The Richat Structure, also called the Eye of Africa or the Eye of the Sahara, is considered one of the great geological treasures of the world. The magnificent formation of rock rings of various types is believed to be the result of magma pushing all kinds of different rocks up and out, forming a dome. In her latest video, Itchy Boots not only finally arrives at the Richat Structure on her trusty Honda CRF300L Rally, but she rides right through it.
If you’ve seen satellite images of the Richat Structure, you have an idea of what it looks like. Various rings of rocks form a view that is, as Noraly describes it, a lot like when you slice an onion in half. Although your mind might think “hey, it’s a satellite image, so this thing must be pretty big,” it’s still probably not preparing you for the true scale of this thing. I mean, the outer ring is a full 40 kilometers in diameter—or just under 25 miles. Luckily, as ever, Noraly is taking us all with her on her journeys—and as a result, we get to see places and things we might not otherwise get to see.
When we last left off, Noraly was climbing the mountains that border the Richat Structure. At the beginning of this video, she’s made it to the plateau. She and her amazing traveling companion Ahmed stop to visit a nomad family, who welcomes them into their tent for some camel milk, tea, and a small respite in the shade before they resume their journey.
Of course, what goes up must also go down. Soon, Noraly and Ahmed are winding their way down rocky slopes to finally approach the Richat Structure. Itchy Boots wisely sends her drone up to get some unbelievable aerial video, but even that can’t quite encompass the absolutely massive scale of this thing.
Once you have some understanding of how massive it is, you begin to understand why it’s difficult to see on the ground. As Noraly and Ahmed cross through the Richat Structure, you see areas where the rocks start to change, which are the result of some types of rock degrading more quickly than others under weather exposure. Those rings that are so evident on a GPS or in satellite photos, however, just aren’t something that we tiny humans are equipped to see on the ground.
It’s an absolutely phenomenal thing, and thanks to the magic of YouTube, we’re right there along for the ride. After riding through, the pair make a stop in the fortified village of Ouadane, where Ahmed needs to get the exhaust on his truck welded after the beating it’s taken driving over all those rocks. At the end of the video, the two have made camp for the night outside an oasis, between Ouadane and Chinguetti in Mauritania, which is where they’re headed next. What adventures lie ahead? We’ll just have to find out when you do.
