As day breaks literally hundreds of camels, in trains perhaps 100 long, begin to arrive at the oasis. Accompanied by two or three Gabbra they had set off from the hills soon after midnight to avoid the heat of the day, and had walked across the desert by the light of the moon to arrive at the wells in the cool of the early morning.

During the day the camels drink and rest while the Gabbra fill their saddlebags with water for the return trip. Then as afternoon moves towards evening slowly the oasis begins to empty, and out on the desert floor one would see long columns of camels making their slow and steady return, indeed like ships of the desert, to the hills in the distance.

The containers in which they carry the precious water were once made of giraffe necks, the perfect shape for a water bag, but now there are few giraffe left in the region, and they are forced to change to plastic drums a good thing maybe, but a sad reflection that even out here, beyond civilisation it is still possible to get influences of the west.

Coinciding with the extraordinary arrival and exodus of the camel trains is another amazing sight; the flights of sand grouse that visit the oasis at dawn and dusk each day, by their thousands. They live deep in the desert, and they must also come to the oasis to drink, and like the camels, they must also carry water home; as one watches them land on the springs edge they run forward into the water and puff their chest feathers up to absorb as much moisture as possible.

They then take to the air with breasts laden and from which their young will be able to drink. At Kalacha the water literally gushes out of the desert, but in other places in the area there is no surface water, and the Gabbra have been forced to excavate deep "singing" wells. Every morning, as the livestock waits to be called, each herd in turn, a team of 6 or 8 tribes people begin the laborious process of lifting the water up the tiered sides, hand over hand in a human chain, and tipping it into long troughs made of stone or wood.

Standing in twos up the sides of the well and singing a rhythmic chant, the first pair standing in the water plunge their containers in unison into the clear water. Then in one fluid movement they lift them overflowing to shoulder height, turning the container as it rises to present the handle easily to the person above.

He in turn takes the presented handle with one hand and repeats the lifting and turning process, while at the same time passing an empty container into the now empty hands of the man below. This process continues until the bucket reaches the top, where it is lifted high above the head of the final person and poured dextrously on fingertips into the trough at the top.

This is done at both the speed and rhythm of the chant and is mesmerising and remarkable. A quick visit to one of the Gabbra villages provides valuable insights into their nomadic lifestyles and traditions. While here, you can visit Kalacha town where there is a small Catholic church whose interior is lined with amazing biblical paintings.

Depending on where you stay, you can catch a glimpse of Gabbra dances and plays, demonstrating traditional Gabbra marriage ceremonies. You can also visit the ancient 'rock art' of giraffe, elephant and antelope and climax your day watching the beautiful sunset in the desert on the edge of the lava flows.