Chott el Djerid

Chott el Djerid (Arabic: شط الجريد‎ Šaṭṭ al-Ǧarīd), also spelt Shaţţ al Jarīd, Sciott Gerid, and Shott el Jerid, is a large endorheic salt lake in southern Tunisia. The bottom of Chott el Djerid is located between 10 and 25 meters above sea level. Roughly in the shape of a tadpole, with a width of 20 km (12 mi) at its narrowest point, it reaches 250 km (160 mi) in overall length. At times, parts of it appear in various shades of white, green and purple. The narrow eastward inlet of the chott is also known as Chott el Fejej.

It is the largest salt pan of the Sahara with a surface area of over 7,000 sq km (some sources state 5,000 sq km). Due to the extreme climate with annual rainfall of only 100 mm and temperatures reaching 50 °C, water evaporates from the lake. In summer Chott el Djerid is almost entirely dried up, and numerous fata morganas occur. During winter, a small tributary of water can be seen discharging into the lake.

Access:
The lake can be crossed by foot and even by car, but this is very dangerous since the salt crust is not always firm. During winter, when the lake is full, it can be crossed by boat. Piles of salt at its edges are collected for salt production processing.