Sof Omar Caves

At Sof Omar the Web river disappears into a limestone hill and runs underground for several kilometres before emerging, and the passages it has carved are the reason to come: high galleries, natural columns and a chamber known as the Chamber of Columns where flutings in the rock resemble a hall of pillars. It is among the longest cave systems in Ethiopia and one of the more spectacular river caves in Africa. The site is also a Muslim pilgrimage place, named for a sheikh who is said to have taken refuge here, and it was a place of Oromo religious significance before that. Walking through means wading the river in places with a guide and a torch, and the route depends on water level.

History

By tradition the cave takes its name from Sof Omar, a Muslim holy man who lived here, and Ayiew, the name of its entrance, from his daughter; it has long been sacred both to Islam and to the traditional Oromo religion. The explorer Arthur Donaldson Smith recorded a visit in 1894, an Italian expedition came in 1913 and the archaeologist Henri Breuil worked in the area in 1934. A 1967 survey mapped 8 kilometres of passage, and a British expedition in 1972 added 6.1 kilometres more, bringing the total to 15.1 - at the time the longest cave known in Africa, and still the longest in Ethiopia. It was placed on Ethiopia's UNESCO tentative list in 2011 (Wikipedia, Sof Omar Caves).

Highlights

• The Chamber of Columns - fluted rock forming a hall of pillars.
• The underground river - the Web running through the system.
• High galleries - large passages cut by the water.
• Pilgrimage traces - the site's religious use, past and present.

When to go

November to March, the dry season, when the water is low enough to walk the passages. After rain the river rises and the through-route becomes dangerous or impossible. Guides decide on the day.

Before you go

Walking through involves wading, sometimes to the waist, over slippery rock, and a torch is essential. High water closes the route without notice. The road from Robe is long and rough. Facilities are none and guides are arranged at the village.

Nearby

The Bale mountains lie west; Robe is the base town.

Key facts