It is one of the most inhospitable and hottest regions on earth. Temperatures here often reach heights of 60 degrees Celsius and more. This depression, a dried out arm of the Red Sea, is one of the most volcanically active regions in the world. Nonetheless an estimated 130,000 people live in the Danakil Desert in northeastern Ethiopia. They are the Afar people and the owners of the land that produces the “white gold” of the Danakil: salt. From time immemorial, the Afar and Tigray have worked together here to mine salt which is then transported to market by camel trains. We filmed the Afar, sometimes perceived as a hostile people, as they went about their daily lives in their villages and followed the progress of one of the salt caravans. None of this would have been possible without the assistance of Hadschi Ali Mohammed of the Tigray people. He is the central character, our travel guide in this exciting film expedition. Practically a legend in his own right, Hadschi Ali Mohammed spent more than 50 years travelling through the desert as a caravan guide. Now he guides the film crew through the bizarre landscape of the saltpan, where powerful sulphur springs fume with fascinating colours and boiling-hot geysers shoot out of the ground. This film is a scorching, exciting journey into another world and another time, which cease to exist.