, white-collared pigeon, white-billed starling, wattled ibis, spot- breasted plover, white-backed black tit and Ankober seed eater or serin. Though common, one of the most memorable sights and sounds is the lammergeyer soaring low.