Senafe

Senafe sits in the southern highlands below Amba Metera, a rock massif rising abruptly above the town that can be climbed for the view out over the escarpment and the lowlands beyond. The town is the base for Metera and Debre Libanos of Ham nearby. Saho and Tigrinya communities meet here and the market draws the surrounding country. The road south runs on toward the Ethiopian border.

Background

Senafe stands at 2446 metres on the southeastern rim of a caldera twenty kilometres wide, and the soil around it comes from volcanic ignimbrite. Apart from Metera, also known as Balaw Kalaw, there are ruins at Qohayto, south of the town, and at Kaskase, to its north. The Egyptus Novelo map of 1454 already shows the town, linked by one route west to Axum and another south to Lake Ashangi. In 1625 Jerónimo Lobo came through after crossing the Danikil Desert. Clements Markham later described about a dozen houses of rough stone and mud, with flat roofs and broken jars set in as chimneys, and put the population at around 240.

Source: Wikipedia, "Senafe"

Highlights

• Amba Metera - the rock massif rising above the town.
• The escarpment view - the drop toward the lowlands from the heights.
• The market - the trading point for the southern highland country.
• The base function - the point for reaching Metera and Ham.

When to go

Year round; the highland climate is mild. The small rains fall around March and April, the main rains June to September. Market days are busiest.

Good to know

A travel permit from Asmara is required to come here and is checked on the road. Facilities are basic. Some ground remains restricted.

Nearby

Metera is south, and Debre Libanos of Ham is southwest.

Key facts