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The Kremt Rains arrived – but it’s not winter.

Foggy morning – Goom – in Addis

For those of us in Addis the change in the weather has been noticeable in the last week. One of my favourite descriptive words in Amharic is ‘goom’  – ጉም – which describes the low cloud/ foggy weather which has started now. Along with a lot of rain over the last week, there is this colder wetter feel to the weather.  It is now Kremt season and a sure sign the the ITCZ: Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone, has moved north bringing monsoon rain to Ethiopia. This same phenomenon brings rain to India and even south east Oman’s Dhofar mountains going green as a result. For more background on the Kremt check out this post from 2022.

But it is not winter! Yes it’s colder and wetter, but this is the growing season, over

Rain in Gurage’s green landscape

the coming months the landscape in Ethiopia will be transformed into an emerald carpet, with clouds of yellow from the Meskal daisies (Adey Abeba).  Winter is something that occurs in temperate and polar regions of the world. Here, of course the days get short, and with that temperatures are generally much lower, and often there will be an increase in rainfall. Plants will die off, become dormant, die back (loosing their leaves) or stop growing until spring.

But a rainy season, like the Indian monsoon and the Ethiopia Kremt, is the time of growth for plants. Crops are sown to grow during the rainy season.

How long does the Kremt last:

Rain storm in Wollo

It varies across the country, and as you go north it tends to be weaker and start later, and even end earlier, whereas in Addis it’s longer. The date I found in the church calendar for the start of the Kremt as Senay 26 (3rd July) but in Addis it does seem to begin in mid June. Some years even earlier.  The heaviest rain would be expected through the 2nd half of July and through August, with the rains getting less through September. By Meskal (27 September) they will almost be over, with perhaps a week or som of intermittent rain. Again the church calendar has the end of the Kremt as Meskerem 25 which is 5th October. From then on the weather should change dramatically to clear skies and very dry conditions – often with a wind that can be quite cool off the mountains.

What trips are good in the Kremt:

Rainbow comes out over the mountains in Tigray

As I mentioned as you travel north the rains become less, so it’s a good time to visit Tigray, where you will get a good deal more sun and drier conditions. On the Tesfa trek in the Agame mountains much of the ground is sandy so the rains soaks away more and it does not get muddy. The same is true in Gheralta. Often the rain comes in late afternoon and at night and you can be in a guesthouse or perhaps watch the cloud and lightening play out in the distance.  There is a special holiday in Tigray, celebrated in the countryside called Ashendiye on 22 August when women dress up with grass skirts and there is a lot of dancing, which would be great to see. And the  delicious beles fruit is ripe – the prickly pear – and is best from the Agame mountains.

Also you can head south. As you go to lower altitudes it gets warmer and although there is more rain in this season it’s a great break from Addis. Staying at a lodge on Lake Langano or in Bishoftu is a nice break. Or you can go further south to Hawassa or Arba Minch where you will get some good weather and storms running through, but with that tropical feel.

And talking of lower altitudes and warmth – how about a weekend at Doho Lodge in Awash, with its beautiful spring fed pools, overlooking an oasis like lagoon! A great place to escape too for a couple of days.

As the waterfalls get more dramatic – checking the weather forecast – you could take advantage of a drier day and head to Debre Libanos to see the falls there (but this would be a last minute thing).

In late September you should pack your travel bags for more adventurous places. Tesfa, with Ride the Rift, are running a Meskal trip to Gurage at the end of September. While there is a focus of mountain biking we take hikers and runners too, and will try to include a half day rafting on the Wabe River (which the upper river for the Omo). But what makes this tip unique is the cultural experiences, joining in the Meskal celebrations that are so much part of the Gurage culture.

 

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Kremt Season – The Ethiopian Monsoon

Rain storm approaches in mountains of Tigray

Rain storm approaches in mountains of Tigray

When is the Kremt?

The Ethiopian highlands get drenched each year from late June through September. In Addis the rains are heavy and start early and end late finally finishing at the start of October. But by mid to late September the rain becomes noticeably lighter and less frequent. Further north they might not kick in till mid July and tend to fizzle out a bit earlier in September.

Visiting Ethiopia during the Kremt

People ask about visiting Ethiopia during this Kremt season. For people living in Addis Ababa, looking for an escape from the cold and wet weather the best advice is to go to somewhere lower in

Kremt Rain Addis

Kremt rains in Addis  

altitude. Take a break from Addis by visiting Bahir Dar or Arba Minch. Or just head into the Rift Valley, as even the 50km drive to Bishoftu gives you a change in climate. Yes it’s still rains, but the rain storms are shorter lived with more blue sky between, and temperatures are a good deal higher than in Addis.

