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The Hidden Cost of Hiking in Ethiopia: When Our Footsteps Leave Waste Behind


Hiking Around Dire Dam
Hiking Around Dire Dam

There’s something magical about hiking in Ethiopia. Whether it’s standing on the dramatic cliffs of the Simien Mountains, tracing ancient footpaths in Lalibela, or walking among the lush highlands of Bale, the feeling is always the same—awe, peace, and a deep sense of connection to the land.


But in recent years, I’ve noticed something else creeping into that experience: waste. Not the kind you can ignore. Plastic wrappers fluttering in the wind. Bottles tucked into rock crevices. Discarded food containers near rest stops. As hiking becomes more popular in Ethiopia, especially among local youth and visiting tourists, we’re facing a growing problem. we’re bringing our trash with us.

It’s more than an eyesore. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, waste in mountainous areas is a serious environmental threat. In Ethiopia’s highlands, where cold air slows down decomposition and infrastructure is limited, even something as small as a candy wrapper can linger for decades. A plastic bottle? It can take centuries to break down.


Food and Drink Packed in Reusable Containers for a Picnic
Food and Drink Packed in Reusable Containers for a Picnic

The effects go beyond the trail. Local wildlife from the endangered Ethiopian wolf to mountain baboons—can ingest waste or get sick from food scraps. Water sources, like mountain streams and crater lakes, are at risk of contamination when hikers dispose of trash or human waste improperly.


Still, there's hope. One initiative Plogging Ethiopia that was launched at the Entoto Mountain in the outskirts of Addis Ababa, has partnered with schools and youth groups to clean up hiking paths and educate hikers about environmental stewardship. Encouraging everyone to bring back more than they took up.


Picking up Trash at the Little Akaki Riverside
Picking up Trash at the Little Akaki Riverside

One of the most promising efforts comes from community-led trekking in rural Lalibela, Tigray, Wof Washa forest, and in the Simien Mountains. There are a number of community guesthouses set up along the plateaus. Where villagers work with tour operators to not only preserve the trails but teach visitors how to hike responsibly. These are the kinds of collaborations that show us the way forward: locals and tourists working together to protect the mountains that mean so much to all of us.


Hiking in Ethiopia is like a spiritual journey through some of the most breathtaking and historic landscapes on Earth. If we want current and future generations to experience that same wonder, we need to change how we walk through it.


So next time you're out on the trail—whether it's in the Arsi mountains or down in the lush Harenna Forest—take a pause. Look around. Breathe it in. And if you see a stray bottle or wrapper, pick it up. Nature gives us so much. The least we can do is leave it better than we found it.


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