Fachi

Fachi is an oasis in the middle of the Ténéré with no road to it and no settlement anywhere near, a walled ksar of salt-block and mud building at the foot of an escarpment with date palms and salt pans around it. The Kanuri people who live there have worked salt and dates for centuries and the caravan route between Agadez and Bilma passes through. Dunes surround the oasis on every side.

Background

Fachi lies among the dunes of the Erg of Bilma, on the western side of the small Agram outcrop, 160 kilometres west of Bilma and 260 km east of the Aïr Mountains, at an elevation of 593 metres. The 2012 count gave 2,215 residents, mostly Kanuri and Toubou, who call the town Agram; the official name comes from the Tuareg and Hausa, who once lived there in greater numbers. Water, dates and salt are all the oasis produces, and it lives on trading them with the Azalay caravans that stop on the way from Agadez to Kaouar. Dates are the main export, almost 80% of Niger's supply. The ksar walls of salt blocks are no longer used.

Source: Wikipedia, "Fachi"

The main sights

• The walled ksar - the old fortified settlement of salt block and mud.
• The escarpment - the rock wall the oasis sits at the foot of.
• The salt pans - the workings that give the oasis its trade.
• The surrounding dunes - sand closing in on all sides.

When to go

November to February is the cool season and the caravan period. Summer heat is extreme. The oasis is reachable only as part of a desert crossing.

Things to know

There is no road and access is a multi-day desert crossing with guide, convoy and permits. Facilities are effectively none and everything must be carried. Water at the oasis is for the residents.

Nearby

Bilma is east, and the Tree of Ténéré site is west.

Key facts