If the Kremt is your time to visit Ethiopia, don’t worry most places are still good to visit. You just need to be prepared that a rainstorm might track through and you will be sitting in a cafe, chatting to people waiting for the weather to clear. So don’t try to pack too much into one day but give yourself a little bit of extra time. And of course do pack the right clothes (it will be cooler and rain jackets are  needed – and maybe an umbrella!).  Of course the high mountains with moorland at around 4,000 meters altitude are perhaps not the best places to go. Particularly in the

Blue Nile Falls

Blue Nile Falls

Simien mountains where you could be in cloud and driving rain for very long periods of time. But it may still be worth spending a night at the lodge for the probability of clear skies early in the morning and amazing views. Some of our community treks are not advisable at this time and we close at a number of guest houses. However Lalibela, Gondar and Bahir Dar are well worth visiting at this time. Indeed by August the Blue Nile Falls – locally known as Tissisat are really pumping. Harar to the east, and many places in the south are also great to see in the rainy season. In fact in the far southwest, in the

Meket Shepherd boy with whip

Meket Shepherd boy with whip

Omo Valley July and August are not even rainy season.

Festivals in the Kremt 

There are also some key festivals to look out for in August. The Buhe/Ashenda festival time comes in late August. Buhe is celebrated in Addis on 19 August with the Debre Tabor holiday marking Jesus’ Transfiguration. Special bread is baked, and there is singing and dancing around campfires. A few days later, Ashenda is celebrated as the two week long Filsetta Fast ends. This is mostly a women’s day where they dress up often with skirts of grass and dance and sing, but in some areas such as around Lalibela and Meket, boys will have a contest to see who can make the loudest whip crack.

What is the Kremt?

Trading routes used by dhows in the Indian Ocean and the monsoon

Trading routes used by dhows and the monsoon

So is the Kremt season really a monsoon? Technically yes, this rain is driven by the same global patterns that drive India’s monsoon. There is a kind of climatic equator where the Southern and Northern Hemisphere’s meet called the Inter-

Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) . This was the phenomenon that causes the doldrums sailors used to fear. In July-September this band moves north, far north into Asia and it also moves north of the Horn of Africa. Behind it it pulls up winds that blow broadly north from the Indian Ocean, and these moisture ladened winds soak the Ethiopian highlands with life giving rains.

This monsoon even has an effect on Oman’s east coast with the Dhofar mountains getting a good soaking in the same period, before returning to the usual dry arid climate. Along Africa’s east coast trading Dhows used this shift in winds to sail north the July-Sept and as the ITCZ shifts south from October, so the winds would switch allowing sailors to take their shows as far south as Madagascar. Zanzibar was off course a key port and trading centre in this international traffic, with its fabled spices. It was in fact part of the Sultanate of Oman.

The Kremt and the Origin of Ethiopia’s Calendar

Nile flood waters at Giza

Nile flood waters at Giza

Ethiopia’s Kremt rains have also had a huge effect on Egypt. Ancient Egyptians relied upon the Nile’s floodwaters to reinvigorate the lands beside the Nile and so allow them to plant a crop as the floodwaters receded. For them the flood was a renewal. The ancient Egyptian New Year started when the Nile began to flood. And it is no surprise that this flood was due to the deluge in the highlands of Ethiopia, most of the water from which makes its way into the Nile basin. And in an ironic exchange Ethiopia has taken the basic timeframe of the Egyptian calendar for itself. The Ethiopian New Year which is currently on the 11th of September each year is derived from the ancient Egyptian New Year. Over the many thousands of years the date has slipped back from mid August when the flooding starts.

So whether you live in Ethiopia and are wondering if you have to endure endless weeks of rain in Addis, or you are considering to visit Ethiopia and are wondering if the rainy season is an OK time to see this marvellous country, please talk to us as Tesfa Tours and we can ensure you see some blue skies, get some sunshine and experience the best of Ethiopia.

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The rainy season in Addis

Rain in Tigray“A veritable monsoon!” Is how I often describe it, and it is. Its cause is the same weather patterns that cause the monsoon to sweep up through India – monsoon is the Indian word for their rainy season and kremt is the Amharic word.

And rather like the monsoon in India it does not rain all day, but rather heavy downpours roll through, skies darken, the wind picks up and torrential rain, often with hail follows. Later on or next morning the skies are clear and the sun shines brightly for some hours.  Its not a bad time to be in Addis or in Ethiopia. Pack an umbrella, put on the some boots, and head off to explore. If your visiting, just be ready to dive into a coffee shop and sit out the rain.

This year in Addis the Kremt is giving us a lot of sun and glorious weather, with much of the rain in the night. This is worrying, as the rain that comes to Addis is far more than the rain that goes to many other regions of Ethiopia, all of which depend on the Kremt to start off their crops, allow the meadows to grow hay, refill the water table so springs are replenished, refill reservoirs to generate electricity. If the rains intensify now that would be good, and they need to be strong through into late September. The official date for the end of the Kremt is Meskerem 25th which this year falls on 6th October, but already by the Meskal holiday (Meskerem 17 or 28th September) the rains will usually become far less frequent and the signs will be there that the dry season is coming.
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A reminder for anyone looking to do some trekking. Tigray is fantastic for walking at this time of year. It does not rain much there, mostly at night, and the sun will be out in the morning. Let us know if you would like to make a trek and we can organise it.

 

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