Bale Mountains National Park

Bale Mountains National Park in Ethiopia's Oromia region protects the largest contiguous afroalpine ecosystem on the African continent. The Sanetti Plateau, sitting above 4,000 metres, is crossed by one of Africa's highest roads and gives way southward to the dense, mist-draped Harenna forest. Designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023, the park was first gazetted in 1969 but remained largely off the international radar until recent years. It is the last stronghold of the Ethiopian wolf — the world's rarest canid — and home to the endemic mountain nyala. Multi-day trekking routes depart from Dinsho or Rira, covering moorland, crater lakes, and Erica forest; wildlife drives on the plateau offer the best chance to spot wolves hunting giant mole-rats at dawn.