Algeria Gorge

Arak gorges

238 m from rim to floor.

The cut

238 metres, to scale.

A slice through Arak gorges where it is deepest and narrowest, measured on the Copernicus relief model every 30 m. Same scale as the landmark standing on the floor.

Standing on the floor, to scale: Great Pyramid · 139 m

Depth is measured to the lower rim; the width is from rim to rim. A 30 m relief model smooths the narrowest walls, so a slot canyon reads shallower than it is.

238m

Depth

measured on the 30 m relief model

1.9km

Rim to rim

measured on the 30 m relief model

34°

Steepest wall

average over 300 m, from the relief

571m

Floor altitude

Rim to floor

Afternoons, up top and down below.

In July the afternoon reaches 44 °C. The best months to hike are from December to January. The floor passes 35 °C from May to October: walk at dawn and carry water.

rim · 846 mfloor · 571 m

22°21°Jan
25°23°Feb
30°28°Mar
35°33°Apr
39°38°May
43°41°Jun
44°43°Jul
43°42°Aug
41°39°Sep
35°34°Oct
28°26°Nov
24°22°Dec

Hike: Dec–JanFloor above 35 °C: May–Oct

Afternoon highs, 1991–2020 averages (NASA POWER) brought to the altitude of the rim and of the floor with the standard lapse rate (6.5 °C per 1 000 m). Shade, wind and rock change this on the day. Not a forecast.

Series of gorges in Algeria

Arak gorges is a gorge in Algeria. The relief model measures 238 m from the floor to the lower rim, and 275 m to the higher one. Rim to rim it is 1.9 km wide where the cut was taken.

Getting there.

In Salah Airport (INZ)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 255 km in a straight lineCar hire in AlgiersDiscover Cars · sponsored link
From December to Januarybest months to hike (estimate)

Plan the visit

Guided hikes, a bed nearby, a car.

Car hire in AlgiersDiscover CarsSee prices

Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.

From the sky.

The canyon from above, with the relief shaded, the line of the cut, the river and what people have mapped around it.

Arak gorges seen from above (Sentinel-2)

N 1.2 km

Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 (EOX, CC BY 4.0), 5.0 × 5.0 km, north up. The line is the cut above. Points © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Around the canyon.

viewpoints within 5 km
marked hiking routes within 4 km
via ferrata routes within 4 km
climbing crags within 3 km
footbridges and suspension bridges within 3 km
rafting, canoe, kayak or canyoning spots within 4 km
swimming spots within 3 km
named waterfalls within 4 km
caves within 3 km
car parks within 3 km
information boards and visitor centres within 4 km
bus stops within 2 km
campsites within 8 km
hotels and guesthouses within 8 km
restaurants and cafés within 4 km

Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, around the floor of the canyon. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet. © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).

In our other atlases

What else is around Arak gorges.

The river that carved it, the waterfalls inside it, the mountains on the rim, the lakes, beaches and island nearby — from our six sister atlases, each with its own figures.

Peakyas1 mountains within 15 km

Adrar Timadjarine · 12 km

Figures from the sister sites' databases (Wikidata, HydroATLAS, GeoNames, NOAA, OpenStreetMap). Links open when each site is online.

Month by month

The weather, at the floor and at the rim.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Afternoon · floor	22	25	30	35	39	43	44	43	41	35	28	24
Afternoon · rim	21	23	28	33	38	41	43	42	39	34	26	22
Night · rim	5	8	12	17	22	26	28	27	25	19	12	7
Rain (mm)	2	2	5	4	3	2	4	8	6	6	2	2
Rainy days	1	0	1	1	1	1	1	2	2	1	1	0
Sun hours/day	9.6	9.8	10.6	11.0	11.1	11.5	11.9	11.0	10.1	9.6	9.3	9.2

	Afternoon · floor	Afternoon · rim	Night · rim	Rain (mm)	Sun hours/day
Jan	22	21	5	2	9.6
Feb	25	23	8	2	9.8
Mar	30	28	12	5	10.6
Apr	35	33	17	4	11.0
May	39	38	22	3	11.1
Jun	43	41	26	2	11.5
Jul	44	43	28	4	11.9
Aug	43	42	27	8	11.0
Sep	41	39	25	6	10.1
Oct	35	34	19	6	9.6
Nov	28	26	12	2	9.3
Dec	24	22	7	2	9.2

Averages 1991–2020 (NASA POWER) for a cell about 55 km wide, brought to the floor (571 m) and the rim (846 m) with the standard lapse rate. Not a forecast.

Recent years

Wet years, dry years.

Rain of each month as a share of the 1991–2020 average. A dry year means a lower river and hotter rock; a wet one, more water in the gorge.

	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
2020	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	46%	0%	62%	—	—
2021	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	0%	0%	5%	—	—
2022	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	15%	0%	9%	—	—
2023	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	126%	0%	18%	—	—
2024	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	4%	805%	5%	—	—
2025	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	20%	80%	25%	—	—

130% or more: wet month 70% or less: dry month

Where these figures come from

Name, type, published depth and length	Wikidata (Q15051456) · CC0
The cut: depth, width, wall and 3D model	Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA
Climate	NASA POWER, 1991–2020
Viewpoints, trails, bridges and the river line	© OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL
Images	EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons
Rivers, waterfalls, mountains, lakes, beaches and islands nearby	Coastya, Lakeyas, Peakyas, Cascadyas, Islandyas, Riveryas

Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.