Elevation profile

431-977 M / TERRAIN TILES SAMPLED ALONG THE TRACK

Photographs

Photos: Wikimedia Commons contributor (CC0), Astiosaurus (CC BY-SA 3.0)

Start point

Car

About 80 km, 1 h 15 from Tunis: El Fahs, the P3 toward Kairouan, right to Bent Saidane, then about 10 km south through the forest.

Louage

Louage from Tunis to El Fahs, then a taxi to Bent Saidane (verify locally).

Nearby

• Ksar EzzitLodge2.5km

The trail

A long, mostly pathless climb from the forest south of Bent Saidane to the 983 m summit of Jebel Fkirine, on the great fault of the Tunisian Dorsale.

Jebel Fkirine rises south of El Fahs, in the line of the Zaghouan massif. From a house at the end of the forest track the route follows a trail up a valley for about 2 km, then leaves it and climbs straight for the ridge, out of the forest and onto rock, and along the crest to the summit. The top sits on the main fault of the Dorsale, with a vertical offset of nearly 3000 m between its two sides, and looks north to Zaghouan and south to Bargou and Serj. Near the summit is Bir Ennadour, a sinkhole about 50 m deep. The descent takes the northern slope through maquis to a spring and back to the track. Ammonites can be found near the village.

• Summit ridge on the Dorsale fault
• Views to Zaghouan, Bargou and Serj
• Bir Ennadour sinkhole
• Byzantine nymphaeum at Ain Jouggar on the way in

Weather and season

SEASON

October to May

Monthly normals 2011-2020 at the start point, from Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0). Shaded months are the season this trail is listed for.

Practical

Water

A spring near the village on the descent; carry enough for the climb.

Guide

recommended

Hazards

Off-trail rocky ground; Bir Ennadour sinkhole near the summit; long day.

Route

Approximate line along mapped paths between verified waypoints. Follow a guide or a GPS track on the ground.

Go with a guide

These operators and clubs organise guided hikes in Tunisia:

• WildyNessTunisian booking platform for guided hikes with local guides (Cap Blanc, Mides, Selja, Dahar, El Haouaria), several with GPS downloads.
• Association Tunisienne des RandonneursHiking association in Tunis that runs and writes up group hikes across the country.
• Mosaic North AfricaTour operator offering custom hiking trips, including the Chebika, Tamerza and Mides oases.
• Destination DaharPublishes the official topoguide (12 stages, 194 km) of the Grande Traversee du Dahar.
• Grand Sahara AventuresDjerba-based operator running Berber village and desert treks in the south.
• Destination TunisTunis-based guide publishing and leading day hikes around Tunis and Cap Bon.

Sources

• Destination Tunis: Djebel Fkirine, west face
• Trek'n'sea: Jebel Fkirine expedition