Gandom-e Beryan, which extends over 480 square kilometers, is a hill covered with blackened volcanic lava. The hill has been designated as the hottest spot on Earth by Parviz Kordovani, an expert on deserts and a professor of Tehran University .
In summer, temperature in the shade rises to as high as 67 degrees centigrade, the Persian daily ’ Iran ’ reported.
Gandom-e Beryan or Rig-e Soukhtah is located 80 km north of the city of Shahdad in Lut Desert, Kerman province. Due to lack of proper roads, visitors can reach the hill only with the assistance of locals who are familiar with desert routes.
The hill needs to be promoted both in terms of its geological significance and as an ecotourism spot. Temperatures in this region are tolerable only from November to April.
Shahdad Desert
Shahdad Desert is a land with many unknown wonders and phenomena, which can help open new horizons for Iran ’s ecotourism.
Desert is not just a geographical phenomenon, but also of cultural and historical value. Its starry nights, unmatched silence, calmness of the night, beautiful sunrise and sunset, elusive mirages, historical sites and the sweet taste of orange and dates appeal to all kinds of people, irrespective of their taste and nationality.
Shahdad Desert boasts the permanent Shour (Salty) River with its magnificent salt crystals, Gandom-e Beryan Hill, Barout Gorge, egg-shaped salt formations as well as desert plants that are of unmatched beauty.
A desert is like an unknown planet waiting to be discovered. Its nights cannot be described and one has to see them to experience their splendor. Nowhere else are nights as beautiful as in deserts. When night descends, it seems as if one can touch the stars. In as much as desert days are hot and arid, its cool nights are unforgettable because of the shiny stars and the unlimited blue sky.
Shahdad covers an area of 24,000 square kilometers and has a population of 30,000. It is situated some 95 km northeast of Kerman .
Why Gandom-e Beryan?
Inhabitants of Shahdad Desert also refer to Gandom-e Beryan as Rig-e Soukhtah.
A truck driver, Reza Abdollahi, who for years conducted business between Shahdad Desert and southern parts of Khorasan province such as Birjand, said that since the hill is covered with blackened lava, people in the past called the hill Rig-e Soukhteh.
Rig means small stones and soukhteh means burnt in Persian.
Abdollahi also noted that camel caravans traveled to Khorasan from Shahdad in the 1950s.
“Once a caravan was forced to unload its wheat in the vicinity. After a few days, new camels were brought from Shahdad to carry the cargo and owners of the cargo noticed that the wheat was scorched due to the intense heat. Since then, the hill was called Gandom-e Beryan,“ he said.
In Persian, gandom means wheat and beryan means scorched.
Geological Views
A senior geological expert is of the opinion that the stones of Gandom-e Beryan hill are made of lava. Mohammad Hossein Behjati said more studies are required to determine the antiquity of the hill’s stones, which are alkaline and igneous. He noted that after the eruption of magma from the volcanic peak, gas was emitted outward, leading to the formation of pits.
Behjati noted that the mouth of the volcano has eroded with the passage of time.
Kordovani, who has conducted extensive research on Lut Desert , maintains that the hill is the hottest spot in the world.
“Due to their black color, stones absorb solar energy in summer and hence the temperature of the hill goes up,“ he explained.
No Longer Remote
With the establishment of Shahdad-Nehbandan Road , which runs through the desert for over 293 km, all nature-lovers and ecotourists can witness the attractions of the desert.
Shahdad’s district governor, Mohammad Momeni, said, “During Norouz (Iranian New Year) holidays, over 30,000 tourists visited Shahdad and Lut Desert, and 1,673 stayed the night in a desert tourism camp.“
He pointed out that the camp has 34 arbors, tap water, electricity, paved roads as well as light towers, and is located some 28 km northeast of Shahdad where tourists can stay for the night.
Commenting on travel facilities to Gandom-e Beryan, he said, “Construction of the route to Gandom-e Beryan is currently under study and a gravel road will probably be constructed up to the hill by the end of autumn. The road will extend for 10 km to 15 km.“
A Finnish tourist, Kimoki Roos, 50, a photojournalist, has visited Shahdad for the second time in the past five years. He said that he traveled to Shahdad from Kerman on bicycle.
Roos says the attractions of the desert should be promoted at the international level.
Mohammad Ali Inanlou, the head of Ecotourism Institute, said ecotourism infrastructure should be established in desert areas. He proposed that Iran ’s Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts and Tourism Organization set up two more tourist camps in Shahdad.
